Desicritics Category: Sports: American Football

An Immigrant's Super Bowl Ruminations

Sujatha Bagal — Mon, 5 Feb 2007 12:37:49 EST

That time of the year when men and women are in a supposed tussle - women fight for the men's attention, men fight for the remote and the right to sit on their ass for four hours and not budge - has just passed. For some women, Super Bowl Sunday is the most hated day of the year and they have no qualms admitting it.

As for me, I spent all of last evening here in India reminding myself to wake up at five am so I could watch the game. If my husband hadn't called me from London at six am to tell me it was a good game, I would have slept on until seven when it would have been time to wake up my son for school. But I scrambled out of bed, made myself a cup of hot tea and settled down to watch the game for an hour before the mad scramble of the morning began. I would have loved to watch the game with my husband, or better yet, with my group of friends that we usually watch Super Bowl with, back in the US.

Perhaps because I did not grow up in a football crazy culture and was not forced to spend Thanksgiving and many Sundays paying homage to men in tights bashing each other up, rather because I came to the game as an adult around the same time the men in my life came to it as well, I actually love the game. (On the other hand, I grew up in a cricket-crazy culture and am a huge cricket fan too - so perhaps it's just me. I just love to watch games on TV.)

So for the past few years, the Super Bowl ritual has been to gather at one particular friend's house, with the requisite 50 inch TV, in Maryland. We all bring one dish, an assortment of Indian and typical Super Bowl fare, a few snacks and drinks and our kids. By the time everyone gathers in the early evening, the kitchen counters are overflowing with food and drink, the corridors and the family room floor between the TV and the sofas are overflowing with kids and the sofas are overflowing with people.

There's good natured jousting for the prime seat (a single La-Z-Boy with a drink holder), with one or the other of the big men trying to stretch out on a sofa that could easily take three more people. There's noise emanating from all manner of Elmo toys, toy vacuum cleaners and tricycles. One group in a corner of the kitchen or the family room argues loudly about loyalties and which team will win. The host waves his Super Bowl pool sheet under their noses in a vain attempt to grab their attention.

Most of us, not having grown up in the US, really don't have a "home" team that the whole family roots for. Our loyalties spring from where we live (and unfortunately for us, the Redskins suck big time) or where we've gone to school. One or the other of us will find a player from our college team and he or she will latch on to that team to root for. Some of us go back to the season and the playoffs and try to connect a team to the one that beat the Redskins, some of us just go by how cute the quarterback is or his status as a legend. Sometimes, we just want a particular coach to win, forget the players or the team (for me, in basketball, Pat Riley was such a coach).

Watching the game itself is a chaotic affair. People mill around the kitchen, which has a clear view of the television, change seats, run after the kids, adjudicate disputes, munch on snacks, rate the Super Bowl ads, bang on the floor with all available appendages at fumbles, turnovers and interceptions, eat, drink a lot of beer, roar in approval at a touchdown - in fact, do everything but go to the bathroom.

The time reserved for that important activity is the half-time, which is when all the poor souls who could not find a comfortable seat during the game zip into any available ones.

So, at the Super Bowl two years ago, my last Super Bowl before moving to India, everyone but two of us, me and a female friend, was up and about the house paying no attention to the television whatsoever. Only our squeals and a simultaneous high-pitched, "Did you see that!?" turned every one's heads. Of course, by then, it was too late. The "Wardrobe Malfunction" had corrected itself and there was nothing but confusion on the stage (staged or otherwise, you tell me) and expressions of horror from the hosts.

The irony of the situation was not lost on the guys, but the shortcoming in their Super Bowl experience was quickly rectified the next morning (YouTube would have been so handy then) thanks to downloads of what has turned out to be a cultural watermark of our times.

I know many arguments are advanced for negating the notion that football is a men's game and only men derive enjoyment from it - apparently more than fifty percent of NFL fans are women (at all the Redskins games I've been to there were a lot of women); women are more aware of statistics and the game's history than men are, etc.

