The biggest focus when creating an international presence for the NFL remains on hosting a series of games on international soil every season. This year has been no different, as the NFL has already gone to London, Brazil, and even Australia.

Next on their list is the Week 7 game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New Orleans Saints, taking place in Paris, despite the ongoing riots across the region. For a former Pro Bowler, that decision is going to make some unhappy campers in both locker rooms.

T. J. Houshmandzadeh Doubts NFL Ever Considered Canceling Steelers-Saints’ Game in France

Expansion to a global audience has been a clear priority for the NFL. As the league tries to build a global presence, initiatives like the International Player Pathway have been instrumental in that cause.

On that note, a game in Paris seems like a perfect opportunity to expand on that opportunity. However, the riots raging across the region have made it a contentious time to visit a typically ideal destination.

For T. J. Houshmandzadeh, the NFL’s decision to go over the matter and continue with the game anyway was perplexing, even with the added rationale of the Champions League moving ahead as planned in the city.

“I just feel like they want to grow the game, and I do get that part of it, but when things like this are taking place, there’s got to be some players that are a little uneasy about it,” Houshmandzadeh argued on the “Pregame” show.

“We all feel like, though, we good. Ain’t nothing going to happen. I’mma just stay. Every player has been told pretty much, stay around the hotel. Stay in the hotel. Don’t venture out too far,” Houshmandzadeh added. “But when you go out of the country, you want to venture out. You kind of want to see what it’s about, especially if you’ve never been because there’s a lot of dudes that ain’t been out of the country.”

That’s where problems can come in, given the situation plaguing Paris right now. What started as student riots over the declining condition of their educational sector has blossomed into an all-encompassing protest for a variety of issues.

Initially, the deteriorating school conditions, teacher shortages, and a proposed salary freeze led to widespread outrage and protest from students. Soon, though, the situation escalated and became a broader movement.

The main points of conflict came from soaring living costs, high fuel prices, and strained public services. But rather than remaining peaceful, a few specific extremist groups turned the situation violent, clashing with the riot police, burning down buildings, and even looting.

Houshmandzadeh continued, “This could be why a team like the Steelers are leaving now so that the players don’t have time to get out there, and visit this or were they told, ‘Let’s try to travel at the last minute possible so that we aren’t in a position where we are around these unruly people.’ I just hope everybody is healthy, but this is not going to stop.”

Given how determined the league is to make the sport a global phenomenon, Houshmandzadeh admitted, “People going to complain about it. Why are they doing this? Why? The NFL is trying to grow the game. It’s not going to stop. There’s going to be more international games, so they might as well stop complaining about it and get used to it.”

With France still dealing with civil unrest after violent clashes and looting over the weekend, some wondered whether the game could be canceled. But the NFL used the Champions League game between Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona as an example that they could move forward with the game regardless.

“I don’t even know if it was ever under serious consideration, to be honest with you,” Houshmandzadeh said when asked whether the NFL should have canceled the game. “There’s so many moving parts. They don’t have a bye week (in) the same week. There’s just so many moving parts to it.”

As a result, he believes it was unlikely the schedule would ever change. Instead, the only hope that people had was that nothing untoward would happen to anyone, and they could come back unscathed from the game.