Fandom

Whew, what a weekend so far; blessed to be a fan of football right now. I have written over the last couple of weeks about how excited I have been for the season to kickoff and the butterflies are still here. It is crazy how a 40+ year old can still be in love with a game so much and can reflect on what an impact the game has made. Now I am getting to watch the impact that it is making on others each and every week. This blog hits a little too close for me, the topic of fandom. When I mentioned to my wife that I was going to pen this, she giggled knowing where this could lead and as always, she was right!

During the 2023-2024 Kansas City Chiefs season I would get very frustrated with the lack of production and their inability to execute plays. Many times, we as a family would start a game and by the middle of the game, I was the only one watching it. Not because they were not interested in it, or they did not want to watch the game but because I was a bear to be around during the game. Each week I would recognize this and vow to be better, only to fall back into the same. This past off season I took the opportunity to go back and watch every Chiefs game from this past season. I found myself being more acceptable to the fact that they were failing in many aspects of the game, I recognize that knowing the outcome can make it more bearable. However, I took the inner peace watching the games the second time as some retrospect, I have got to be better as a fan.

Fast forward to today, I am recovering from Friday night’s high school game where I lost my voice from being amped up. It was a great game, very close, and I am proud of the way the team played. However, here I am writing that I have to be a better fan and yet again falling short of my own expectations. I am betting most the team enjoyed me being fired up and being quirky to my own nature but, I need to be better.

So, here I go. I am putting it out in the world today about my quest to be a better fan for all of those to be around. Here’s my plan. First, I must detach from my emotional attachment that I have for the teams that I support. I recognize that this one is probably going to be the hardest, but I know I can do this. I will have the support of those who are around me. No life or death situations when it comes to wins or losses. Second, cheer and celebrate respectfully. To me, there is nothing more sweeter than watching a defender cut back across the field at full speed and cut a ball carrier in half (I always want everyone to walk away safely, I truly do). This action on the field will amplify me to a whole new level, so, I must celebrate more respectfully, stay loud and fired up, but in control. My next and final goal is to be more positive with my words. Sending positivity out in the world is what we all need. It is best to cheer for your team versus cheering against the opposition or celebrating when they have a failure on the field of play.

This past week I was listening to the Locked On Chiefs podcast and they did their annual cross over episode with the other teams from the AFC West (Broncos, Chargers, and Raiders). Each of the hosts were extremely respectful of each other and complemented the other teams. During the episode, I really challenged myself to like the hosts were, they were professional throughout the episode and provided a great example. I especially enjoyed it when they were picking AFC West MVP’s and each of them listed a player from the other team that could possibly win the MVP title. No doubt, Maxx Crosby, Justin Herbert, and Patrick Surtain II could all very well be AFC West MVP’s! I am sure all of us can look to the example that they set to be better in our fandom.

Alright folks, you see me out there give me the encouragement to be a better fan! I will need your support as I try to adjust to my football fandom behavior. Good luck in your fandom!

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