CINCINNATI — Mike Brown remembers when the NFL’s main office was small enough to fit into the same area as his modest work space inside Paul Brown Stadium.
In many ways, he wishes that was still the case.
Brown and his Cincinnati Bengals are part of the gradually dwindling group of family-run franchises whose roots date back to an era when the league didn’t have such a single-minded focus on expanding revenues. The proliferation of outsider billionaire owners, especially those in larger markets, and the NFL’s incessant push for profits has the 81-year-old Brown worried about what direction the league is ultimately headed and whether clubs like his Bengals can remain financially viable.