Football is Back

Written by:  Scotty 

One of the things I have always looked forward to is the NFL season starting.  Growing up in Denver and being privileged enough to have a family that had season tickets to the Broncos games, I never knew how lucky I really was.  Going to see the classic Orange Crush defense in person, along with one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history has been one of the finest highlights in my life.

Now I have been a fan of the other leagues, MLB, NHL, NCAA and NBA, but something about what the NFL has done has will always stay true with me.  A sixteen game season, no more, no less makes it easy to follow and understand that every game counts.  With such a short season versus the other leagues, you can sit back once a week and watch as your team does its best to thrust its way into the playoffs.  Not having to work around a preseason ranking, the NFL has assured you that every team has the chance to make a run to the championship.

With the big hits, last second catches, The Drive, and additional rules that have been implemented into the tradition over the years, we all come back week after week to see what will happen next.  This is the ultimate reality series (or personal drama), but in no way is it scripted.  Great plays make us cheer, bow our heads, cry, or just get outright crazy.  The conversations around your work on Monday mornings seem to solidify that this could be one of the greatest shows on television today.

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If you are one of the thousands upon thousands that attend these events in person, you come away with a much different view of the game.  My personal experiences at the games seem to revolve around who I was able to go with, the conversations, the joy felt by the group, or just the way you learn how to clap.  My most memorable games at Mile High Stadium centered on special events.  A fantastic afternoon with my uncle where we witnessed a concussion on the first hit of the game, a blizzard where my mother and I sat through the entire game and I had to clear off three inches of snow from my hat every quarter break, and a birthday celebration where I sat just outside of the replay booth so I was able to heckle the officials as they made the wrong call.

Now the NFL has changed its culture over the years with all of the rule changes that have been implemented, but it is still fun and exciting to watch.  One of the greatest things about the league is that no one is able to outright buy a winning team, there is a salary cap and it is utilized.  Even the small market teams have to use a percentage of this number to put a team on the field, if they want to or not.  Everyone has a chance to win and money is not the deciding factor behind that.  It is an even playing field for all of the markets, you can sign any caliber player you want, but just make sure that you put them to good use, or else you will be stuck with a lemon for the rest of their contract.  

No matter how you watch your team take the playing field this season, be it at home, at a bar, or going to the games, just realize that you are always witnessing history in the making. Records will be broken, rules will change based upon a big hit and everyone will have an opinion of what should have happened on the second and two call in the third quarter.  It is a fantastic event that only happens once a week, so be ready for what will happen.  There can be only one at the end of the season, it may be your team, or it may be a friends, but all of the excitement starts this Thursday with Week One.  Are you ready?

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