But, what I'm really saying is this - what's not to love about a game in which you can watch tight ends to your heart's content; in which, once in a while, you can watch history being made as new expressions that become ensconced in the lexicon are manufactured right in front of your eyes; where some coaches and his "boys" seem to develop this bond that is displayed for all the world to see on the field; where the entire families of the teams seem invested in the success of their men; when otherwise intelligent and reasonable men happily put on pig faces and cheese heads and actually show up in public and on national television?

Super Bowl XLI: Peyton Manning Gets The Monkey Off His Back

Sibin Mohan — Mon, 5 Feb 2007 08:19:32 EST

Peyton Manning has often been compared to Dan Marino - they were both considered to be the best players in their position (as quarterbacks), to have never won the Super Bowl. To hear the Chicago Bears fans and sports commentators go on about it for the last week or so, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that the comparisons would continue.

Tom Brady was considered as being an insurmountable hurdle for Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts, having always lost to Brady's Patriots in post-season playoff games.

Manning was known as the choker who could not handle big games - he would do exceptionally well during the regular season, often throwing as many as a record 49 touchdowns but was then considered to be unable to go the final mile - winning the AFC championship and the NFL Super Bowl title.

All that changed, today, in what can be considered to be a historic Super Bowl XLI! Manning and his Colts razed the Chicago Bears team in the first rainy Superbowl ever, a Superbowl that gave a deserving coach the honour of being the first African-American to coach a Superbowl-winning team!

It was, at times, hard to back a quarterback who has been regularly breaking all NFL records in his nine year career as a pro, while not being able to win the big one. Most people who follow football agree, without a doubt, that Manning is a contender for the the football Hall of Fame. He would be the next Dan Marino and the best quarterback till date, but...

Some detractors would claim that the rain, or Rex Grossman, or the failure of the vaunted Chicago defense were the reasons why the Colts won the championship. While some of these factors might have contributed, there are a few points worth considering.

The rain was falling equally on the Colts as it did on the Bears. Rex Grossman did make many costly mistakes, but that was after the Colts came back from a 14-6 deficit to take the lead at 16-14, all based on the brilliance and planning of Manning. The Chicago defense did not get a chance to crush their opponents as easily as they have done over the course of the season because Manning, with his ability to decipher defensive strategies, was able to take advantage of holes in their defense. Those meager holes grew in size as the game progressed, and were letting in water at an alarming rate.

Football is a team game, and both Manning and the Colts' head coach, Tony Dungy, paid homage to the idea.

Each time the question was repeated, Manning's answer was the same: team.
"It was a wonderful team game," he said. "Everyone did their job."
[...]
But then, like Manning, he slipped into the Colts' mantra.
"This may not have been our best team in five years," Dungy said, "but it was the closest and the most connected -- and it showed in the way we played.

The game has its stars, but a large number of factors must fall into place to be able to win the Super Bowl. While Manning led from the front, the Colts' coaching strategies and the way the defense pulled up their collars were important factors in the win. Not to mention the rest of their tremendous offense. The Colts are a fantastic example of how a team can come together, in every aspect, to crush even the most favoured opponents.

But Manning's contributions in passing and leading the team got him the well deserved MVP award for the game, and it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy!

On a personal note, this was a great week for sports, what with India beating the West Indies, NC State trouncing the favourites UNC, and Manning & co. winning the Super Bowl.

Now, I only wish that another gentleman would be able to shut his critics up by performing well in the cricket world cup.

Super Bowl XLI: Sigh, Chicago Bears, You Let Me Down!

USC Trojan — Mon, 5 Feb 2007 00:53:55 EST

Everything had lined up well this Super Bowl. Chicago was the underdog. So no pressure. There were chances of rain. Chicago plays well in bad weather. Peyton Manning had one monkey off his back (playoff win against the Pats) but he had an even bigger one now, to win the real Big One. So pressure, high pressure.

On my side, things lined up well too. Had some friends coming over. No HD at home, but so what? Since I have not had a great HD experience, it is quite alright to continue the non-HD experience. But we were going to watch it at my place, so it was going to be a comfortable evening.

