The NFL Got Roasted After The Hall Of Fame Game Was Canceled Over A Bad Paint Job
By Matt Dolloff, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- America was ready for some football.
The Hall of Fame Game may have been just an exhibition, but it was the first game of the 2016 NFL preseason and the buzz of fans and viewers on Twitter showed that, after more than six months without game action, the nation was ready to tune in.
Instead, the NFL was forced to cancel Sunday's scheduled Hall of Fame Game between the Packers and Colts due to poor field conditions, which turned out to be a shoddy paint job. Adam Schefter tweeted less than two hours before the planned 8 p.m. kickoff saying that the paint on the center of the field and both end zones had "congealed" and the game would have been like "playing on tar."
Canceling the Hall of Fame game out of concern for player safety, especially describing the paint job as Schefter did, was totally understandable. But it was still a major screw-up by the NFL, which should have been able to not only apply paint that would have worked but had some kind of contingency plan in place had something gone wrong.
Twitter is often the best place to go to vent your unfettered anger in real-time. And with so many football fans eager for their first taste of the season only to get the rug pulled out from under them, the reactions to the Hall of Fame Game's cancellation were swift, visceral, and often hilarious.
Patriots fans, in particular, now have to wait until Thursday's preseason opener against the New Orleans Saints. New Englanders were none too happy and took the league to task in their own unique ways, along with most football fans on Twitter.
Many others across Twitter took digs at the league and made their own observations over the embarrassment ...
And of course, the obligatory DeflateGate jokes ...
As per usual, the NFL took a vicious beating on social media over their latest blunder. But, as usual, it only means NFL fans' insatiable appetite for football just needs to wait a little longer. Once the league can get this whole paint thing figured out, you know they'll be tuning right back in.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com. His opinions do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Have a news tip or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.
