Now that the NFL has whittled the playoffs down to the final two teams, America can start to get serious about one if its greatest traditions. Super Bowl commercials.

I honestly can’t think of a more unifying part of our culture than the advertisements that fill the space between plays during the final pro football game of the season.

But the fun doesn’t just happen when the Buffalo wings come out of the oven and the beers are opened.

Super Bowl commercial season has already started, and I’m a little bothered.
Miller Lite has announced that the are discontinuing the Man Law campaign. If you don’t watch football, you probably haven’t seen these ads. Thanks to the geniuses at Miller, you may never get the chance.

The ads have been replaced by a bunch of ads telling us how great Miller Lite is, which just defies all logic. I also hate these commercials because they use precious beer commercial time telling us about the product when they could be telling us jokes.

My friend Steve put it perfectly – I’d rather have them make me laugh than lie to me and tell me Miller Lite is a premium beer.

We all know what Miller Lite tastes like. It’s not like this is some new, exotic brew they have developed and are trying to get us to sample. It’s Miller Freaking Lite. Do something silly, put up the logo and be done with the commercial.

In the midst of this change, I have had the chance to realize that not all men are blessed with a sense of humor. Some writers have actually criticized the Man Law commercials for not being funny.

They must have seen different commercials than I did. How can you not find it funny when a bunch of guys – led by Burt Reynolds – sit around a table and decide that you may only take one beer when you leave a party, and only if it can fit in your pocket?

What about the legendary “Du-umb” comment by former Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson in the Man Law commercial debating whether football fans have become too reliant on the “D-Fence” sign.

But Miller Lite’s inability to provide humor sadly might be a sign of the times. The National Restaurant Association also wants commercials devoid of humor.

The trade association is mad about the upcoming Super Bowl commercial for the Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. starring Kevin Federline, aka the former Mr. Britney Spears.

The commercial features Federline working at a French fry machine and dreaming about life as a famous rap star.

Apparently, insinuating that a guy working the Frialator might have higher aspirations translates into a swipe at all restaurant employees, according to the restaurant group.

Have these people not seen previous Nationwide commercials, one of which featured MC Hammer making fun of his flash-in-the-pan success? Don’t they know that we want to laugh when our shows are interrupted.

It’s too bad Miller Lite got rid of the Men of the Square Table because I think they would want to weigh in on this matter.

Man Law: Commercials must be silly.