Why Americans Need Football

Never in my lifetime has there been a need for Americans to believe in something so badly as now. The economy has tanked into a full recession level with no sign of improvement in sight. Smart money says that we will reach a depression before anything improves. We are still reeling from an administration in Washington that has given us eight years of the worst leadership and direction in our nation’s history. We need heroes more than ever right now, we need a cause to rally behind, and the NFL gives us some of the most exciting reasons ever.

I believe human beings are inherently violent. It’s not anything that we can control. It is subconscious, it is dark, and it is real. Football pleases our subconscious violence in a way that no other sport can quench. Like the Romans and the Lions, the coliseums are packed every time. No one can (or wants to) really answer why we have this inner need for carnage, to see a grown man unload on another, nor do we care. It is pleasing and soothing during troubled times.

Americans are a highly competitive people. Our innate need to be correct or triumphant over others is obvious in every aspect of our daily lives. Careers, love lives, sport as hobby, these are all examples of our need to force our collective will on others.

And that’s OK; there isn’t anything wrong with these behaviors. It is what makes us American, and it is what has gotten us to where we are today. The NFL more than any other sports league in the world caters to our need for competition and dominance. Every week we come out to support our beloved teams in the spirit of violence and competition.

These are dark days indeed. We will only have to wait and see if anything improves for us as a nation financially, morally or spiritually. I hope things improve for Americans everywhere soon, but until then I would just like to thank the NFL and the forefathers of American football, because I know no matter how low I am feeling, I can laugh, I can cheer, and I can cry every Sunday as I watch my team beat the snot out of your team.

And then I feel better.