ATLANTA — After the NFL’s best season in years, Roger Goodell, the league’s commissioner, got his chance to crow Wednesday afternoon before its showcase event.
“This season has demonstrated that there has never been a better time to be a part of the NFL,” Goodell said. “Our game is getting better and better, and our engagement and popularity is unmatched in today’s media landscape.”
Under Goodell, the NFL has tried to be everywhere all the time. The combine, the draft and the minicamps have become manufactured events unto themselves; there are now games on Thursday nights and some, played in London, early on Sunday mornings; and most games have remained on network television even as other sports have largely moved their games to cable and now streaming.