No NFL team to cheer for

It's not my rooting interest, and they don't know I secretly hope their team loses each week.
These people are so unrealistic when it comes to their squad, it's amusing each Monday morning to watch the euphoria after each win and the lows after each loss.

 

Have you ever been to Pittsburgh?

 

Or San Frenfrosico, California?

That place has been in mourning for the past two days.

 

There are many reasons why being a fanboy can be a bad way to go through life. But it need not be. As long as you don't act like an ass to other people because of your team allegiance, there's nothing wrong with it. Now that I'm covering news instead of sports, I'm enjoying being a fanboy again. The time in my life when I was the least fanboyish was when I was covering sports. Outside of the obvious conflict-of-interest and lack-of-objectivity issues, I was often weary of sports by the time work was over and didn't want to immerse myself any further with sports when I wasn't working. I think you'd enjoy picking a team to be "your" NFL team. You should do so without any guilt about the criteria you use to choose since it is a freaking game after all.

 

No wonder you and BYH get along.

 

MTM, you'll have a lot more fun if you root for their teams to win even if it doesn't hurt you if they lose.

 

WFW?

 

Word for word.

 

Add another one to the board. ...

But really, I love how enthusiastic Pittsburgh fans -- especially of the Pirates and Steelers -- can be. However, there's a point, and it can probably be said of fans of all team, where the constant stream of excuses when the team does poorly -- this is just for Steelers fans; Pirates fans know their team is going to blow and accept it -- and the ridiculous amounts of pompousness exuded when the team wins reaches a boiling point.

When the Steelers can finish the season 11-5, hanging onto the wild-card spot for dear life to get into the postseason, I don't want to hear the dozens of Pittsburgh fans tout their team was the best all season long when they win the Super Bowl. That's far from objective and just about plugging annoying in the ass.

I respect the hell out of the Pirates fans for sticking with their team. But as for those all-too-common Steelers fans around Central to Western Pennsylvania, they can blow me. I'm good with the objective ones -- good friends with a couple -- but they're the minority, at least in my experiences with the Pittsburgh faithful.

 

In stark contrast, Mike, I've worked with two devout Steelers fans and consider another a good, good friend. All of them are rational, and while they bleed black and gold, it doesn't turn into fanboy idiocy.

 

They're so refreshing, aren't they? My objective Steelers-fan friends are objective fans, too, and I don't even mind sitting with them while they have their blankies in hand. I'm certainly not castigating the entire fan base, but I see the sickness more in Steelers fans than any other team in sports.

 

Maybe because I'm consumed with it myself, but I feel as if the Browns fans are identical to Steelers fans. The only difference is the Steelers have had recent and Super Bowl success while the Browns are poster boys for failure and ineptitude.

I have not problem calling myself a fanboi of the Cleveland Browns. It started when I was young (pictures of me in a makeshift Bernie Kosar jersey) to my adult life. To me, it's more than just a football team. It's my family coming together on Sundays, mom making pasta and all of us spending the afternoon rooting them on. It reminds me of my grandfather who I was really close to growing up and of my close friends, most of whom are spread throughout this country. It keeps us in touch.

I'm not going to apologize for being a Browns fan, but there are extremes with every team's fan base and the extreme Browns fans, just like the extreme Steelers fans, ruin it for us all.

If you don't have a team, I think that would be a great way to go through life. I love the NFL and if I could just buy the NFL Ticket, watch all the games on Sunday not worrying about one team's outcome, it would be wonderful.

Don't let any moron tell you otherwise. You enjoy the NFL, you're team is gone and you don't need to pick a team. Ask Browns fans, they can relate to their favorite team leaving town. I know during those three years, I enjoyed just watching the NFL.

Of course, now that the Browns are back — and winning — I wouldn't change it for the world!