As recently as two years ago my answer would have been football1, but that's no longer the case. The sport is still basically the same (albeit a few relatively minor changes) so maybe I'm the one that changed. It's hard to pinpoint one thing that's given me such pause, but there are definitely some aspects of the game that warrant introspection from its fans.
A quick disclaimer before we get started: I admit to the occasional hipster-ish tendency. Sometimes I like things (bands, TV shows, etc.) a lot until I find out that basically everyone else likes them too and that makes me like those things less. I accept that this is a part of my personality, and while it might contribute to my current feud with the most popular sport in America, I do not believe it holds significant value.
Despite these inclinations, I think the way the NFL is represented in the media is entirely unique. This goes beyond "that kid I don't like so much likes 'How I Met Your Mother' and because of that I don't like it as much." The banality and repetitiveness of its coverage is approaches on brainlessness. How many times in the past eight years has the question, "is Eli Manning an elite quarterback?" been asked?
ESPN is partially to blame for this overexposure, but is by no means the only culprit. The NFL as a media organization has done an incredible job saturating the market with its product making it impossible to escape its considerable reach. At least from this fan's standpoint, it's that reach that has taken away from the game. Seeing too much of one thing in too small an amount of time can ruin anything, whether it's a song that you've heard too many times on the radio, that one kid who just always seems to be there all the time or an actor who seems to be in literally2 every single show. Coverage is in so many places at so many different times that its quality has been so watered down presumably due to a lack of new information or a lack of effort for something deeper.
Jeremy Maclin (torn ACL/MCL), Dan Koppen (torn ACL), and Dennis Pitta (fractured hip) are already out for the season due to major injuries sustained in the first couple days of training camp. A few other less eye-catching names have also hit this list, not to mention the other bumps and bruises that might force other players to miss regular season time. Most camps only opened late last week.
Injuries happen in every sport, but the severity and long-term negative impacts of the NFL seem to outweigh all of them. While the entertainment value of one sport versus another is an argument for another day3, the eye test tells me that a lot fewer baseball and basketball players are dying in their mid-fifties than football players. I have yet to hear about the Cooperstown Legend shooting himself in the chest so that brain doctors can use his brain for their concussion research.4 That the NFL was warned as early as thirteen years ago that their helmets might not even have been the best ones for the job seems to be cause for concern. And yet, football is growing more and more popular. The Super Bowl breaks its own TV ratings record every year.
The injuries, concussions, lockouts and lawsuits in the past few years have only proven the old "no publicity is bad publicity" adage. Football continues to grow and be the most popular sport in America and is even making headway into the UK. Maybe my threshold is lower than most people's, but I can't imagine this golden age lasting forever.
1. American football, not soccer. Never soccer. Ever.↩
2. Figuratively↩
3. That's never a good argument. No one wins. Let me like my sports and I'll let you like your sports. If you don't find my sports entertaining nothing I say is going to change your mind.↩
4. The verdict is still out on the long-term effects for the heavy steroid users from the MLB. Stay tuned.↩
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