It's not what you think... Today I am going to take a break from talking about softball and cover a recent controversy that has popped up in the world of sports. There was a recent decision by the NFL team owners to allow players to participate in the flag football event at the 2028 Summer Olympics.
First of all, let's get this out of the way. Why is flag football an Olympic sport at all? I'm not saying flag football isn't fun to play or watch, but I think things are getting a bit out of hand with the events that they are starting to allow in the Olympics. Before you know it, they really are going to start having an underwater basket weaving event (as cliche as it is).
That's just my personal rant, the fact that this event is even an event has nothing to do with the current controversy.
You see, while the NFL players have been busy doing their thing playing NFL football, there has also been a league of talented players making a name for themselves playing flag football. So imagine you are a young man who has dedicated all of his free time to playing the "sport" of flag football. You make the Olympic team and you are quite possibly the best flag football running back out there.
Then this decision gets made and the teams decides why not have superstar Jahmyr Gibbs play running back. As you might imagine, there are some players who are up in arms wondering if the NFL players are now going to get preferential treatment due to their status in the Olympic games. I've seen articles hinting that the US could have a flag football "dream team", but if it comes at the expense of someone who earned the spot, is it really a dream outcome?
Even if the top tier players from the NFL decide it isn't worth the chance of getting injured or outright embarrassed by a non-NFL player, the prospect of second or third string players taking the place of players who have worked hard in the flag football landscape to earn their spot is a bad look.
Ideally, prudence will win out in this case, but it is interesting to look towards another example of how professional athletes seem to get preferential treatment in the US.
What do you think? Should NFL players be able to play flag football in the Olympic games? Do you think this is a non issue or do you see this as being the next big sport controversy? Let's talk about it in the comments!
My Sports Account - @bozz.sports
