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Sunday, January 10, 2010

NFL Playoffs

The older you get, the faster time goes by. It is hard to believe it has been a year since I picked the winners in all the playoff games leading up to the Super Bowl last year. My only loss was the Super Bowl game when my Cardinals couldn't quite pull it off.
So far this year, my pick teams have lost. Although it is looking like my choice, the Baltimore Ravens, might win today's first game. They are leading the Patriots 24-7 at halftime.
I believe I am more of a football fan than both my brothers. It is something which has evolved over the years. Back in my highschool days, even though I went to as many of Corning's games as I could, I didn't even understand what it meant when I cheered, "First and ten, do it again!".
I began watching pro football when there was only one tv in the house. Denny was a big sports fan, so I either watched football with him or found something else to do. In fact, our son's name is a result of watching football. When we were expecting Preston we were having trouble deciding on a name. Our boy's name choice when Kari was born was Erik Deane and while we still liked the name, Denny's brother Chuck and wife Nancy named their boy Eric.
One Sunday afternoon while watching Preston Pearson as a running back playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers, I said, "I like that name - Preston". Denny agreed he liked it too. We had already decided the middle name would be Ruth or Louis in honor of my parents depending on girl or boy. "Preston Louis, that sounds good", I said. And Preston Louis Fleming it was.
I have attended a few pro games. I saw the Washington Redskins play the St. Louis Cardinals in the old Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis; the Denver Broncos at the old Mile High Stadium; the Chiefs at Arrowhead in Kansas City. I much prefer watching on tv. Not only can I see the action much better, it is also a lot warmer.
The team I considered "my" team the longest was the Denver Broncos while John Elway was quarterback. I still think he was the most exciting quarterback; loved his come from behind wins in the last minutes or seconds of the fourth quarter.
When Elway retired I decided to pick a new favourite team; but which one? I went with the St. Louis Rams for a very "girly" reason: I liked the design on their helmets. It was a good year to be a Rams fan: Kurt Warner was their second string quarterback who took over after Trent Green was injured. His football career was such a Cinderella story, who wouldn't love him? (Plus he was from Iowa.) Then they won the superbowl! Owzie! Warner was as exciting to watch as Elway.
I didn't watch much pro ball for a couple years. By the time I started watching again, Warner was no longer playing for the St. Louis Rams. He was playing for the former St. Louis Cardinals who had become the Arizona Cardinals. (It is hard to keep up with these teams the way they move around.) After a disappointing year with the Giants, it was being suggested Kurt's days as a star quarterback were over. That was when he led the Cardinals to last year's Super Bowl.
As long as Warner is quarterback, the Cardinals will be my favourite team. I'll be watching and cheering for Arizona during this evening's playoff game against the Green Bay Packers.
I'm hoping to go two for two today.

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