On Monday night I prepared some clams with a white wine saffron sauce served with a side of bread and fresh ricotta. I had dinner with my wife. I then packed up my laptop and a few pieces of paper fill with notes and color-coded highlights, headed to the coffee shop and proceeded to draft my fantasy football team for 2010 for the next three hours.
I give you a picture of the entire evening just to prove that I am (or try to be) something of a well-rounded person. Why do I feel the need to do this? I'm not sure. I think it has to do with the fact that if one of your favorite hobbies happens to have the word "fantasy" in it, people automatically assume you don't have a real life. Despite its move to the mainstream, participation in fantasy football still maintains a hint of "nerd."
Person 1: What are you doing tonight?
Person 2: Spending three hours selecting professional athletes to play for my fake team.
Person 1: Oh...........cool..............I guess.
I played fantasy sports before it was cool (I'm still not sure if it's cool). When I was eight, my big brother's best friend Adam brought a printed list of baseball players to our house (the printer paper that was connected and had the edges with all the holes). We got out Monopoly money and bid for players. I seem to remember Juan Gonzalez being the big prize. Without the internet, Adam was in charge of keeping score each day (I think this lasted about two days). But whether I want to admit it or not, fantasy sports have been a major part of my life. For the past nine years, I have played fantasy football. For the past five (at least), I have not only played, but have been commissioner of my league. Suffice it to say that I have spent a lot of time thinking about my fake team and other people fake teams.
Question: Is it worth it?
Answer: Absolutely.
And here's why:
1. Companionship: My current league consists of myself, my twin brother, two of my brother-in-laws, one guy I've known since Jr. High, one guy I've known since high school, and five guys I've known since college. Five of those guys were groomsmen in my wedding. Fantasy football is, above all else, a way to stay in touch with these friends and family. A call to remind someone about the draft is also a chance to say "How's it going?" An online league message board becomes a place where people from Chicago, Minneapolis, Central California, DC, and Seattle can communicate with each other on a week-to-week basis.
2. Competition: I believe competition is over emphasized in our society. I believe in cooperation more than I believe in competition. But we need competition in our lives. We never grow out of this. (see: Bingo, Scrabble, Wheel of Fortune, and shuffleboard). I still love playing basketball, but I've mellowed some. I don't even hustle back on defense anymore (ok, I never hustled back on defense). Fantasy football brings out the fire in me.
3. The Draft: Fantasy football is really all about the draft. Doing well during the year is the icing on the cake. Drafting remotely has been tough on me the past couple of years, because it's really just an excuse to have a party. The draft is about eating good (bad) food. Buffalo Wings, Dan's famous chili, Chicago dogs, etc. It's about making people feel intimidated by the amount of research you did (the more paper you show up with, the better). But even online drafts are fun. They become an endless stream of inside jokes.
4. The Season: Now I don't need a reason to watch more football during the year. And the older I get, the less football I watch. My schedule usually makes me have to watch when I have time and not make time to watch specific games. Since I have less choice over which games I will watch, I am all for something that makes any game more enjoyable. I may have a rooting interest in an Oakland-Jacksonville game that I would not otherwise. It adds to the entertainment value of each game. It's like watching your kid star in a musical that you're not crazy about. You may not love "Westside Story", but if your kid was in it, watching it would be a delight. I may not love the Texans, but my best player is Andre Johnson, so watching them will be a delight this year.
5. Continuity: One of the things I like best is the way each year builds on the last. One guy becomes the guy you really want to beat because he seems to do so well. One guy becomes the guy who traded Peyton Manning for Julius Jones. One guy becomes the running back baron. One guy becomes the guy who always owns Hines Ward. Our league tends to add a rule or two each year to make the experience better and better. I would not be shocked if we sat down in the common room of our retirement home in 40 years for our 50th draft. And though he is likely to retire in the next couple of years, someone will make the joke, "Dan's pick, I bet he picks Hines Ward." I may not be building forts with my friends anymore, but I am building a fantasy league, and we are building memories in spite of our distance.
6. The Fantasy: Ok, fine, I admit it, I wish I could run an NFL team. I think I could do it better than the GMs. Putting together a team of professional athletes each week makes me feel like a part of the action. My achievements in football might have peaked in fifth grade when I was the go-to choice for quarterback at recess (I could throw the heck out of the pink and black turbo footballs), but I can remain connected to the game for the rest of my life.
If number five makes me a nerd, then I am a nerd. But at least I'm a nerd who can cook clams with a white wine saffron sauce.
P.S.
If you haven't drafted yet, here's a guy a like at each position that I think will outperform there draft spot:
QB: Kevin Kolb
RB: Matt Forte
WR: Pierre Garcon
TE: Jason Witten
Good luck
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