In any case, after all the waiting around, there came the kickoff. And what a start! The kickoff return for TD added to the signs that things were falling in place for my Bears to win the big one. Special teams were going to play a critical role in the game, especially because of the rain. And Chicago fired the first shot by taking the kickoff to the house. 7-0, and the Bears were in business.

Things were about to get even more exciting - Peyton Manning almost got intercepted on the first possession. He was not though, but later in the series, he was intercepted and I told myself that this is probably not a good sign. If things fall apart so early in the game, it gives the Colts time to correct themselves.

And correct they did. After a few more turnovers on both sides, Indy locked down and started playing championship-style football. There was a discipline in the offense (at the end, Indy had 38 minutes of possession as opposed to 22 minutes for the Bears), and a calmness in the defense which did not allow too many first downs.

Rex Grossman clearly exposed himself as an inexperienced quarterback, with some ridiculous passes when they needed to maintain the momentum, and Peyton Manning on the other side showed the value of experience in big games by making huge plays just when the team needed them, and the result was a gentle spanking of the Bears at the hands of the Colts.

Whatever happened to the Bears defense? Peyton Manning was able to rip them apart pretty much on demand, and he was virtually untouched the entire game! What happened to the smashmouth Bears defense which would win games by themselves? Every time there was a huge pass rush, he was able to make long pass plays and whenever the defense dropped back, he was able to make dump passes to Addai and cover 5-6 yards with ease. It was quite unbelievable how easy he found it to make those key plays for first downs.

On the other hand, I think the Chicago offense, and Rex Grossman in particular with his fumbled snaps, made it easy for the Colts defense to get the ball back. Most of the turnovers were not a result of extremely active defense, but stupid mistakes by the offense. And I think small things like fumbled snaps can cause huge changes in momentum and they did. Add some underthrown passes and some purely stupid passes in coverage, and you see that Grossman was as much a part of the breakdown if not more than the Chicago defense.

In any case, congratulations to everyone in the Colts organization for a great season. They have been really classy on and off the field and the coach Tony Dungy deserves all the compliments for running a committed organization and keeping everyone bound together and playing for a team.

And for Chicago, it's going to be a rough next few weeks especially if they lose their defensive coordinator to Dallas. Good luck to them for the upcoming season.

On the ads front, not many stuck with me. The one that was really funny was the Blue Shield ad, which I don't think was a national ad, because the URL provided in the ad was blueshieldca.com. I loved it! There was another one with the hitchhiker with Bud Light and axe and the other one with the chainsaw. That was also quite cool. But nothing else really popped out at me. Don't know about others.

As for me, I was the only Chicago supporter, so it was a tough evening. Anyway, I stuck with them to the end, doesn't matter that I kept cursing Rex Grossman and the defense over and over again. But like Chicago, I can say there is always the next season!

By the way, the Trader Joe's Caramel Popcorn is awesome, and so is Tetley's beer from Yorkshire.

Canadian Football Is Still Football

Richard Marcus — Fri, 17 Nov 2006 07:53:44 EST

The excitement is building in Winnipeg Manitoba as the days count to this Sunday's 94th Grey Cup. Each year the two top teams in the Canadian Football League meet to decide who will get their names engraved on what is one of the oldest championship trophys in North America.

It was donated and named after the Governor General of Canada, Albert Henry George Grey, the 4th Earl Grey in 1909 to recognize the top amateur rugby-football team in Canada. It wasn't until 1954 that it became the official trophy of the Canadian Football League(C.F.L.). The title game pits the champions from the East and West Divisions against one another, and when everything is right in the world, a team from Eastern Canada against a team from Western Canada.

While there are quite a few differences in how the games are played, the big difference between the American and Canadian versions of football is money. Canadian football is still mainly dependant on gate receipts for its revenue as there just isn't the population base in Canada to warrant the huge amount of television money available to the National Football League. A good many players in the Canadian league have jobs in the off-season as only a few on each team even make the minimum salary offered in the American league.

