New Orleans ? Heading into Super Bowl weekend, the NFL has not received any warnings that Sunday’s game is at risk.

“We have no credible threats, or none that have been brought to my attention,” commissioner Paul Tagliabue said Friday in his State of the NFL address. “And we do have an understanding and we have assurances from the FBI and Secret Service that if there were such threats, they would be brought to our attention.”

The difference between this Super Bowl and any other was emphatically noted by Tagliabue when he spoke of the heightened security that, at times, has resembled a militarized zone near the Louisiana Superdome.

And, he said the extra precautions are here to stay for America’s biggest sporting event.

“In terms of the future, I think that very much enhanced security and major investments in security will be a part of our standard operating procedures during the season, during the postseason and, indeed, during the offseason,” Tagliabue said.

Tagliabue saw first-hand the preparations government authorities are taking to safeguard the NFL title game between the St. Louis Rams and New England Patriots.

“I was able to tour the other day the Secret Service command center and get a very thorough briefing from the agent in charge,” he said. “I have a very high degree of confidence that the security for this game will not only be unprecedented, but will be world class and very, very effective.

“Our belief, which all of the owners share, is that we in the private sector have an obligation and a responsibility to take direction from the president and the federal government … and they’re clearly telling us that part of our responsibility is to invest in security.”

National guardsmen and police have been stationed at intersections, outside high-profile areas such as the team and media hotels and the media center, and especially around the Superdome. Otherwise, Tagliabue hopes the game America’s most watched sporting event will be business as usual. He believes that is essential.

“The most important thing we want to do is be true to our own values in football, which we believe are the values reflected and brought to bear more broadly in our society,” he said.

It’s been a difficult season for the NFL and it started before Sept. 11.

Minnesota Vikings tackle Korey Stringer died from heat stroke during training camp, and the commissioner said the league was working closely with physicians and the government on how to handle heat-related issues.

“The league and the NFL Players Assn. together have spent a good deal of time since last summer talking to outside experts, physicians and others who deal with extreme heat conditions and high level of exertions in extreme heat,” Tagliabue said. “We’re going to bring all of these recommendations together at our league meeting in March, where I think we’ll have some recommendations for the teams.”

Tagliabue doesn’t expect any major changes in the instant replay system now in use to help officiating. Instant replay was renewed for three years last March and, despite several postseason controversies particularly in the AFC playoffs Tagliabue expects no overhaul.

“We don’t want to protract the game,” Tagliabue said of suggestions to change the number of coaches’ challenges or how they are administered. “I don’t see a consensus of 24 clubs around any substantial changes to the replay system. It’s working as it was conceived.”

Nor does he look for a reduction in the number of preseason games, which could lead to an 18-game regular-season schedule.

In other business:

l Tagliabue defended the current system of merely fining players for egregious on-field offenses, but said suspending those players is also possible.

l He expressed concern about the shrinking audience for “Monday Night Football” and said a more flexible schedule for those prime-time games and Sunday games is being explored.

l He admitted the league wants to “leave no stone unturned” in pursuing a return to the Los Angeles area, saying “we need to be there.”