Sunday, September 26, 2010

No rhyme or reason to the NFL

It's impossible to analyze the National Football League. It just changes too much from week to week. Last week the Redskins looked like world beaters for three quarters and this week lose to the Rams. The Cowboys look terrible in week 1 and 2 then crush a supposedly solid Texans team. The defending champ Saints have looked downright pedestrian despite returning most of their Super Bowl team. Even the freaking Bills scored 30 points! Shame on you Patriots.

But this randomess and lack of consistency from week to week is why people love the NFL. It really is true that on any given Sunday any team can beat any other team. Except of course if you are the Browns, but even they give teams a run for their money.  This is why it frustrates me when analysts and so called experts proclaim one team to be dominant one week, then totally switch around their opinions the next.  The fact is the true identity of a team is somewhere in the middle.

Look, at the end of the day it's all about match ups and who is hot at the end of the year. When the Patriots lost last week to the Jets I didn't care. It's week 2 and they were playing in New York. You're supposed to hold serve on your home field right? Same with the Redskins. The Skins aren't as good as they looked against the Texans for 3 quarters, and not as bad as they looked against the Rams, who by the way aren't that bad of a team themselves. People need to be patient and look at the body of work. 

With the 24 hour news cycle and constant analysis we basically have no choice but to buy into the hype. The Colts lose their opening game and suddenly their reign is over? I wish, but that is far from the truth. The Bears are 2-0 so now Jay Cutler has it figured out? Talk to me in week 8.  Why do people feel the need to make such big statements about their teams. Just let the season play out.

The fact is it's hard to have consistency in a sport that has just one game a week. Each game is entirely different from the one before. But this is why we love football. Sports are one of the only things in life we don't want to know the ending too. We want to be surprised. We want to root for the underdog. We love sports because there is no script.  I say stop all the analyzing, kick back and enjoy some football.