Getty ImagesThe NFL’s annual Pro Bowl routinely provides the league with an occasion to let its hair down. Or, some would say, to remove to the stick from a place where sticks ordinarily aren’t stuck.
At this year’s Pro Bowl, the league will permit players to post Twitter messages during the game, according to Darren Rovell of CNBC.
But it won’t be open season for tweeting, with players pounding away on their smartphones while in full pads. Instead, each sideline will have a computer station.
Rovell points out that the computer stations won’t be sponsored. He should have added “this year.” Surely, the league will find a way to turn this into a revenue stream, and there’s nothing wrong with that.
Ordinarily, the league prohibits players from posting messages on Twitter and other social media beginning 90 minutes before kickoff and extending through the post-game media availability.
The game will be televised by NBC, with the game streaming online at NBCSports.com. I’ll also be tweeting during the Pro Bowl, with questions and answers appearing on the right rail of the NBC Postseason Extra application.
Channel Finder
O boy…now ocho will never catch a ball.
Well, I guess that’s one way to raise interest in the world’s most meaningless game.
I think the players should tweet on the field, in the middle of a play. Cam Newton can drop back, and tweet to his followers asking if he should throw or run it. He’ll have to stay alive in the backfield until there’s consensus from his followers about what to do.
Who are these players tweeting to? All 3 people watching the pro bowl? Why not just mug to the camera and tell those 3 viewers what you want to say. Its like me tweeting my wife to bring me a beer.
And still no one will care about the game
Instead, each sideline will have a computer station.
__________________
Can you imagine seeing grown men, in line waiting for the computer?
They should have designated tweeters. Fans or little kids with phones who can tweet what their favorite athlete tells them too. I bet the kids would love the opportunity to, not only be on the sideline, but be next to their favorite player(s).
I’m also saying not every player should have a tweeter but ever few players or one or two per position (D-Line, O-line, linebackers, etc)
They must of sat around and wondered, “how could we possibly make this game even dumber.”
Adam Schefter has 1 million more followers than the PFT twitter which seems to just watch Adam’s tweets and tweet something similar an hour later.
I’m old school not much on tweeting, but if tweeting makes the game more interesting to fans then I say go for it. I would rather come to this website and be more than updated of the “real story”. Thank you PFT!
It’s a sad state of affairs when it’s so important for a “professional” to “tweet”…
Anything to breathe life into that corpse.
Ochocinco will become the first player ever to ask to be exempt from the Superbowl to play in the Pro Bowl.
Thankfully, Favre’s not still in the league to take advantage of this development.
dubaradhandi says:
Jan 25, 2012 7:00 PM
“O boy…now ocho will never catch a ball.”
————————————————–
Would have been funny if he was even invited LMFAO!
They’ve sunk to a new low.
I like this. This kinda offers incentive for select players whom would not normally participate to actually participate
I’m shocked – couldn’t work in a shot against Manning or Irsay in this story?
That’s lame. Anyone who is excited about this is lame. Way to drum up interest in the pro bowl :sarcasm:
Oh man, this makes me want to watch the Pro Bowl!
Not.
@dubaradhandi
Wouldnt Ocho have to get invited the pro-bowl first?
“O boy…now ocho will never catch a ball.”
He’d have to get in the ProBowl first!
So a bunch of 4th alternates are going to tweet their mommy and girlfriend. Why do we care?
Chad is mad he didn’t make it… or he’d find a way to get fined while tweeting during that game.
The 1st official tweet should be … “NFL sending mixed messages.”
I don’t care for all this twittering.
How pissed is Ochocinco that he won’t be there for this…
Any player dumb enough to log into one of those computers deserves to have their passwords stolen by NFL Security. Check the cookies, fellas.
pathetic
Sounds like a bill belichick scheme to get the other team to not pay attention to the scoreboard.
If only the Pro Bowl could be more of a joke…oh wait….
Call this a game? O lineman walthz with the D line…
Think a hair pulling fight is going to break out if somebody is hogging the computer? Happens at my daughters grade school all the time.
They should have timeouts where all the players answer tweets from fans watching on television. Then, at halftime, one player from each team can be chosen to square off in a game of Madden on the jumbotron. After the game, which will end in a score of 55-48 (with no tackling), players can give a roundtable press conference on tips for next season’s fantasy picks. Thanks, Roger Goodell!
Is it bad that checking my twitter timeline will actually remind me the game is on?
This way they can get their respective death threats real time. Nice, now if they can only get Facebook involved as well, Zuckerburg must be pissed.
Okay make it more of a circus act that it already is!
jbl429 says: Jan 25, 2012 7:05 PM
I think the players should tweet on the field, in the middle of a play. Cam Newton can drop back, and tweet to his followers asking if he should throw or run it. He’ll have to stay alive in the backfield until there’s consensus from his followers about what to do.
———————————————
Just get it done within the 40 secs
The Pro Bowl is all about a SHOW! It really isn’t cause the best players can’t play. NOT a PRO BOWL
Can we have players tweeting while they watch paint dry? That’s the one thing more interesting than the pro bowl.
The pro bowl became a useless joke years ago; now they’re making it into a circus minus special players because of the Super Bowl. They need to stop it. It can be replaced by an awards ceremony showing highlights from the season, etc., etc. They can even stage it in Hawaii. No, that would make too much sense. Carry on, Roger.
You may also remove shoulder pads and any other protective gear because there is absolutely no hitting in that game.
Football without physical contact is pretty much un-watchable.