At NFL Films, Steve Sabol preferred to put the focus on the field, and not on himself. But Sabol, the NFL Films president who died in September, was the focus of an event on Tuesday night in Philadelphia.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and Patriots owner Robert Kraft were among the league’s bigwigs in attendance, and Kraft paid tribute to the way Sabol was able to convince even the most secretive coaches — including Kraft’s own coach — to allow NFL Films to have access.
“In a league of clandestine coaches from Lombardi to even Bill Belichick,” Kraft said, via the Houston Chronicle, “Steve was able to gain their trust.”
NFL Films chief operating officer Howard Katz put together some of NFL Films’ best highlights and had a live orchestra play over them, in what he described as a night for Sabol that “would have made him laugh, made him cry, made him cheer and made him dream.”
That’s what Sabol made NFL fans do.
