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American Football


Tipex
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It's a bit sh1t isn't it?

Every few years or so, I try and give it another go, just to try and grasp what all the fuss the yanks make over it is, and i'm still none the wiser.

I watched the superbowl last night, well, the first quarter anyway until I got bored and went to sleep.

With the exception of Japan and their sumo wrestlers, America must be the only place in the world where a morbidly obese person can be considered an athlete or sportsman, seriously, 22 stone+?

From what I can gather of the game, they spend more time 'not playing' than they actually do playing, and 90% of the 'players' will not touch the ball throughout the whole game.

It seems to simply be a vehicle for advertisement, one long 'infotainment' style commercial.

I can see very little skill, very little genuine athletic requirement, and very little in terms of tactics, the commentators seem to make randomly generated comments that have little bearing on what's actually happening (very little most of the time), and occasionally scribble some arrows on a picture of the game that bear no resemblance to what 'actually' happens on the field.

It is, utter, utter, boll0x.

Edited by Tipex
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I normally watch the first half and then hit the sack but I had a better offer last night and didn't see any of it.

It is a massive corporate thing but even everday games are stuck with the same TV breaks and delays. It is frustrating.

However I do get the skill and tactics behind and quite enjoy the plays.

There was something in the press over the weekend about the hard impacts causing a condition which results in depression. Three top players have recently committed suicide and now there's thoughts going into making it safer etc. Some people feel that it won't last the course which I struggle to see as it's so engrained in the US society. 30 years untils it's totally gone was one thought I saw. I guess you wouldn't miss it that much! ;)

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If you want to watch some proper games, try to see some college football. That's where the skill and excitement is. The NFL is big money.

They all love the fact that it takes a day to watch a whole game. They turn up in the morning, get the BBQ started in the carpark and drink/ eat all day and go home in the evening. No slower a game than cricket +++

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It really isn't a sport I have any interest in. I got dragged to a couple of games when I was working in the US a few years ago and ended up liking it even less after having to endure it.

I had the opposite. I used to watch it on Ch4 and then when I worked in California I went to some "football" games and also baseball. I enjoyed the games but also the who event.

It was so long ago that the Rams and Raiders game I went to was a local derby !

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It's ok for me, not great. I do think there is plenty of skill involved and tactics are a massive part of the game.

What I don't like is how a franchise / team can be bought and moved around the country.

Its like the Glaziers buying Man U and changing them to London Utd.

Without doubt the worst thing about the game is celebrating like fook every time they catch the ball or make a tackle.

Could you imagine a soccer player whooping and doing a little dance every time he passes the ball 10yds.

Super Bowl champions equals world champions.

Baseball World Series

Lol......

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Some of the players are just as athletic and fit as our rugby players but others (William Perry is a name from the past) are just units to get in the way! And the fact they have three separate teams to play the game is a farce.

I watched it again when in the US 15 months ago and the only thing I'll give it credit for is being better than Baseball.

Other fat fecker sports - I can think of two. Darts - obviously for the balance. And Golf - that Spanish bloke wondering round smoking is something rather rare in the field of sport these days!

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I'm still missing the skill though?

Like it or loathe it, it's impossible to deny the skill of our Premiership footballers, forget about the diving and all the other sh1t, they actually have a skill on the ball.

Where is this in American Football? From what I can see, the only skill required is to be able to catch, and then you just run and hope you get somewhere, where's the skill in that?

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There's a bit of skill in throwing an egg-shaped ball 100m to a Usain Bolt wannabe before a 150kg guy jumps on your head. And the Usain Bolt wannabe has to guess where the ball is going, evade three 150kg guys that want to jump on his head, sprint at full pelt while catching the ball that's coming from 50m away but will land another 50m away, then, if he catches see it, see if he can evade another two 150kg guys that want to jump on his head. Now get up and do that again... all day.

Though, yes, the rest of them have a sumo wrestle in the middle of the pitch all day, with not much skill at all.

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It's not a sport as we would describe a sport, I.e. athletes in the peak of physical fitness running around in competition for a long period of time.

It is however a contest and one, if you watch enough of it as you cant get any rugby on tv for 3 years, you can get into.

Tactics and Strategy exist. Players are brought on for specific purposes, offence, defence etc. thin runners, big blockers etc

Certainly some skill, albeit basic and position specific.

As said above, College Football is the one to watch (Virginia Tech for example). NFL is a bit on the dull side in comparison. It's worth saying that the college games I have been to draw 100,000+ people....

It did originate from Rugby, a sport which was considered (by the US) too dangerous at the time.... :D

The other sport for unfit blokes is baseball. There are a lot of hitters and pitchers who roll up with a fair old beer gut!

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