Manversation

Since I was a tiny little tot, barely aware of the world around me, I’ve been a Denver Broncos fan. My parents raised me with season tickets in hand, leading the way every autumn Sunday to our seats in the original house of orange and blue worship, Mile High Stadium. The electric atmosphere brought about by 80,000 devotees watching, gasping, and celebrating in unison was like nothing else in the world. Just like that, the Broncos had a fan for life.

Every time I got to watch the Broncos take on a different team, my dad bought me a pennant with that team’s logo on it. I never got to see all the teams in the NFL, but I did get a good collection, and the groundwork was laid for my future status as more than just a Broncos fan, but a football fan.

Eventually, my folks had to let their season tickets go. It was the sad result of my father’s retail business going bankrupt. Although I could no longer attend every home game, I remained a serious Broncos fan into adulthood. Until my early-twenties, I paid very little attention to the other teams in the league.

And then came Fantasy Football

About ten years ago, a good friend asked me if I would like to join a fantasy football league with him. Neither one of us had ever tried it before, so we weren’t sure what to expect. Finally I agreed, and soon I was “drafting” my team. I don’t remember a single player I had on my team that year. I don’t remember if my team did well or came in dead last. What I do remember is that my enjoyment for watching Broncos football turned into a joy of following the sport as a whole. Suddenly, I had players to root for from those teams on my pennants from long ago.

Fantasy football makes the sport more interesting. It makes watching a football game more personal and gives a fantasy team owner a vested interest in how their players perform. It creates a fun, non-athletic way for people to compete based on the United States’ most popular sport.

Analysts try to estimate the value of time lost by companies to fantasy football participation by their employees. It’s a lot. Billions per year; but they can’t estimate how much companies would lose from damaged morale and loyalty if it were banned. Also, I’d like to see how many jobs and how much revenue fantasy football is responsible for creating.

Fantasy football is really not a fantasy at all.

It’s just a fun game based on the statistics produced by real players in pro football games. It requires no more special skill than a willingness to do a little research, but makes the game so much more exciting every week. If you like football, but never tried fantasy, get some friends together and give it a try. You can make it as simple or complex as you want, as long as it’s fun. Check back often or subscribe to this blog for more…I’ll be posting more about fantasy football in the future; from general observations to overall strategy.