The New York Times really struck a nerve with the NFL.
The NFL was angry at the Times story that linked the league to the tobacco industry ("N.F.L.’s Flawed Concussion Research and Ties to Tobacco Industry," published online on March 24), taking the rare step of publishing a two-part rebuttal that was more than 3,000 words in total. Then this week it had a law firm send a letter to The Times demanding a retraction, claiming the story defamed the NFL. Politico published the letter sent from the law firm to the NFL.