The dream of every commissioner of the C.F.L. is that he will be the one to negotiate an American television contract that is more then just subscriber based or on E.S.P.N. 7 along with competitive lawn mowing and watching the paint dry. It's unfortunate, but for some reason the Canadian version of the game has little or no following South of the 49th parallel.

Even when American teams like the Baltimore Stallions were winning the Grey Cup little or no interest could be raised outside of the cities in the States with a team. In fact, even with Baltimore winning a championship interest was so low that the team folded and eventually was resurrected as a new incarnation of the Montreal Alouettes.

The major problem faced by the C.F.L. is the perception that it is somehow a lesser version of the game than the one played in the States. The truth of the matter is that it is a different version of the game where the emphasis is placed more on speed and agility then straight ahead strength. The size of the field and the rules of the game are all designed to emphasise those attributes and reward their application.

The Canadian football field is 110 yards long and 65 yards wide as compared to 100 yards by 53 and a 1/3 for the American. The end zones on the Canadian field are anywhere from fifteen to twenty yards deeper, while the goal posts are right on the goal line instead of in the back of the end zone.

Aside from field size the next biggest differences are number of downs, number of players, and "motion" rules. In the Canadian game teams have only three downs instead of four to cover the ten yards required for a first down, are able to field twelve players instead of eleven, and instead of only one player in motion before the ball is snapped, can have all offensive backfield players except for the quarterback and a player at either end of the offensive line, usually a wide receiver, in motion.

Other variations in rules apply to the way in which the teams line up to start a play; in Canada teams are a yard apart in the U.S. the length of the ball; there is no fair catch on punts in the Canadian game but the kicking team has to allow a five yard comfort zone around the ball until it is touched by the receiving team; a missed field goal or a punt not returned out of the end zone results in a point being awarded to the kicking team; and a receiver in the Canadian game can only be blocked for the first yard beyond the line of scrimmage unlike the five yards allowed in the American game.

Although a lot of the rules in the C.F.L. might seem silly, awarding a point for missing a field goal for example, they all work towards keeping the action moving as much as possible. In a close game a missed field goal or a non-returned punt from the end zone can make the difference between winning a losing, so there is more of a likelihood of a runback attempt. Teams kicking field goals have to be prepared for that eventuality because they can and do result in touchdown returns.

The N.F.L. game emphasises the slow and methodical approach of ball control and gaining ground in small increments, with the occasional big play. The Canadian game can see a team go the length of the field in three plays. That's not to say there isn't a running game in the C.F.L. because there is, but there's more emphasis on rollouts than drives straight up the middle.

It used to be the C.F.L. was seen as the place where guys who aren't quite ready for the N.F.L. go to get experience, but that is now happening less and less. Occasionally a Doug Flutie or a Warren Moon will make the transition from a starting role in the C.F.L. to the N.F.L. but the differences in the games are becoming such that established N.F.L. stars have trouble adjusting to the C.F.L.

Ricky Williams is only the most recent example of a highly touted American player coming North of the border and failing to live up to expectations. Others have included Collage stars like Anthony Davis who was a complete flop at running back and Vinnie Testaverde who proved the Canadian game is not designed for a pocket quarterback.

In the 1980's and early 1990's it appeared that the C.F.L. was on life support. American expansion had proven to be a disaster, no teams east of Manitoba were making money, and it looked like only a mater of time before the plug would have to be pulled. But in the intervening years the league has managed to stabilise three of the four teams in the Eastern division (a team in Ottawa Ontario just went down for the third time with not much hope of it ever resurfacing) and revitalise interest.

Instead of trying to fill mega stadiums like Montreal's Olympic Stadium, they've gone back to their roots of being community-based teams playing in smaller stadiums. The team in Saskatchewan - the Rough Riders - are probably the only publicly owned professional sports team in North America. The popularity of the Montreal Alouettes has led to such renewed interest in football in Quebec that college teams from that province are now the top ranked in Canada.

The C.F.L. will never be the major business that football has become in America with lucrative endorsement packages for the players or television advertisement time selling for millions of dollars a second during a Grey Cup broadcast. But that does not make the game better or worse than its American counterpart.

