The NFL will temporarily lift its game-time Twitter ban, allowing, and even encouraging, players to tweet during Sunday’s Pro Bowl in Honolulu. Commissioner Roger Goodell, who’s faced criticism for turning the National Football League into the “No Fun League,” will set up computers on the sidelines, Yahoo! Sports reported.
Of course, this provisional Twitter policy doesn’t come free of stipulations. Only one player can tweet at a time, and only during commercial breaks or when his offensive or defensive unit isn’t on the field. Sorry, no live tweets from the end zone just yet. Players may tweet from their smartphones before the game or during halftime. Otherwise, they must use the designated computer station. And of course, tweeting is not mandatory.
The existing policy for normal games bans players from tweeting an hour and a half before kickoff all the way until they’ve completed all post-game interviews. NFL officials have said they don’t plan on applying the relaxed policy to regular season or playoff games.
Several players heading to Honolulu for Sunday’s game have already taken to Twitter with the designated “#ProBowl” hashtag, including the Seahawks’ Kam Chancellor and the 49ers’ Brian Jennings.