NFL Fans Need Some Perspective



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I'm assuming that most fans have heard the stories about what went down in Kansas City yesterday.  If you haven't, let me fill you in...Chiefs QB Matt Cassel gets his "bell rung" in what turns out to be a concussion.  Alot of Chiefs fans have been very open about their dislike of Matt Cassel and their desire to at least give backup QB, Brady Quinn, a shot as the starter.  While Cassel leaves the field, obviously injured, the stands erupt in celebration for their injured starting QB.  This would have been the buzz of the NFL regardless, but Chiefs Offensive Linemen Eric Winston gave a 2+ minute sound byte on how horrible it was for the fans to do such a thing.  All the syndicated and local media networks are running with this story, and are wondering if the NFL and their fans have just stepped over the line that was drawn in the sand.

With all of the above already been said, I think the answer to the question isn't that the NFL has gone too far, but the fans have certainly stepped over the line.  I'm guilty of it, and I'm sure most NFL fans are guilty of it as well.  When you watch your favorite team play you feel like you are a part of the team.  You do whatever it takes to try and put yourself out there with the team as if you somehow can make an impact, somehow help your team to victory.  The sad part comes when the realization kicks in that you actually have NO impact on the game and that you are merely a spectator.  However, with Fantasy Football and other gambling outlets, the everyday fan has now become a fanatic about the game of football. 

Why is being a fanatic a bad thing?  I think it can go too far.  I've been there.  Lets flash back to after last year's Wild Card Playoff game where Tim Tebow stunned my favorite team, the Steelers.  I had just gotten a brand new Steelers mailbox cover from a family member.  I'm a huge fan, so I went out in the freezing cold and slapped that sucker on.  It looked great (still kinda does...just faded).  While my family and friends sat in my rec room watching the game with me it felt like after the Broncos won that all eyes were on my reaction.  They know how I feel about Pittsburgh sports teams...was I going to flip out?  No.  I kept my composure.  My wife then asked me to take a bag of trash out and I obliged.  As I walked the trash to the curb I saw the mailbox, and that mailbox cover that just seemed to haunt me.  I couldn't take it anymore.  I couldn't believe the Steelers lost to the Broncos and that a-hole (he actually seems like a good guy, but I wasn't very happy at the time) Tim Tebow and I immediately started trying to rip the mailbox cover off of the mailbox.  That adhesive is really strong, and the sub freezing conditions probably didn't help my attempt to remove it from the mailbox.  I returned to the house and was fine after that, but what I'm getting at is to this day there is still a corner of the mailbox cover that is not attached to the mailbox.  Every time I go to check the mail, I see and think...man I must have looked like a real Jacka$$ that night. 

The point I'm trying to make is that I realized, why should I get sooooo worked up over something that I have NO CONTROL OVER whatsoever?!   I realized that enjoying watching the Steelers (or any NFL team play for that matter) is what I should ENJOY, but not be frantic over.  I think if all NFL fans took a step back and looked at themselves and their behavior at times, they might realize the same thing.  I'm sure those fans in Kansas City who cheered an injured player probably think that today.