So if you're an American sports fan this weekend and you're looking for something a little different from your normal Sunday football why not see if you can find whichever E.S.P.N. station has elected to broadcast the Grey Cup this year and check it out. Who knows you may even end up enjoying yourself.

Living In America - Superbowl XL

kamla bhatt — Sun, 5 Feb 2006 18:14:02 EST

It is Superbowl time, and that means you get to see the best advertisements on TV. Remember " Terry Tate and the Superbowl" from a couple of years ago? You may or may not, but that advertisment from Reebok got Muktesh (Micky) Pant of Reebok quite a bit of mileage. Muktesh was the Chief Marketing Officer of Reebok and the Terry Tate advertisement got the kind of buzz that companies dream about.

This year's XL Superbowl is being played at the Ford Stadium in Detroit, aka Motown, and the play-off is between the Seattle Seahawks and Pittsburgh Steelers. Both these teams were not expected to make it to the play-offs, I am told by worshippers of this game. This is "the" day for sports fans in the US. But, for those like me who are missing that sports gene, Superbowl means two things: great advertisements and great half-show entertainment. (Poor Janet Jackson's wardbrobe malfunction is still being talked about....)

Every year I promise myself that I will learn a bit more about the game and maybe finally comprehend what this great game is all about. Why did Indira Nooyi of Pepsi spend time learning the nuances of this game? It was to understand strategy and tactics and apply them to business situations.

So, every year I try, and every year the same thing happens. While I pretend to watch the game there are a couple of words that I hear very often -- "offense" and "defense," and I try to figure out which team is on the offense and which team is on defence. This stuff is easy I tell myself But, my feeble understanding rapidly dissolves into confusion, and I no longer understand what is transpiring between the teams. I retreat behind my protective shell, and peek from that safe place every once in a while. My ears definitely perk up when I hear the words "half-time show," or the "pre-game show." These words make perfect sense to me. I am suddently all attention and I can decipher the stuff being shown on screen. I know the words of the songs, I know the products that are being advertised and suddenly my world brightens. After the half-show I retreat into my shell again....

Great advertisements and the Superbowl are spoken in the same breath. Some of the best advertisements are unveiled during the Superbowl. This is when advertisers get the maximum eye-balls. In those 30 seconds they can achieve what they dream of achieving for the rest of the year. Some savvy brands and companies get a lot of buzz even before the advertisement is aired. For instance, this year Anheuser-Busch, the makers of Budwiser Beer and other beverages is expected to unveil "The Bud Screen" this superbowl. There is already a lot of expectation around the advertisement. Then there are others like GoDaddy.com that get lots of mileage because their ad gets rejected time after time. GoDaddy.com's 13 versions of Superbowl advertisement was rejected by ABC , the TV channel that is airing the Superbowl game. In spite of the rejection, the company has gotten enough mileage from their rejection story.

Superbowl is the biggest day for folks in Madison Avenue (the advertisment epicenter for US). According to the New York Times this is the day when about 40 big-budget advertisement spots are shown during the show. And the price for a 30-second spot for this year's Superbowl? How about $2.5 million? Consider this: a 30 second spot in 1996 was estimated to cost about $1.37 million.

Besides the advertisments, the next big thing for me is the entertainment. This year Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin and the Rolling Stones will keep us entertained. The Rolling Stones will perform three songs lasting about 12 minutes during half-time. Here is an interesting factoid: The Rolling Stones were around when the First Superbowl game was played 40 years ago.

Watching the Superbowl is a rite of passage for many immigrants. Even if you don't understand the game, you are expected to watch the game, and be able to talk about it. If you cannot talk about the game, it is ok if you can at least mention the great advertisements and the half-show entertainment.

I did not know the trick to watching the Superbowl when I first watched it. I am a pro now. I can rattle off interesting little factoids and stats that are not football related, but are related to the Superbowl, and this is sufficient to qualify me as someone who has been through this very American rite of passage.

Cross-posted in Kamla Bhatt .