Erika M.
Feb. 2, 2014 will go down in history as one of worst days to be a Denver Broncos fan. Everyone expected a good game that would come down to the wire: Peyton Manning’s explosive number one offense versus Richard Sherman’s dominant number one defense.
We were all proven wrong as the Seahawks brutally dominated the Broncos 43-8. Everything that could have went wrong for the Broncos did; a safety on the first play, a fumble, a pick six, a kickoff return. You needed a calculator and a Ph.D. to keep track of the turnovers. What may have stung the most for Broncos fans, though, was that their ‘explosive’ offense couldn’t score.
Rumors have been passed around the internet that perhaps Manning and other Broncos were paid to throw the game in a modern day Black Sox scandal. I wouldn’t put a lot of stock in those rumors though, because how much would you have to pay someone who makes 18 million dollars a year (Peyton Manning) to risk losing his career and that salary forever. It begs the question though, what did happen to the Broncos? Did they just save their worst game for last, did they forget to eat their Wheaties on Sunday morning? I guess we will never know.
We do know, however, that Broncos fans all across America have sunk into a depression. Actually, football fans everywhere are embarking on our least favorite season: football off-season. Unless you’re a Seahawks fan, or one of those fair weather fans who as of Sunday think that the Seahawks are your team, you have been in depression since the day your team was kicked out of the playoffs. For Broncos fans who came so close and got destroyed so easily, the sting could last a lifetime.
There is no doubt that sports play a major role in the culture of the United States. You can’t walk down the street without seeing at least one person wearing some team’s logo. It’s how those in the sports realm seek to make a first impression: “Who is your team?” The answer could be a deal breaker if you stumble upon a rival. When your team loses, it is a sad day. Monday is only as good as the score was on Sunday.
Some, who live out of the sports world, may argue that Americans care too much about sports. They say it shouldn’t affect someone who wins and looses, people shouldn’t spend money on it, or support such barbaric activity. Those people will never understand loving a team and the camaraderie that you have amongst fans. I can sum up sports’ importance relatively easily. No matter how far away you are from home, how lost you feel having to watch your team away from those you have grown to love them with, you can step into any Buffalo Wild Wings or similar venue and be amongst friends: friends wearing your colors, friends wanting to talk and enjoy a game. That is a priceless moment for someone away from home, and is the quintessential beauty of sports.
Sports bring people together. They make people happy and, in today’s messed up world, things like that can’t be taken for granted. To the dissenters, leave our sports alone. To the Broncos fans and the rest of us missing our team: hang in there. Next season will be here before you know it.
