Thank You, NFL

I am an Eagles' fan, and the Eagles are hosting the Cardinals on Thanksgiving night.

The Eagles aren't quite in a free fall, but they're managing to get less out of their talent than any other team in the league at the moment. Saturday's game against the Ravens in Baltimore demonstrates the frustration that the players and fans are experiencing. Nothing went right, other than Quentin Demps' kick return for a touchdown (a rare occurrence for Birds' fans).

So, what better way to celebrate family holiday and spend time together than NOT watch the game on Thursday night? The NFL is providing that luxury to Eagles' fans because they are showing the game only on the NFL network.

And most of us don't subscribe to the NFL Network.

It's quite simple, actually. Cable companies already charge us a king's ransom for their products. It's a poundage that we have to pay to live in a civilized society, and it's an expensive one. The NFL Network is not part of your basic first- or second-level cable packages -- it's a premium channel that you'll have to pay extra for.

And most of us don't do that.

We're not inclined to pay extra for a time that's in the proverbial shopping cart going 70 miles an hour over the side of the cliff. We're not inclined to pay for extra luxuries in the worst recession the country has seen in 80 years.

So thanks for denying us a simpler pleasure of watching -- for free -- an NFL game in our home town so that we could conclude the evening with our families watching the same brand of football that we'll get for free earlier in the day (that is, if you call what they're playing in Detroit football right now).

We'll get over it, even if we have to watch the Eagles play their last five games -- five weeks which are certain to go pretty slowly for Philadelphia fans.