It's playoff time in the NFL, and once again my Bills will be watching the games on TV. With the Bills out of the playoffs, who will I root for. I find it extremely difficult to enjoy a sporting event without a rooting interest. This has always been the case. If no home team is present, I have to find an angle I can get behind so I care about the outcome. When I don't care who wins or loses, I lose interest altogether. Who am I rooting for in the NFL playoffs? The Green Bay Packers.
There are several reasons why I'll be backing the Pack...
- Brett Favre is the man. I've always loved the way he plays the game. It's incredibly easy to root for Favre, and this year there's even more reason to do so. His beloved father dies suddenly, and Favre starts the Monday nighter and destroys the Oakland Raiders in a must-win game 41-7. Following a hectic week including his father's funeral, he goes out and destroys playoff-bound Denver Broncos 31-3 in another must-win game. Favre is the man. Enough said.
- It took a miracle for the Packers to slip into the playoffs. Despite beating Denver yesterday, they needed the horrible Arizona Cardinals to defeat the Minnesota Vikings in order to qualify for post season play. Minnesota led Arizona 17-6 with two minutes left and the Cardinals cut the lead to 17-12 on Josh McCown's fourth-down 2-yard pass to Steve Bush with 1:54 to play. Damien Anderson recovered the onside kick for Arizona, and a 30-yard pass-interference call against Denard Walker put the Cardinals in scoring position. A final game winning play was reviewed several times before being allowed. Now that's drama.
- The Packers are a cool franchise. Green Bay is the smallest city to host a team in the four largest North American leagues, and the team is owned by fans, not a single owner or corporation. Lambeau Field is the coolest...literally.
- I've rooted for them before. During Favre's glory days in the mid to late 90s, I was a big fan. I've celebrated a Packers Super Bowl victory before and I can celebrate a Packers Super Bowl victory again.
So, as you can see, I have a team to root for despite the absence of my all-time favourite franchise. Go Pack Go!
