Let me tell you a story. My first sports memory was watching Phil Simms achieve near-perfection in Super Bowl XXI. I loved those late 80's Giants teams - Simms, Little Joe Morris, Phil McConkey, Mark Bavaro, LT, Carl Banks, Leonard Marshall, Jim Burt, Raul Allegre, Sean Landeta. In 1990 Phil Simms got injured and a relatively unknown QB named Jeff Hostetler jumped in and led the Giants to another Super Bowl win. For the next few years, the Giants had a QB carousel with Simms and Hostetler rotating in and out of the starters job. Then in 1993, the Giants decided to let Hostetler walk and after an offseason injury, released Simms in 1994. My favorite team had severely botched the QB situation and my favorite football player, now 40, was out of the league.
Anticipating that the end of the era was approaching them, in 1992 the G-Men drafted a QB named Dave Brown out of Duke University. He replaced Simms as the team's starting QB and over the course of three years won a total of 20 games (with a career passer rating of 67.9). He was clearly one of the worst QB's in league history, something I noticed as early as his first full season. I was dumbfounded with how the team was willing to make a guy from Duke the most important player on the field. I mean, this is the same Duke program that had been to only 1 Bowl Game and won an average of 4 games per year since 1971. I really tried to give him the benefit of the doubt - I really did.
I was so disenfranchised by this whole era that I decided to switch teams. I know, I know - that is the worst thing a so-called hardcore fan can do. Hardcore fans don't give up on their team just because they are experiencing tough of times. If this was someone else I would be all over them. Unfortunately this is the path I decided to take - all I can say is that I was young and stupid.
In picking a new team, I didn't want to be labeled a front-runner on top of a traitor so I decided to support the Carolina Panthers, an expansion team in the 1995 season. I knew it would be years before they were good and I could grow with them. No one could call me a bandwagon fan and it would make for interesting conversation in the future. Since then I have seen some really really bad teams (1-15 in 2001 and probably 2010) as well as some really good teams (4 NFC Championship games). It has been an interesting ride.
When I was back in LI last month, my buddy Gorman tried to convince me to come back to the Giants. He was willing to give me a pass even with my history. I'm a Giants fan, he tried to convince me. The thing is, I can't stand Tom Coughlin and I can't stand Eli Manning. I don't want to be a Giants fan. The problem is that I'm not sure I want to be a Carolina fan anymore, either. Carolina is the worst team in the league and they are no fun. Now I have been in this position before, but what makes this season different is that I hate their new franchise QB - Jimmy Claussen. I like DeAngelo Williams and I like Steve Smith, but really I have no connection to the team anymore.
What I am finding more and more every week is that winning in fantasy football makes me much happier than the Panthers winning their game. I have no conflict like most fans do. You know what I'm talking about: your fantasy football team is down 15 points but you still have player X going on Monday night. The only thing is that player X is playing against your favorite team. You feel torn.
I don't have that anymore. Hell, I even root for Mike Vick right now as long as it helps my fantasy team win. I'm not attached to any specific football team, but I am attached to Vick, Aaron Rodgers, Darren McFadden, Jamaal Charles, Roddy White, Percy Harvin and Antonio Gates. There are some teams in the league that I find really interesting; some teams that would be fun to support. I'm really into the Packers, Chiefs, Rams, Jets, Browns, and the Saints this year. From what I can tell they are fun to watch.
So this brings me to the following sentence: Starting today, I am a NFL atheist. Just like my boy Chuck Klosterman, I no longer support one team. Instead, I am going to root for the teams that tell good stories. I am going to watch games that feature interesting teams. I am denouncing any NFL attachment.
I know that this is ridiculous. I know it is ironic that someone who loves sports so much doesn't have a favorite NFL team. How can my words not be hollow when I talk about loyalty in sports? How can anyone take me seriously when I rail on Seattle fans when they don't show up to support the M's or the Hawks during down times? The answer: you can't. This is a hit to my credibility, but I don't care anymore. I can't help my feelings - I am a fantasy football guy plain and simple.
I don't mind that you just want to support whoever has a good story in the NFL (there arent that many to be honest). I like watching the Packers, Peyton Manning at QB is fun to watch in Indy, even the Favre drama is compelling tv :) However, I do always feel that unless you a vested interest in someone else, I will always shout for my home town (or city of abode if you will) to succeed in sports. I'll grant you the point on the Mariners fans being somewhat fair-weather but the Hawks fans have suffered 3 sucky seasons since the Superbowl and their games are still not blacked out on local tv.
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