For the last decade or so, I’ve been into fantasy football as much as anybody. I remember making my parents buy me my first “guide” from the grocery store magazine aisle when I was in junior high. I’ve stayed up late crunching numbers and I’ve gotten up early to make waiver claims. I wasn’t just good at fantasy football, I excelled at it. Starting Thursday night, however, I’m also retired.
I’m not any less of a football/stats geek than I was last year or 5 years ago, but sometime the past couple of years I realized that fantasy football changed me as a football fan and I don’t really like those changes. I decided a couple of weeks ago that I am going to at least go one season without playing and it might last a lot longer than that.
Why the sudden change?
Note: I’m understand I’m going to come off like an old scrooge here and I’m okay with it…
Fantasy football fundamentally changed the way I watch and enjoy the game. Instead of watching teams play each other, I began watching fake teams play each other through the lens of individual players. After the Steelers played each weekend, the rest of my watching consisted of following my players and following my opponents players from my fantasy matchup that week. It was exciting, sure, but eventually I grew tired of rooting for and against certain players purely because of fantasy reasons. Something doesn’t feel right about it anymore.
I even got to the point where I would root for certain Steelers to score over others. I would at least be a little pissed if I had Heath Miller on my team and Ben Roethlisberger through to Hines Ward in the redzone instead of the big tight end. It’s silly when you think about it as an isolated situation, but I know plenty of other fantasy players who watch their favorite team with their fantasy football glasses on.
Fantasy football has also changed the way fans and ‘experts’ evaluate all NFL players. Winning means less than it ever has and the line is awful blurry between an elite QB and an elite fantasy QB. I don’t believe those are the same thing. I’ve complained about this a bunch in the past.
I think my sudden revalation has a lot to do with the lockout. Months of facing a fall and winter without football probably means I’m appreciating the game a little bit more this time around. After the lockout ended, I watched more preseason football than ever and it was refreshing to watch and study the game without constantly checking my phone or browser to see how “my team” was doing.
While fantasy football can bring some life to a meaningless late season matchup between Cleveland and Carolina, I feel like it takes a lot away from watching the game in most other situations. In 2011, I want to spend more time rooting for and enjoying players because they are fun to watch. I want to watch Arian Foster shred the Colts for 3 rushing TDs because it is entertaining. I don’t want to watch that game angrily because Foster is on the my fantasy opponent’s team or get upset because the Texans aren’t throwing enough to Andre Johnson.
I have missed a lot of great, real football the last few years in the name of fantasy football. I’m not going to let that happen in 2011.
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