The Men You Watch Every Sunday

There was an NFL commercial a while back--I think it was about Sprint’s partnership--and it featured a wife making promises to the camera while her husband eagerly looked on behind her. She said something to the effect of:

I promise to watch football all day Sunday.

And on Monday nights.

And sometimes on Thursday, or Saturday, depending on the time of year.

And I love this commercial because it captured the spirit of what so many NFL fans go through. During football season, our moods are defined by what our team did that week. We watch games even when we’ve got no real rooting interest in either team because--

It’s football.

It’s what would happen if ballet and Nascar had a child. It takes place from September to February each year and then that’s it. Sixteen games, a few more if we're lucky, and so we enjoy them while we can.

But is this all coming at a price--for the people involved?

Because what we’re finding out lately is that it is.

While sixteen games may not seem like a lot, when combined with practices and college games and college practices and high school games and high school practices, the hits add up.

And they've been taking their toll for quite some time now.

--

There's a new piece by Malcolm Gladwell in The New Yorker that should be read by any person who considers themselves a football fan:

Offensive Play: How Different Are Dogfighting and Football?

It’s a shade under 8,000 words, brilliantly constructed, and raises questions about morality and the future of a sport that is loved by many but is undeniably destructive to the people who play it.

And as for the comparison to dogfighting--well, you’ll see for yourself just how many parallels can be drawn.

Like many of the people in the article, I’m not sure how to deal with the reality that NFL players are far too likely to have their brains pounded to mush as a result of playing the sport that they love--and that this process will begin long before they’ve signed their first professional contract.

What I do know is that reading this article is a first step.

And if you’re an NFL fan, you should take it too.

You owe it to the men you watch every Sunday.

And Monday night.

And Thursday, or Saturday, depending on the time of year.


More soon.

JS