by Michael Fox

Created on: November 22, 2011

It's completely understandable that people would see commercials during NFL games. After all, football is the most popular sport in the United States in terms of television viewership. The question is, when does the line between the game and the marketing dollar end?

The commercial breaks in games are understandable. However, there are some cases where breaks are not needed. Do you really need a two minute commercial break during an injury timeout that ends up lasting about twenty seconds? Also, is a commercial really needed after every single change in possession? Why no make it so that there's a break after every other change in possession? That would certainly help to improve the pace of the game and to keep the momentum of the game going no matter who is being favored. Besides, the team that gets possession after the commercials end would be different in the second half than it is in the first half.

There have been many points that involve different companies getting into the game by sponsoring individual facets of television. The big point is, what is really responsible with who is sponsoring it? It's one thing when the Home Depot sponsors it but how can you take it seriously when a beer company, male enhancement product or gout medication is sponsoring a key part of the game? After all, alcohol is a depressant that keeps people from playing at their best. The ads for male enhancement pills and gout products are just going to create dirty thoughts.

There is also the concern about networks promoting their own shows in the middle of the games. Do you really think that Marv Albert is interested in Two Broke Girls? Also, I am sure that most football fans probably don't have much of an interest in watching whatever non-Simpsons or non-Seth MacFarlane animated production is being made on Fox to air on Sundays. Sometimes the transitions between these ads can be very unusual or unnatural.

The issues of commercials with NFL games on TV is something that is going to be good to debate. It's completely understandable that commercials are a way of life in television. In fact, the commercials during the Super Bowl are often as entertaining as the actual Super Bowl. However, there comes a time when a network goes a little to far or the contracts with a game goes to where it might not be appropriate.

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