TODD:
Clearly, saying Andy Reid is saying enough. But outside of the fat and the mustachio and the Venn diagram where they cross, nothing else in the NFL is known and fans need things to bank on, to keep them sane. Upsets are grand and having the playoff picture muddled for two and a half months is fine, but where is the constant?
Remember that guy from Lost, the one traveling through time... Desmond. Remember how Desmond needed a constant to keep from going crazy (or dying or something)? Well, without a point of reference there's no basis of understanding to the NFL. If any team can go from last to first and vice versa, how are fans supposed to relate and find meaning in the games? Football then goes from a sport with rooting interest to a spectacle with random outcomes.
There is no dumber bet in sports than the preseason predictions of NFL division winners. I need my constant.
DAN:
I'm glad we both agree on Andy Reid. And your Lost analogy is a good one, but I do think there are plenty of constants in the NFL for fans to use to stay sane. Yes, teams can go from worst to first, but this is a good thing. However, there are about five teams in the last five to seven years that have always been good, and about five teams that have always been awful.
This constant is more than enough to keep fans sane. This season has thrown a wrench into the whole machine, I can't argue with that, as the usually solid teams have been losing games that one would think they never would. I attribute this to defense and the changing game (a la rules and coaching) more than the unpredictability of how good a team is. The Patriots, Ravens, Steelers, Packers, and Giants have all been good to great for the last five seasons easily. I think by the end of this year they will all have winning records to stand on. And as for the bad teams, well the Browns and Chiefs may stand alone this season, but the Lions, Rams, and Cardinals all are pretty awful on average too.
I find the NFL has lots of constants and I'm thrilled that one team’s victory over another isn't one of them. Unless we are talking about the Giants over the Patriots of course.
TODD:
It seems like revisionist history to label teams as consistently good for a five year span. Both the Giants and Packers sneaked into the playoffs the years they won the Superbowl. And they each had seasons recently where they missed the playoffs, the Packers finishing 6-10 as recently as 2008. The AFC squads you mentioned have been more dependable (although I'm not sure who is truly elite this season). Really the turnover in the NFL is the only reliable thing.
Each year divisions flip, playoff teams lose double digit games and bottom dwellers jump up to respectability. If the NFL has one constant it is in its ability to be consistently not constant and I find that rather disconcerting. A stronger word might be depressing or eye gouging.
DAN:
I can't disagree with that, although I want to. But I'm definitely not depressed. The NFL is entertainment, a crazy flip flop league that makes so much money from gambling that its in everyone but the fan's best interest to be crazy and flip floppy. Embrace the chaos. Anything completely unpredictable will always be entertaining.
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