It's the trending Sunday sensation more popular than selfies in restaurants or commercials during the Super Bowl. In a word, it's fantasy football.
According to the New York Post, via the American Express Spending and Saving Tracker, roughly a quarter of the U.S. population played fantasy football last season. Millions of those aficionados were women. That includes two at my house - my daughter and me. (Who doesn't like a good fantasy?)
Every. One. Is. Doing. It. (You, me, all of us.) We're drafting a team. Conducting scientific football research. Choosing a lineup. Paying attention to the flex, and I'm not referring to football muscles.
We're living the fantasy.
We tune in on Sunday (and Thursday and Monday) and hope to high heaven we can score enough points this week to beat our daughter's team, which she's aptly named "The Gurley Squad" for obvious reasons.
At least that's how it goes at my house. We don't call them Sunday fun-days for nothing.
My family is fairly low-key about the game. Many fantasy fanatics win and lose big bucks each week through online fantasy sites, which are games of skill and technically not gambling or illegal. I can assure you nothing illegal is going on at my house. We're just competing for the family trophy. That, and bragging rights.
While I'm relatively new to the adventure, the idea of fantasy football was conceived in 1962, with the first draft occurring in 1963 in Oakland, California. It was a small enterprise back then. Because of the intricacies of scoring by hand in the pre-smartphone era, the game grew gradually over the next few decades until the immediacy of Internet magic took hold. Fantasy football websites and apps have brought the game to the masses - including non-football types like me.
This is my second year at the game, so I'm pretty much a pro. No matter that I came in last place last season. I was a rookie, and everyone knows you can't expect too much during a rookie year. (My name's Jill, not Ezekiel.)
During the off-season, I acquired a vast amount of knowledge about running backs - full and half; they run the ball. And receivers - the wide kind; they catch the ball. And tight ends, who stand on the end and can both block bodies and catch the ball. There's also the quarterback, but we all know what he does.
A successful fantasy lineup requires expertise in fine-tuned research, extensive knowledge about player capabilities, insight into the sport and an awareness of sudden and unexpected changes to the game (Gronk). It all boils down to grilling my husband and three boys who, unlike me, have all the qualities listed above. I figure if I ask them lots of questions, their pigskin know-how will transfer over to me via familial osmosis.
So far it's working. They're willing to provide me with insider insight as long as I make them nachos on game day. I figure it's a fair trade. (Or maybe that's a waiver?)
Besides, I won during week one. Not only that, I had the highest scoring team in my league, and I didn't even play Cam Newton - a blunder, perhaps, but Denver's defense spooked me. Sorry, Cam.
It's not often you can brag about beating your daughter at football, but this week, I've got the rights. It's a proud parenting moment. If my winning ways continue, I could take the trophy home this year.
But, I best not count my touchdowns before the two-minute warning. I'm up against my husband this week and it's likely to be a tough match. He's got Andrew Luck and a possible Gronk to my Cam and Beckam Jr. Either way, we're both winners. Because you know what they say...
The family that plays (and eats nachos) together stays together.
- Jill Pertler's column appears Thursdays in the Times. She can be reached at pertmn@qwest.net.
According to the New York Post, via the American Express Spending and Saving Tracker, roughly a quarter of the U.S. population played fantasy football last season. Millions of those aficionados were women. That includes two at my house - my daughter and me. (Who doesn't like a good fantasy?)
Every. One. Is. Doing. It. (You, me, all of us.) We're drafting a team. Conducting scientific football research. Choosing a lineup. Paying attention to the flex, and I'm not referring to football muscles.
We're living the fantasy.
We tune in on Sunday (and Thursday and Monday) and hope to high heaven we can score enough points this week to beat our daughter's team, which she's aptly named "The Gurley Squad" for obvious reasons.
At least that's how it goes at my house. We don't call them Sunday fun-days for nothing.
My family is fairly low-key about the game. Many fantasy fanatics win and lose big bucks each week through online fantasy sites, which are games of skill and technically not gambling or illegal. I can assure you nothing illegal is going on at my house. We're just competing for the family trophy. That, and bragging rights.
While I'm relatively new to the adventure, the idea of fantasy football was conceived in 1962, with the first draft occurring in 1963 in Oakland, California. It was a small enterprise back then. Because of the intricacies of scoring by hand in the pre-smartphone era, the game grew gradually over the next few decades until the immediacy of Internet magic took hold. Fantasy football websites and apps have brought the game to the masses - including non-football types like me.
This is my second year at the game, so I'm pretty much a pro. No matter that I came in last place last season. I was a rookie, and everyone knows you can't expect too much during a rookie year. (My name's Jill, not Ezekiel.)
During the off-season, I acquired a vast amount of knowledge about running backs - full and half; they run the ball. And receivers - the wide kind; they catch the ball. And tight ends, who stand on the end and can both block bodies and catch the ball. There's also the quarterback, but we all know what he does.
A successful fantasy lineup requires expertise in fine-tuned research, extensive knowledge about player capabilities, insight into the sport and an awareness of sudden and unexpected changes to the game (Gronk). It all boils down to grilling my husband and three boys who, unlike me, have all the qualities listed above. I figure if I ask them lots of questions, their pigskin know-how will transfer over to me via familial osmosis.
So far it's working. They're willing to provide me with insider insight as long as I make them nachos on game day. I figure it's a fair trade. (Or maybe that's a waiver?)
Besides, I won during week one. Not only that, I had the highest scoring team in my league, and I didn't even play Cam Newton - a blunder, perhaps, but Denver's defense spooked me. Sorry, Cam.
It's not often you can brag about beating your daughter at football, but this week, I've got the rights. It's a proud parenting moment. If my winning ways continue, I could take the trophy home this year.
But, I best not count my touchdowns before the two-minute warning. I'm up against my husband this week and it's likely to be a tough match. He's got Andrew Luck and a possible Gronk to my Cam and Beckam Jr. Either way, we're both winners. Because you know what they say...
The family that plays (and eats nachos) together stays together.
- Jill Pertler's column appears Thursdays in the Times. She can be reached at pertmn@qwest.net.
