The Circular Sports Debate

Published on 27-May-2013 by Towner Park

Football - NFL    NFL Daily Opinion

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The Circular Sports Debate

Sports. We live it. We love it. We play it. We debate it.

It's our version of a soap opera that we can't seem to be fully satisfied by. We crave every ounce it can muster, and once it's over, we watch every little detail (draft, trades, roster alterations, training camps, OTAS, preaseason) preceeding the start of the regular season. It's our family, our friend, our companion. It's our aunt who always brings a gift whenever she visits. It's the unconditional love that will never part from us. It's our permanent wife that would never coerce us to sign a prenuptial agreement. And frankly, we love it so much that we must discuss it, and in particular, debate it, whenever and wherever we are. 

Every week, I find myself thrusted into a NFL debate, specifically about the NFC East. I reside in the heart of Redskin territory. Being a Cowboy fan, I'm constantly playing defense and I'm always conscientious of my surroundings. I bump into and speak to Redskin fanatics at least once a day. Therefore, I always find a way to be tossed the 'Thunder Dome' of the dreaded Circular Sports Debate.

Let me preface this by stating that I love to debate. However, I can easily spot a circular sports debate as soon as a conversation begins. I dread the "My team is better than your team because ..." opening act. I usually stop listening from there. Yes, I understand your QB is unbelievably talented and Alfred Morris is a beast for a sixth-round rookie. Yes, I know that the Cowboys are usually overrated and don't usually live up to their preseason hype. However, it's nonsensical for you to try to convince me that I should a) not love the Cowboys, and b) switch football teams.

Loyal football fans are glued to their teams without any iota of switching sides. If you do, you're labeled a bandwagon jumper or a traitor (depending on how serious your friends and family are about football). I'm sticking with the Cowboys for an eternity. Don't try to sway my allegiance. I will never concede!

From the aforementioned previous statement to where we are now, you can tell this argument's geometric shape is a circle. We've now started from ground zero after you've exhausted yourself with statistics, insider information, and player capabilities. I still identify myself as a Cowboy fan and you still identify yourself as a Redskin fan. We are a part of different fanbase communities. Shouldn't that be allowed?

Where do we go from here? The perpetual dispute is on the docket tomorrow.

All is well in the world.