For those of us who for weeks have been looking to the NFL draft as a desperately needed diversion from coronavirus news, Thursday’s opening minutes of the draft program were a perfect tonic.
The NFL institutionally often is crass and overbearing, with Super Bowls in particular prone to hype, glitz, and trashiness. But, every so often, it gets the zeitgeist right, and Thursday’s opening segments certainly did so.
It began with a voice-over by the endlessly likable Peyton Manning, who has great credibility as a public-spirited athlete, talking about how the public is finding the best in its response to the current pandemic. It featured a surprise appearance by the nation’s newest unifying figure, Dr. Anthony Fauci, talking about how games such as football can serve as psychological pick-me-ups and give us hope that we can get back to normal.
Then came the national anthem, done in a classy, soulful way by Harry Connick Jr., playing his own piano accompaniment in sweet, understated tones as he crooned, rather than blasted out, the lyrics.
And, for a nice little comic touch from an unexpected source, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, standing in front of a bank of televisions featuring live shots of fans from their own homes, made self-deprecating jokes about missing the boo birds who usually greet him on draft night. (Yeah, Goodell carried the joke considerably too far by mugging for the fans again almost every time he appeared on screen for the rest of the night, but, when he first made reference to his own unpopularity, his tone and demeanor were pitch-perfect.)
All in all, it was good stuff. It helped even more that ESPN’s coverage managed to find a nice little human interest angle to almost every player drafted — a father killed by a hit-and-run driver while helping others, a baby sister born with health problems who didn’t make it, personal hurdles overcome.
For that night, at least, then, there were no “missed calls,” no penalties needed. The NFL produced a unifying, uplifting show. The fall season can’t come soon enough.
