Scandal-ridden football remains U.S.’s favorite sport; what does this say?: Question of the Week

Football is back, as troubled but evidently as popular as ever.

The headlines are about the college football season opening this week, with UCLA facing Virginia on Saturday afternoon and USC playing Arkansas State that night, and the NFL kicking off next week.

Meanwhile, the subtext is mostly about scandals, from “Deflategate” to players’ off-field misdeeds to ongoing health concerns and — closest to home — USC head coach Steve Sarkisian’s apparent drunken misbehavior at a preseason event.

Despite all the bad publicity, football remains the nation’s favorite spectator sport. This year’s Super Bowl set viewership records, and the first exhibition game of this season drew higher TV ratings than many baseball and basketball playoff games.

Our Question of the Week for readers is: What does football’s continued popularity say about the sport, its audience or America in general?

Are you and your friends and family watching football as much as ever? Is the sport as entertaining as ever? Or do the scandals spoil it for you?

Do you still want the Los Angeles area to attract an NFL team?

Have you lost faith in the NFL because of its handling of the controversy over New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady using under-inflated footballs, or because of league executives’ inconsistent handling of punishments for Ray Rice and other players accused of domestic violence?

Are you appalled by the seeming culture of off-the-field misbehavior in the league, underscored by the release of video showing former star pass-catcher Cris Carter advising rookie players to have a “fall guy” among their friends in case they break the law?

Has football become a guilty pleasure as we receive more reminders of the dangers of concussions to players, such as former USC and San Diego Chargers star Junior Seau, the recent Hall of Fame honoree who shot himself while suffering from brain damage?

Email your thoughts to opinion@langnews.com. Please include your full name and city or community of residence. Provide a daytime phone number. Or, if you prefer, share your views in the comments section that accompanies this article online.

We’ll publish as many responses as possible.