If you didn’t already know it, the NFL Draft is tomorrow.
And I’m not too happy about this whatsoever.
The 800-pound gorilla that is the National Football League has extended its influence in American sports in such a way that most fans are wrapped up in nothing but the NFL, no matter what football coverage is on at the moment: After the Super Bowl, it’s pre-combine coverage; after the combine, pre-Draft hype. After the Draft, it’s pre-training camp hype, and after training camp it’s pre-season hype. Though the NFL is undoubtedly the most popular sport in the United States, is it really necessary to pay so much attention to its offseason?
My friends and roommates pour hours of attention into the NFL Draft. Sure, they may also be on edge when their teams are in the NBA Playoffs, but they don’t refer to the Association’s postseason as “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year”; instead, they call NFL Draft Saturday “Christmas.”
Have we forgotten that there are other sports out there? While Mel Kiper combs through his big draft board once more on SportsCenter, he does so in between highlights of the opening weeks of the baseball season, the NBA playoffs, and the NHL playoffs (which are pretty engaging, even for somebody who doesn’t care too much about hockey during the regular season).
Do we really need hyper-analysis of each position in the NFL Draft when we could be watching games that actually matter in three other sports? Do I really care that the Jacksonville Jaguars are on the clock when the Warriors and Mavericks are on, or fights are breaking out in the chase for Lord Stanley’s Cup?
I would much rather watch Sid the Kid or the Magic-Pistons first-round match-up than more micromanagement and analysis. Why can’t we cover all that ground on Draft Saturday? They need to fill that time – nevermind the pre-game – somehow.
The same problem, to a certain degree, goes on here on our very campus. Our men’s club lacrosse team is in the top-10 in the nation, and our women’s lacrosse team has just broken the team record in wins and are undefeated in conference play. Oregon’s softball team has overcome all expectations of a basement finish and have been regularly in the top 15 nationally, and play conference opponents in the toughest conference in the nation.
This is without even mentioning track and field – come on, we do live in a place that calls itself “Track Town,” and the University holds meets at historic Hayward Field, where Pre made his legacy and Phil Knight tested out his waffle-iron running shoes.
Yet what gets the most attention? Spring football practices. Of course the practices are important, but can’t they take a backseat in our combined fan mentality in favor of sports where games that matter are actually being played right now? Can’t we trade in speculation for something tangible?
Football dominates the American sports landscape. That’s not going to change overnight, and I’m not asking it to, nor would I want anyone to suddenly quit watching football. But should so much time and attention be paid to trying to read the crystal ball when we have tangible playoff games on the near horizon? Nothing is more exciting than games that truly matter, and there are certainly some games that matter coming up soon. It’s just a shame they’re going to be drowned out by all the pre-pre-season talk.
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