Former Seahawk John Moffitt has not played in the NFL for four years, but this did not stop him from agreeing with Carolina Panther’s Quarterback Cam Newton’s comment this week when Newton claimed it was “funny to hear a female reporter talk about routes”. Moffitt even added, “women don't know football – she was fed that question, like most of her kind are”.
Before I get too involved in my defense of female football reporters, I think it’s only fair to learn a little more about the infamous John Moffitt and his opinion about female reporters. In a nutshell, Moffitt has been out of football since his retirement in November of 2013. In 2014, he was arrested on battery and drug charges. Even more perplexing, Moffitt was banned in 2013 from the Bellevue Square Mall for allegedly urinating on a parked car.
Reading this brief bio about Mr. Moffitt (which autocorrect keeps wanting to change to Mr. Muppet), makes me remember a phrase my dad told me years ago….
“If you don’t respect the person, then don’t respect their opinion”
I guess mistaking a Goodyear tire for a urinal would certainly make John Moffitt a person unworthy of my respect. But, for the sake of argument, let me point out some holes in his statement.
I have been a season ticket holder for the Seattle Seahawks for several years. Prior to obtaining my season tickets, I would often hold parties for all of my friends to enjoy good food, cold beer, and some great football.
There was something I noticed from the very beginning at both these parties and at the live games at CenturyLink. About half (if not more) of the NFL football fans I have encountered are female.
It’s hard for me to fathom that females are flocking to a game that they know “nothing” about. It’s even more perplexing that they know when to cheer, get angry at penalty calls, know to get loud when the Hawks are on defense, and strategize play calls. I guess I missed the reader board that is “feeding” this reaction to all of us ladies sitting in the stands drooling on ourselves.
For the female fans not attending the games in person, they are rooting for their team on television. They are not watching for the “sexiness” of the female reporters (we get plenty of that from the players). Perhaps they are watching because female reporters have a different perspective and often ask questions that female fans may be interested in. We are inundated with plenty of statistics and random facts from the men in the booth, and often want to hear different questions from a female perspective.
I thoroughly enjoy having Erin Andrews talk to the coaches after halftime, getting injury updates and strategies for the upcoming quarters. I have never seen a mic in her ear “feeding” her the questions, and I’m guessing if there was, the tone of the interview would be much, much different.
Let’s all put on our big kid pants and realize that we live in 2017. The NFL is about marketing. This business is savvy enough to know that if half of their viewership is female, then they need to have staff that appeals to the female audience.
Contrary to John Moffitt’s statement, we DO live in a society where women can do most everything men can do. Perhaps, except, urinating on parked cars. The contortions of that are simply a lot more difficult for us women.
