I'm sitting in my living room watching the 49ers vs. Vikings game on this beautiful Sunday morning and i've already spent 3.5 hours dedicated to the NFL today and another 8-10 hours with the college games yesterday. I'm exhausted! (mentally that is, physically I can still jog/walk a mile in about 13 minutes)
The reason for these marathon sessions? My man's dad (hereafter to be referred to as "The Fan") is in town and this guy is is a football savant. He knows both college and NFL players like personal friends and can match them to their team in about 2.2 seconds. He might not be able to make it through the combine but he does have the stamina to devote upwards of 15 hours each weekend to watching football. And he's not alone. According to an Adweek/Harris poll in September 2011, 64% of Americans are watching NFL football on any given weekend (73% men & 55% women). The Fan probably falls in the 7% of NFL watchers who spend between 11 and 15 hours watching the game; plus he's in the Northeast region, which is home to the most football-watchers in our great nation. And this isn't even counting the college games he's taking in.
Now The Fan is a quiet guy (and an account). He's not ostentaious with his Steeler pride, he doesn't heckle the opposing team's fans, he's friendly to the person he sits next to at the stadium. Shit, I don't even think he swears! But he's a force to be reckoned with and I hope that one day I can have his football recall. In the meantime, I need to guzzle a cup of coffee and splash some cold water on my face just so I can keep up.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Monday, September 10, 2012
Same-Sex Marriage & the NFL...a surprise union
I was just as shocked to hear a piece on the radio today about NFL players openly supporting gay marriage as I was to hear about the secret weekend wedding of Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds. Now this blog is in no way an outlet to express my political views, but the story of Baltimore Ravens' Brendon Ayanbadejo openly supporting same-sex marriage and the subsequent attempt by Maryland's congressman Emmett C. Burns Jr. to get him to shut up about it by sending a letter to the Ravens' owner was too big (and awesome) to ignore. What was even more awesome was the total reaming that Minnesota Viking's Chris Kluwe delivered to Mr. Burns Jr. via an open letter posted on Deadspin. Luckily, I am not held to the same high standard as journalists so I will link to the colorful language-filled letter here. Seeing this old team photo of Kluwe, a punter for the Vikings, I really didn't think he had it in him to call someone a "narcissistic fromunda stain" or that he would tell a congressman to "shove it in your close-minded, totally lacking in empathy piehole and choke on it".
(I guess his current team photo looks a little more menacing, but barely) But good on him to make an emotionally-charged, yet succinct and relevant response to a politician. I think more NFL players should make political statements, regardless of who or what they're supporting. It's much more entertaining and real than Angelina Jolie's or George Clooney's weepy pleas for humanitarian aid. Now we just need to get the rest of the world to listen to what these hotties in tight pants have to say.
(I guess his current team photo looks a little more menacing, but barely) But good on him to make an emotionally-charged, yet succinct and relevant response to a politician. I think more NFL players should make political statements, regardless of who or what they're supporting. It's much more entertaining and real than Angelina Jolie's or George Clooney's weepy pleas for humanitarian aid. Now we just need to get the rest of the world to listen to what these hotties in tight pants have to say.
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Kick Off to 2012
What better way to start the season than get back to the basics. I was surprised to see on Hard Knocks last week that Miami's starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill was confused about which conference his own team played in.
Perhaps it's ambitious to think that he should know all the NFL teams as a first round draft pick, but he should at least know that the organization paying his salary is in the AFC East. But before I throw stones it might be a good idea to provide the full rundown of the American Football Conference and the National Football Conference for the common man & woman (myself included, although I'm more of an exceptional woman).
Compliments of Holly Robinson Peete's tome Get Your Own Damn Beer I'm Watching the Game: A Woman's Guide to Loving Pro Football:
AFC East: Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins (that's you Tannehill), New England Patriots & NY Jets
AFC North: Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns & Pittsburgh Steelers
AFC South: Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars & Tennessee Titans
AFC West: Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Oakland Raiders, San Diego Chargers
NFC East: Dallas Cowboys, NY Giants, Philadelphia Eagles & Washington Redskins
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers & Minnesota Vikings
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints & Tamp Bay Buccaneers
NFC West: Arizona Cardinals, St. Louis Rams, San Francisco 49ers & Seattle Seahawks
As a casual football enthusiast (or someone attempting to have sex with a football fan) it's not necessary to memorize the entire list above, but you should be able to at least name the conference that your favorite team is a part of and the other 3 teams in their conference. You may also score bonus points if you can name all 32 NFL teams. Another important fact to remember is that each year, the AFC Champion & NFC Champion play each other in the Superbowl. We will never see a Superbowl where the Steelers and the Ravens play each other no matter how awesome it would be.
Whew, that took an inordinate amount of brain power! If you want more information I would suggest you check out the Wikipedia for the full breakdown and some more in depth history (like the AFC didn't even exist until 1970 because there was a whole separate football league called the American Football League). Now I must rest up for the Steeler's game on Sunday.
Perhaps it's ambitious to think that he should know all the NFL teams as a first round draft pick, but he should at least know that the organization paying his salary is in the AFC East. But before I throw stones it might be a good idea to provide the full rundown of the American Football Conference and the National Football Conference for the common man & woman (myself included, although I'm more of an exceptional woman).
Compliments of Holly Robinson Peete's tome Get Your Own Damn Beer I'm Watching the Game: A Woman's Guide to Loving Pro Football:
AFC East: Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins (that's you Tannehill), New England Patriots & NY Jets
AFC North: Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns & Pittsburgh Steelers
AFC South: Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars & Tennessee Titans
AFC West: Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Oakland Raiders, San Diego Chargers
NFC East: Dallas Cowboys, NY Giants, Philadelphia Eagles & Washington Redskins
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers & Minnesota Vikings
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints & Tamp Bay Buccaneers
NFC West: Arizona Cardinals, St. Louis Rams, San Francisco 49ers & Seattle Seahawks
As a casual football enthusiast (or someone attempting to have sex with a football fan) it's not necessary to memorize the entire list above, but you should be able to at least name the conference that your favorite team is a part of and the other 3 teams in their conference. You may also score bonus points if you can name all 32 NFL teams. Another important fact to remember is that each year, the AFC Champion & NFC Champion play each other in the Superbowl. We will never see a Superbowl where the Steelers and the Ravens play each other no matter how awesome it would be.
Whew, that took an inordinate amount of brain power! If you want more information I would suggest you check out the Wikipedia for the full breakdown and some more in depth history (like the AFC didn't even exist until 1970 because there was a whole separate football league called the American Football League). Now I must rest up for the Steeler's game on Sunday.
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