Location: Leeds

Posts: 902

Given we're in the midst of a cracker of a Rugby World Cup (despite the stupid pools for the teams), and getting into the meat of the NFL season stateside, it got me thinking. How many folks on the forum follow American football in particular? Also given the whole Travis Kelce-Taylor Swift romance, it feels like the NFL is entering the zeitgeist in segments of the population it wouldn't have had any hope of breaking in before, so feels apt to try and gauge if it's made a blip on here.

For context despite my college roommate being a big NFL fan, it took years later during my PhD, and an excellent show the BBC used to run hosted by Mark Chapman with two former NFL stars in Osi Umenyiora and Jason Bell, for me to get truly hooked (mostly off the back of the chemistry between those 3 presenters). The show really did a lot to bring newcomers to the sport up to speed - I think it was part of a concerted effort by the NFL to try and win more fans in new markets, with the UK being a key target market (see the NFL London games being a permanent annual fixture with games at White Hart Lane and Wembley). In that sense it worked because I got suckered in. I'm sure I wasn't the only one who scoffed thinking it was a dumb sport but as it turns out, those seemingly silly coaches are basically playing chess with incredibly athletic humans. Also for a nation that is so averse to socialism, there's an innate irony in the way the whole draft structure is designed to ensure league wide parity. There's loads I still don't understand in all honesty, I hardly understand the actual nitty gritty of contracts in US sports especially when it ties in to the budget caps. Also actual tactics wise, no clue, unlike regular old football where I can easily bore folks with tactics, I couldn't tell you anything beyond rudimentary stuff.

Anyway, if there Are any fans on here, curious to know what the level of interest is and what teams they back? (You can select multiple - I know I have an affinity for a few teams in particular, mostly driven by the stars at the helm who I like).

NOTE: Just realised I instinctively typed Redskins in the poll entry, it should read Washington Commanders instead.

Last edited by ads11 : 13th October 2023 at 18:57. Reason: Note about error with Washington team name

Location: Mumbai

Posts: 17,057

Location: Delhi

Posts: 7,823

Having lived in Kansas City for almost four years, my favourite: the Chiefs of course.

In all honesty, I am not a big fan of American football. We went to three Superbowls though. Perks of the job, entertaining our customers.

Jeroen

Last edited by Samurai : 17th October 2023 at 07:39. Reason: typo

Location: Bangalore

Posts: 72

Location: Mumbai

Posts: 44

Just like Jeroen and Kapany, my NFL team would also be based on where I stayed. Green Bay Packers after living in Milwaukee for around 3 years.

Did have to read the "Dummies Guide to Football" book in the library to know more and have a half-decent conversation with anyone into football.

Location: Bangalore

Posts: 1

Location: Bangalore

Posts: 237

Location: Hyderabad

Posts: 0

A close to decade stay in Uni. of Pennsylvania (2000 to 2011) had made me a huge fan of the Eagles. Lets go BIRDS! Have subscribed to DAZN just watch the NFL

By the way this is my first post in TBHP, though I have been lurking in the background for a very long time!

Location: Canada / B'lore

Posts: 790

I tried watching a game - it seemed to me that they actually played for two seconds and spent the next ten minutes talking and loitering about. I was completely bored out of my mind and wondered (still do) what all the hoopla is about.

Cheers

Location: Bangalore

Posts: 1,811

Don't follow American Football at all, but enjoy reading the articles on the sport by Wright Thompson. His articles do a superb job of conveying the emotion, history and beauty of the game to someone like me who has no clue about the sport.

Read enough to realize the complexity, athleticism and absolute grace of what appears on the face of it, just a violent game. Read enough to appreciate the drama of the 'worst call' behind the Seahawk's loss in 2015; it helped that I had some colleagues based out of Seattle back then!

So, don't follow the game, but appreciate it. Though the incidents of brain damage resulting from a career spent in the game are certainly very alarming.

Location: Bengaluru

Posts: 460

Location: Bangalore

Posts: 60

So I consider myself a "sporty" person and up until college, I was a part of pretty much every sport team from swimming to cricket to basketball. For my first job, I was working in Abu Dhabi for an American company where the Americans would catch up 3 nights in a week to play flag football. I had heard of American football before that but it just seemed too complicated with way too many rules.

Anyways, there was one night where I was out in a mall and I saw a Madden game for PC on discount. I decided to pick it up thinking it would help me learn the game. More specifically it was Madden 2004, you know the one with this person called Michael Vick on the cover. It took me about 2 weeks to learn the game, and man, after that I was hooked!!

I started playing flag football in a month's time and I was the only Indian on the field and I ended up getting more recognition than I deserved. We did win the company cup thanks to my 18 touchdowns scored in the tournament!

While I don't have a favourite team, I do watch it for a lot of the players. Lamar Jackson, Cooper Kupp, Tyreek Hill to name a few. But none can get close to Vick who was just electrifying! I still watch his highlights on YouTube which are never boring!

And this may be controversial, but I do believe that there is no position in any sport as important as the Quarterback. I am slowly getting into the strategy of the game and do get a few calls right when I watch it but yeah, the game makes a lot of sense now.

Location: NY/Kerala

Posts: 318

Going to grad school in Texas, working in Dallas and now having a home close to the MetLife stadium I've followed my university team, Cowboys and Giants over the years.

At one point a few of us friends even used to have season tickets to the Giants, with great seats, for a good 5 year period. It finally became too time consuming and expensive (holding $10k in deposit i.e., PSL). Then got busy with kids, family & career, and eventually we gave up the seats. The last game I saw at MetLife was in 2014.

Still used to play Fantasy Football, with friends and coworkers, but this year I have stopped that also.

Now the only football I watch and the only team I still follow is Tottenham Spurs , a thing I picked up from my days working and living in North London a very long time ago.

A photo taken at MetLife during the 2013 season on the iPhone 5, how time flies!

Location: Bangalore/Udupi

Posts: 25,702

I can very rarely develop interest in sports that I haven't played myself. Tennis was the only exception, and I made that exception because of Steffi Graf, for being born in the same year as me.

But I am a huge fan of American Football movies. Some of the best Hollywood movies are based around American football, so I can't ignore them. Notice how I always qualify it as American, that is because I grew up playing football as known in rest of the world.

Some of the best football movies I love are Rudy, Remember the Titans, Draft Day, The Replacements, Jerry Maguire and The Longest Yard. I have watched each many times. The first 3 are my absolute favorites.

I still don't understand the rules of the game, but I know just enough to follow the movie without getting confused. But if I try to watch a real game, I wouldn't know what is happening.