Inspired by Hillary Clinton's political rally in Florida on January 29, 2008 celebrating a victory in a straw poll in which she had already agreed not to campaign and understood that the votes would not count and delegates would not be awarded, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has cancelled the Super Bowl.
At a press conference, Goodell explained, "On August 27, 2007, the New England Patriots defeated the New York Giants, 27-20 in an NFL preseason exhibition game. Even though everyone understood that exhibition games do not have any affect on playoff qualifications and nothing that occurs in an exhibition game counts as any official statistic, the fact is that the Patriots beat the Giants." http://www.nfl.com/...
Goodell continued "The game on August 27 followed the same rules as every other NFL game. Touchdowns counted as six points. A first down was achieved every ten yards. Even though everyone knew the game would not count and the coaches rested key players and made countless strategic decisions on that basis, I think the game should count. After all, the voters, uh, I mean fans paid admission to the game just like fans of real games pay admission."
When asked whether he was simply trying to change the rules after the fact for his own selfish interest (i.e. having the Patriots win the Super Bowl under his watch and be the first team to ever finish 19-0) and sacrificing the overall good and interest of football as a result, Goodell stated "Well, the fact is that the Patriots won. They won. Are you saying that they did not win? If that is what you are saying, then say it. If you want certain votes to count five times, uh, I mean, if you want certain games to count more than other games, then get out there and say that. The NFL and I, we are for fairness and equality. To be fair, all games must be equal. Therefore, the Super Bowl is canceled because the Patriots beat the Giants in August."
Tom Brady, Patriots' quaterback and NFL MVP said "Look, we beat them twice, in Michigan and Florida, uh, I mean on August 27 and in the regular season on December 29. So, I agree with Chairman Goodell. All games should be equal. Those games should count, and there is no need for the Super Bowl. After all, I deserve to be President, uh, I mean, MVP and if I have any problems being MVP, Coach Belicheck will help me."