Ben Gilbert

The networks now had signal that people did want to behave in this way and they could feel safe sort of signing business deals and pursuing this because even though it wasn't what they expected, turns out there is demand for this product.

$1.3 million to the league per year.

Yeah, the NFL has just gotten too big.

Each of the owners has too many of their own interests to argue for.

They're in dire need of something or someone to unify them.

Right.

So in some ways, it's a tough position to be in because all the most qualified people are out.

So you kind of have to pick someone that nobody hates, but probably won't be very good.

Better to be lucky than good.

And create the NFL that we know today.

Yes.

Coming out of the PR background was the perfect positioning for him because he knew that every foot that we have to put forward has to be really polished.

We gotta stop doing things that are confusing or...

cannibalizing each other or send mixed messaging or perhaps put a bad taste in Americans' mouth.

And we need to figure out the very best media strategy, the very best strategy to make it so all the newspapers and all the TV stations talk about us all the time.

The NFL and our teams and our players need to be on the lips of Americans as much as possible.

Oh, and meet Lamar Hunt head to head right on his own turf.

I mean, he's leading the AFL effort.

And the idea of you're just going to open up shop and say, we're going to give away the franchise to a new owner of the Cowboys right here in your backyard.

And Burt ran it in a very idiosyncratic way too.