Last night Bob Costas made the legal case for the NFL’s rule, and he did it without kissing the NFL’s ass. Costas essentially said that the NFL’s enforcement of the NFL rule is to protect them from the inevitable future lawsuits that will be filed against it as our knowledge about football players and their injuries grows.

Essentially, if and when the NFL is taken to court about the danger of the sport and how much they knew about the danger and when they knew it, the NFL has to be able to argue that it did everything within its power to make the game as safe as possible. And that anything further they would have done would have made the game something differently entirely.

This isn’t about the safety of current players, this is about the future and longevity of the league and its ability to make and protect its revenue stream.

I think it’s interesting that Costas makes this point given that the players (and many fans) are arguing the opposite-that the big hits are the best thing for the league and without them people will lose interest in the game. I think the NFL would rather take a chance on losing a little money now than a lot of money later.