Today's NFL: A Cure for Insomnia?

I have been an NFL fan my entire life.

Despite growing up in the heart of SEC country, I have always widely preferred the NFL to the college game. Since the age of five, Sundays have always been my favorite day of the week during football season.

That is why I am having trouble coming to grips with what happened yesterday, and seems to be reoccurring over and over as I try to maintain my enthusiasm for America's favorite sport.

I am becoming apathetic.

My favorite team has always been the Dallas Cowboys. Despite our ups and downs, my interest in the Cowboys never waned even during the down years.

Until recently.

I began my NFL day by watching the Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans game. Being from Tennessee, we get to see the Titans play every week. That's okay with me because if I was forced to pick a second favorite team, it would be the Titans. However, I only saw about half the game because by 12:30, I was sound asleep.

This is the fourth or fifth time that has happened to me this season, which is unheard of for me. Granted I am getting older, but this used to never happen when watching the NFL.

Sadly I had to admit part of the problem is because the Titans, despite having a better than expected season, are a pretty boring team to watch.

I skipped the televised Panthers and Broncos game to do other things—also unheard of at one point in my life—in anticipation for the huge Cowboys-Giants game later in the evening.

Sadly, as the game approached an hour away, I found myself only slightly excited. This was also unheard of.

I did manage to make it to kickoff and watched most of the first quarter, when once again I dozed off and managed to see about the last ten minutes of the game. I was shocked when I realized I had managed to sleep for two straight hours with my beloved Cowboys playing.

Then it hit me: I simply do not care as much as I used to.

The truth is there were a ton of close games yesterday with last second finishes, yet I felt little pleasure. Even after the Cowboys won, I can't help but think I no longer felt an emotional attachment to my team. Had they lost the game, I don't know that I would have felt much different than I did after the victory.

Am I the only one who feels this way? As I began to search for an answer, it hit me. The reason apathy has overtaken me isn't because I am getting older—it is because the NFL is becoming stagnant.

Even the close games just simply aren't as much fun as they used to be for fans. Therefore, the question is why has the NFL become so boring and can it be saved?

The following are my thoughts on what is wrong with the pro game and what can be done about it:

1) The Commercials. Part of the problem with watching an NFL game these days is the seemingly endless commercials. The networks even have to throw in a commercial after almost every kickoff. This causes a problem for the viewer at home because the game often feels disjointed. Every time I find myself getting excited, the flow of the game and the drama quickly disappears because there is too much of a lull in the action.

If I were the NFL, I would consider adding three minutes back to halftime like the old days. NFL games now only last three hours on average, give or take a few minutes.

Adding three minutes to halftime will not lengthen the game very much. The additional three minutes could be used strictly for commercials meaning less stoppages during actual game play. It also would allow teams to book better, longer halftime entertainment which would make it more fun for fans at the stadium.

2) Revamp replay. I am in favor of replay but it absolutely destroys the flow of the game. Too many calls are now being challenged when it is obvious the referees got it right. I don't know exactly how to fix this, but something needs to be done.

3) Allow emotion back into the game. The NFL has gotten ridiculous on its celebration rule. There is a difference between taunting and having a little fun. We claim football is a team game, yet the team is not allowed to celebrate together.

Though I am a Patriots hater, recall when Randy Moss scored a record setting touchdown last season. His teammates had the audacity to celebrate with him and were fined.

What exactly did Titans running back Chris Johnson do wrong when he celebrated by briefly banging on some drums against Kansas City this season? Johnson was fined for having a little fun that did not show up the Chiefs.

How about allowing teams 10-15 seconds for celebration, as long as it isn't obviously taunting? In far too many NFL games, I don't see any emotion. Just a bunch players being forced to act like robots.

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