According to Deadline, the NFL will honor Kobe Bryant with a special tribute, during Super Bowl LIV. During the NFL pre-Super Bowl press conference, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell stated, “I don’t think just Los Angeles is mourning the loss of Kobe Bryant. Kobe was a special person.”
He added, “I did have the opportunity to meet him. He obviously brought a lot to our world and I think all of us not only feel for the tragic events to his family but as well as everyone else who was a passenger on that helicopter. It’s hard to understand and it’s hard to process.
Goodell also stated that there was a Bryant tribute during the league’s annual Pro Bowl, that happened Sunday, January 26, 2020. He continued, “We as a league have been very responsive and I think respectful of somebody who contributed so much to sports.”
The Super Bowl tribute will be one of many that has already transpired. From the Grammy’s special tribute, featuring this year’s host Alicia Keys accompanied by Boyz II Men, city buses reading, ‘RIP Kobe,’ to teachers, students, and many many more paying their respect.
Most recently, Shaquille O’ Neal spoke about this tragic incident and how it has impacted him, during a special tribute on TNT.
He stated,
“We up here, we work a lot, and I think a lot of times we take stuff for granted. Like, I don’t talk to you guys as much as I need to. The fact that we’re not gonna be able to joke during his Hall of Fame ceremony. We’re not gonna be able to say, ‘Ha, I got five and you got four.’ The fact that we we’re not gonna be able to say, ‘If we could have stayed together we would’ve got 10.’ Those are the things you can’t get back. With the loss of my father, my sister … that’s the only thing I wish — that I could say something to him. The last time I talked to him was when he was here [Staples Center] and I asked him to get 50 and he got 60. That’s the last time I spoke to him. I just wish I could have. It definitely changes me. Because I work a lot. You guys know what I do. I work probably more than the average guy. I just really now have to take time and call and say I love you. … I’m gonna try to do a better job of just reaching out and just talking to other people rather than always procrastinating because you never know.”
As previously reported, Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna Bryant (GiGi), and seven other passengers lost their lives in a tragic helicopter accident, on Sunday, January 26, 2020, while en route to his daughter’s basketball game.
