For all the on- and off-field rot and the reliably compliant silence of media, it becomes a legit question whether Roger Goodell, the enormously enriched, say-anything/mean-nothing Emperor of the Nero Fiddles League, gives a rat’s rotator cuff about the condition of pro football — no longer to be confused with collegiate professional football. 

Last weekend’s playoff games were exactly 13 seconds old when on-field civil disorder took national TV center stage. 

On the opening (“dynamic”) kickoff, the Texans’ Kris Boyd roughly tackled the return man, then bolted across the field, throwing his helmet — a 15-yard misconduct violation since 1998. Given that Boyd is 28 and a college man — Texas — he thus had time to learn the rule before immediately imperiling his team on the opening kickoff of a playoff game. 

And Boyd’s “celebration” of his tackle — if it was a matter of enthusiasm for one’s self — came after a kick return of 63 yards! Yay for me!