Another exciting year of professional football is just ahead and the NFL has

made some changes to make it a better one for fans. This is the 87th NFL

football season which will culminate with SuperBowl XLI at Dolphins Stadium in

Miami.

Attendance at NFL games has been at an all-time high and

television broadcast agreements have been lucrative so these changes aren't

solely for monetary gain for the league. The changes seem to appeal to all NFL

fans asics

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with a game featuring two perennial winning teams, the Miami Dolphins and last

year's SuperBowl champs, the Pittsburgh Steelers.

A new scheduling system

is being used this year. During the last 7 weeks of league play, the NFL is

using a flexible scheduling method. This was in response to a problem that's

plagued the league for years. Often late in the season, games between teams not

in contention for post season play would be televised during prime time

timeslots. Needless to say that that didn't respond to fan interest or

viewership, so the new scheduling will allow the league to feature the hottest

teams, or most popular teams, and those that fans are interested in watching,

particularly during the key Sunday and Monday night time slots. The start times

of games will be affected and games may be moved from Sunday afternoon to Sunday

nights.

2006 is the first year of new television broadcast deals between

the NFL and CBS and Fox networks. CBS and Fox signed new 6 year agreements that

will have them televise Sunday games. ESPN however, will take over broadcasting

Monday Night football games. The league will broadcast eight specialty games

between Thanksgiving and the end of the season.

A few rule changes have

come about in response to injuries during the 2005 season. Players cannot hit a

passer's knees or below their knees unless they are blocked into him. Groups of

players cannot dance in the endzone after a touchdown, but players can spike the

ball or dunk it through the goalposts. Player's are not allowed to tackle

another player from behind using the "horse collar" tackle and defensive players

cannot line up directly over the ball snapper during field goal and extra point

attempts.

The 2006 season also features new uniforms for the officials

and a new NFL game ball. On-field game officials will wear long pants during the

cold winter months. The game ball will now be known as "The Duke" in honor of

the late owner of the New York Giants, Wellington Mara. The game balls will

continue to be made by Wilson Sports who have been providing footballs for the

NFL for 65 years.

Evolution of the National Football League

The

first professional football game in the United States took place in Latrobe

Pennsylvania in 1895 asics juoksukengät

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during its first two years as the American Professional Football Association.

During the 1920's a player named Fred Grange of the Chicago Bears provided some

exciting play and stimulated fan support for the league which until then was

considered second rate compared to college football.

During the 1936

season, the NFL instituted a player draft and many talented players signed with

NFL teams including the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers and New

York Giants.

After the second world war, the league instituted a new

rule that allowed players to be substituted between plays. This is how teams

were allowed to send separate 11 man defensive and offensive units onto the

field. In 1946, the All American Football Conference was created to compete with

the National Football League. The new league included the San Francisco 49ers,

the Baltimore Colts and the Los Angeles Dons. In 1950, the two leagues merged

creating two divisions: the NFC and the AFC. This began a prosperous era for the

NFL including television broadcast deals in the mid 1950's which brought the

game to a national level. New stars such as Jim Brown of the Cleveland Browns,

and Johnny Unitas of the Baltimore Colts became household names. This is the era

where NFL merchandise began to appear.

In 1966, the era of the SuperBowl

began. The playoff format was changed from a single championship game to a four

team tournament. During the 1970 season, the league was composed of 6 divisions

which created 6 first place teams. To create an 8-team championship tournament,

two wild card spots were created. In 1978 asics

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In 2002

with the addition of the Houston Texans, the NFL created and 8 division league.

The playoffs were a 12 team tournament that began with a wild card round. The

top two division winners receive a bye to the division championships.

Through the years, a number of teams have enjoyed particular success in

winning the SuperBowl championship. The Green Bay Packers lead with 12

championships but only one SuperBowl win. The Chicago Bears similarly have 9

championships since 1920 and only one SuperBowl win. In the modern era since the

introduction of the SuperBowl Championship game, the Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh

Steelers, San Francisco 49ers, Oakland Raiders, and Washington Redskins have

dominated league championships. The New England Patriots have become a dominant

team since 2000 with three championships.

Overall attendance at NFL games

has grown from 4.6 million in 1965 to more than 17 million during the 2005

season. Attendance has grown every year to where an average 68,000 fans attend

games, which is near 90 per cent of seating capacity. That is an amazing

achievement for any sporting league.

So get involved in the coming 2006

season by showing your support for your local or favorite team. Plenty of NFL

merchandise for your and your kids is available from a number of NFL shop

retailers. Online NFL merchandise sellers can