Do I support a new NFL team.

[Abe Sargent]

Eleven years ago I decided to become a Jaguars fan and I've never been disappointed by the choice. Here are some reasons why I like rooting for the Jags -

1). If you include the Wisconsin market with the Green Bay market, then Jacksonville has the smallest media market in the country. I like supporting a small team.

2). Byron Leftwich will never be a Peyton Manning, but he has a certain je ne sais qua that i absolutely love.

3). Jacksonville has few fans outside of the Jacksonville area, even in the state. Orlando TV stations are upset because they have to show Jacksonville games instead of Dolphins games. You'll be one of the few and proud.

4). They are a hard nosed team. The most famous and popular Jaguar in their history is an Offensive Tackle. Jack Del Rio has added a gritty, blue collar element to the team.

5). James Harris, the Jags President of Football Operations is one of the highest level blacks in the sport and so far his drafts have been excellent.

6). The team is on the rise, with many players ascending (CB Mathis, QB Leftwich, etc)

7). I like the black and teal color combination.


-Anxiety

[Desnudo]

I would have trouble rooting for a team not from the Boston area. Like when the Patriots almost moved to Hartford, that would have ended my enjoyment of the NFL. I really have no emotional stake in the Seahawks, for example, despite having lived in Seattle for 5 years now. But Bostonians are known for being self-centered homers so I suppose it's in my blood.

[Axxon]

Originally Posted by MikeVick7

Dude, I was a Falcons fan all the way through the 90's...

I think if you're over the age of...let's say 21...you should not be able to change your favorite teams. Period.

I've been a Buccaneer fan since 1974 ( when Tampa was awarded a team ) and let me tell you one thing. 2002 was the best moment in my sports viewing life and it's impossible to convey the feeling after suffering so long.

Matt Millen is bad but this is NOTHING compared to enduring Hugh Culvernose. Inept people can occasionally find success but when you deliberately sabotage your team to maximize profits you wont.

All in all though, I wouldn't trade the experience of being a Bucs fan even during the worst years for anything in the world. That's what being a fan is.

That and seriously believing that last season's 2-14 team was going to make a serious playoff run every season for decades. I've done that too.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Daimyo

I don't know why people stop rooting for their teams when they leave the city... I'd root for the Colts no matter where they went. Afterall, I left Indiana for better opportunities elsewhere... why should they not have the same rights?

Ask Browns fans how they feel about Art Modell or Oilers fans about Bud Adams. The hatred for the owner moving the team away from you means you just can't cheer for them once they move.

SI

[korme]

Originally Posted by Axxon

That and seriously believing that last season's 2-14 team was going to make a serious playoff run every season for decades. I've done that too.

No kidding. Every year I would look at the Bengals schedule at the midway mark and try to conjur up some feeling that we had a legit shot at making a run and being a contender... oh boy, glad that's over.

[KeyserSoze]

Stick with your team...

[korme]

Originally Posted by Daimyo

I don't know why people stop rooting for their teams when they leave the city... I'd root for the Colts no matter where they went. Afterall, I left Indiana for better opportunities elsewhere... why should they not have the same rights?

The only time it makes sense to me is like when Cleveland moved to Baltimore, but then got a new expansion team baring the same former city and nickname and keeping their old history and such.

[Raiders Army]

Become an NFL fan and you'll win every time.

[KeyserSoze]

2 more random thoughts.

1-If in Spain (and I bet in England an Italy) a team is moved to another city, there will be big big problems (thinking in Ath. Bilbao, Barsa, R. Madrid, Betis....)

2-At least in US football all the teams has good chances to be winners. But think in baseball, with teams rich and poors. And then think in Europe were a lot of fans just want that his team is not relegated.

[scooper]

Originally Posted by RendeR

Just to chime in as a long time Bengals fan:

I fell in love with the Bengals when they brought out the striped helmets and uniforms.

So....Basically since the birth of Who Dey?

[albionmoonlight]

Originally Posted by Desnudo

I would have trouble rooting for a team not from the Boston area. Like when the Patriots almost moved to Hartford, that would have ended my enjoyment of the NFL. I really have no emotional stake in the Seahawks, for example, despite having lived in Seattle for 5 years now. But Bostonians are known for being self-centered homers so I suppose it's in my blood.

I am sure that this question betrays my lack of knowlege of New England geography/culture, etc., but it is one that occured to me back when this was close to happening--namely, what was the big deal?

From what I can tell, Boston and Hartford are about an hour and a half apart--close enough that the NFL was going to keep Boston as part of the TV Blackout market for the games. So it must be reasonable to consider Boston and Hartford as part of the same area/market.

And the team was already named as a regional team--the New England Patriots and not the Boston Patriots.

So it did not even seem to me like the team would be leaving the Boston area or its fan base. It would be much more like when the Redskins moved from RFK to Fed-Ex field.

I'm not trying to get the New England folks angry--I just have no idea why this would have been such a big deal. Maybe it come from growing up in the South where we have a bit more room--and an hour or two drive to get where you are going does not cause you to travel through four different states.

Anyway, insight would be appreciated.

[JasonC23]

As a long-suffering (but not nearly as long as many others) White Sox fan, let me tell you that when your team finally wins it all, it feels ddaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaamn good. Don't lose hope!

[pennywisesb]

Originally Posted by JasonC23

As a long-suffering (but not nearly as long as many others) White Sox fan, let me tell you that when your team finally wins it all, it feels ddaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaamn good. Don't lose hope!

I can't wait for the day my Golden State Warriors finally bring one home....