The first step on the path to recovery from addiction, or any sort of personal shortcoming for that matter, is admitting you have a problem. Today, I make one such admission: I’m a fan of NFL football.
I know. As a conservative, I should abandon a league that has long since abandoned me — a league that has coddled anthem-kneelers and flag-disrespecters; a league that celebrates any and all assaults on traditional American values while virtue-signaling to its leftist friends more vigorously than any wine-soaked, suburban Karen; a league whose leaders, advocates, and journalists practice selective outrage like it’s a bodily function. And there’s really no escape — woke messaging decorates every NFL end zone. Sports as a respite from politics is a thing of the past.
But I just can’t help it. As a season-ticket holder, I’m whiling away the sun-baked summer doldrums by welcoming the start of training camp and dreaming of eight trips to my local coliseum (notice that I’m not counting preseason games; I’m not that hopeless) to gather with my fellow addicts for a primitive celebration of tribalism and head trauma. Frankly, I can’t wait.
The thing is, I’ve grown comfortable in my addiction and don’t want to be cured. Much in the same way that I enjoy the work of leftist actors and musicians by separating art from artist, I can’t help but revel in watching the world’s greatest athletes play my favorite sport at the highest level, no matter how frequently or thoughtlessly they insult me.
I know people who have given up NFL football over its anti-American transgressions, but really, those people weren’t hard-core fans to begin with. And those people choose to ignore the glimpses of Americana that still exist at NFL stadiums — the heartfelt celebration of the anthem (no matter what the players are doing); the emotion of the occasional pregame flyover; the full-throated celebration, usually accompanied by standing ovation, directed at the troops any time they appear on the jumbotron or get recognized by the public address announcer. These are all examples of the real America, still in there somewhere, fighting to free itself from the zip ties of political correctness and leftist groupthink.
There are still players who gather to pray on the field after games as well as players like J.J. Watt who give generously and mostly keep their politics to themselves. For every headline about a player who’s run afoul of the law, there are many untold stories of quiet selflessness and good citizenship.
The sport retains its power to unite people of varying races, economic strata, and political viewpoints like few other things aside from religion can. Just in my little section of the stadium, there is a diverse mix of individuals — black, white, Asian, rich, middle class (admittedly, not many poor; the tickets are too damn expensive), suave urbanites, unsophisticated rednecks, boomers, zoomers — who unite as one in support of the guys in the home jerseys. At kickoff, differences don’t matter.
And as for the games themselves, the quality of football being played has never been higher.
My advice: If you’re a football fan, don’t deprive yourself of the NFL as part of some quixotic quest for ideological purity in your entertainment options. Life’s too short.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.