ABC may have made the wrong call in broadcasting its opening to "Monday Night Football" this week. But the posturing going on by the NFL since then has made me wonder whether the league actually planted this incident.

Consider today's opinion piece in the Times by Dan Rooney, owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers. He contends that the NFL isn't just a sports league; it's so much more, a great force in the development of community values, hard work, helping youth all over the country, an institution with an "extraordinary work ethic" and "diverse meritocracy."

I would consider myself a casual football fan (I was less casual when New York had teams worth watching). It's a fun sport to watch. But we are talking about a sports league. "Diverse meritocracy?" A league with "values nourished in urban, suburban and rural America?" Please. Maybe watching the NFL should be part of a faith-based curriculum.

A simple reminder that the league is overall a good source of entertainment would have been enough. The holier-than-thou posture of these defensive responses is ridiculous.