First, let me say I love when I can talk about other leagues. It’s a freedom I really, really enjoy. But lets get to the issue.
I’m guessing the NFL doesn’t really care about what Rush has said before on his show and on other platforms. If it were really an issue, they never would have let him in the broadcast booth a few years back.
What they should be terrified about , and why they should keep him out, is what he might say AFTER he was an approved investor in the St Louis Rams.
The NFL has plenty of owners who I am sure have very strong political opinions. I’m willing to bet that many of them back up those opinions with donations that are all part of the public record. I’m sure some of those probably don’t align with the best interests of the NFL or even the majority of their fans and customers. I can give you a minor example I have had with the NBA. I am never on the same page as the NBA when it comes to copyright issues. I believe we waste too much NBA money trying to fight piracy and other intellectual property issues. We have agreed to disagree on this and other issues. It’s not a problem. Nor do individuals who fall on either side of the copyright issue make their sports consumption decisions based on copyright positions.
Its a great thing that we all just accept the fact that owners, leagues and fans can be on different sides of a variety of issues. We love our sports and want to reserve a spot for them away from life’s partisan issues and problems. Thank goodness for that !
The problem with Rush is that its his job to take on all of life’s partisan issues and problems. Not only is it his job to take on these issues and problems, its key to his success that he be very opinionated about whichever issues he feels are important to him and/or will cause his very large audience to tune in. Given that we will never know what the “next big issue ” in this world that Rush will be discussing on his show is, its impossible for the NFL to even try to predict or gauge the impact on the NFL’s business if something controversial, or even worse yet, something nationally polarizing happens. There is an unquantifiable risk that comes with the size of Rush’s audience. The wrong thing said on the show, even if its not spoken by Rush himself, about a sensitive national or world issue could turn into a Black Swan event for the NFL.
Thats a huge risk that is not commensurate with the value a minority investment in a franchise brings.
This isnt about Free Speech. Its about the NFL protecting their business. There is no reason to put it at risk. If Rush were to retire from his show, or become a local DJ in Sacramento, or just about anything else he may want as a vocation, then I dont think they would have any problem with him being an investor in a team.
Given the current set of circumstances, they would be crazy to approve him as an owner.