I Might Be a Geek, But It's Not Because I Play Fantasy Football

                Something that always irks me is the negative perception of fantasy football players among some people.  I do however understand why many wives and spouses hate it.  Fantasy football takes time that could otherwise be spent doing something romantic, or perhaps raising your kids.  But that’s not what I’m addressing today.  Today I will defend us, fantasy players around the globe, against…other sports fans.  For too long now we have been called things like “Fantasy Geek” or “Stat Nerd” by guys just like us.  Guys who love football every bit as much as we do, but for some reason look at fantasy football like a cold sore on the lip of the NFL’s face.  Maybe it’s the word “Fantasy” that gives the game more of a “Dungeons and Dragons” feel to outsiders looking in.  I don’t know.  What I do know is that I’ve heard the phrase “Fantasy?  No, I like real football” uttered so many times, it’s like there’s a close-minded sports manual floating around that I haven’t come across yet.  The truth is nerds do everything.  Some nerds are in bands, some jump out of planes, some are pro athletes, and some write blogs.  And yes, some even play fantasy football.  But you can’t lump us all into one giant category of “Fantasy Nerd.”

                The majority of us are just regular sports fans, looking to add to the game that we’ve always loved.  The game is still number one; fantasy is simply the cherry on top.  It gives us a reason to watch and cheer, even when our favorite team is stinking up the TV.  This proves especially helpful Illinois (Know what I mean Rams and Bears fans?)  And it gives us knowledge about teams and players we would know nothing about otherwise.  In a way, it makes us better fans of the game.  We pay attention to the whole league.  Have you ever played Madden?  Fantasy Football is basically the same thing.  Only in fantasy, the outcome is directly tied into real NFL results, and there’s typically some sort of payoff.  So fantasy is actually less nerdy than Madden.  And in most cases, could be classified as some form of gambling  So if you’ve ever played Madden or bet on a game, you would come across a little less dumb if you’d shut your stupid mouth.  I would suggest to any football fan to sign up for a league if you’ve never played.  It’s easy, and can be done for free.  Pretend it’s a cigarette in the 9^th grade and just try it. 

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