For those of you who said they were cutting back or eliminating watching the NFL . . .

Well, have you?

  • I am watching more NFL than before

    Votes: 2 0.8%
  • I am watching the same amount of NFL as before

    Votes: 21 8.8%
  • I am watching a bit less NFL than before

    Votes: 40 16.8%
  • I am watching much less NFL than before

    Votes: 105 44.1%
  • I have watched zero NFL this season

    Votes: 32 13.4%
  • I never planned to cut back

    Votes: 37 15.5%
  • I never really watched the NFL

    Votes: 1 0.4%

  • Total voters
    238

Lose Remerswaal

Experiencing Furry Panic
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How have you done?

We're halfway thru the regular season and I know we had a few threads where folks were swearing off of the NFL (or at least cutting back) because of various reasons we don't have to go into here (but we can, if you want to).

Ratings are up. The Pats look good. Have you cut back on the NFL?

For purposes of this poll, being in a place where an NFL game is on TV and you may have glanced over at the set to catch a score doesn't count. Going to a place because an NFL game is on does count.

There are replies available for "I never planned to cut back" and "I never really watched the NFL"

Votes will not be public. Not trying to "out" anyone's experience, just looking to see if folks followed through with this.
 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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I have never watched a ton of NFL but I am now going entire weeks without watching any. Too busy. I do follow scores for my fantasy team so I'm in that way.
 

bankshot1

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Feb 12, 2003
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I never planned to cut back, but in general it depends on the attractiveness of the game or whether I care for other reasons. But in general for a lot of non-Pats game I'm less engaged on a play-by-play basis.
 

HowBoutDemSox

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Aug 12, 2009
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Three or four years ago I spent all Sunday glued to the TV, sometimes two (one for Red Zone, one for the Pats or whichever the best game on was). Between the Deflategate circus and concussions and infuriating officiating and lax punishment to domestic abusers and not wanting to support Goodell and the horrible cadre of owners and how they’ve treated the protesting players, I barely ever turn it on anymore, though I’ll watch the Pats in the playoffs. Once Brady is done, I’ll provably be down to attending Super Bowl parties. It became such a chore and a drag to follow the sport and there’s better ways to spend the time and energy. Everyone needs to watch more basketball - better place if play, tremendous young talent and you don’t have to feel bad about supporting it.
 

dbn

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Feb 10, 2007
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I admit that I caved. I'm watching a bit less, but that's mostly life-related, not ethically-related.

I always knew it was going to be difficult to not watch this year. The final straw for me deciding to not watch was the banning of protesting during the anthem, but allowing players to remain in the locker room. When they backed down from that policy, it was all the excuse I needed to fall off the wagon.
 

AlNipper49

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I did not purchase Sunday Ticket this year though, as a Pats fan, it’s admittedly a half measure given most of the games are on National TV. I have only watched maybe 30 minutes of non-Pats games, usually as a result of curiosity (I.e. seeing how a few rookie quarterbacks look)
 

dcmissle

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Very selective in what I watch.

Pats yes; locals (Ravens and Skins) on in the background for noise and news if I am hanging around anyway.

Otherwise, it has to be Rams at Saints level to draw serious attention from me.
 

LogansDad

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I'm in the same boat as wiffleballhero, but I haven't watch a non-Pats game in about 3 years. This season I watched about 10 minutes of the Pats game against the Chiefs, and that's it (so I came very close to saying I have watched none, but I think that would have been a lie). I am tracking scores and standings, and know the Pats are doing pretty well, and will likely watch playoff games, though. I also might watch some of today's game, because a Brady vs Rodgers matchup is about as good as it gets.

Also, not NFL, but I haven't watch a single college game, either, although, again, I will likely drop in on the Michigan vs Ohio State game in a few weeks so I can watch Harbaugh piss away a season again.

Not sure if this answers any of your questions, though.
 

B H Kim

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Aside from the last minute of the Patriots-Chiefs game, when I switched over to NBC to watch the local news, I haven’t seen a second of NFL game action this year, and I can’t say that I really miss it. It’s actually quite liberating not to care what’s going on in the NFL.

I live in Maryland and don’t have DirecTV, but, prior to this year, I have watched the Pats when they were on here and probably an hour or two of Red Zone every Sunday.
 

( . ) ( . ) and (_!_)

T&A
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Feb 9, 2010
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The problem with all these people saying that they are cutting back on watching football is that they are denying themselves from watching football and football is awesome. Yes there are a lot of things about the NFL that really really suck. They’ve been listed here over and over again we all know what they are. But it’s still football and watching football, even with those flaws, is still better than not watching football.
 

LogansDad

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The problem with all these people saying that they are cutting back on watching football is that they are denying themselves from watching football and football is awesome. Yes there are a lot of things about the NFL that really really suck. They’ve been listed here over and over again we all know what they are. But it’s still football and watching football, even with those flaws, is still better than not watching football.
See... that's how I feel about people who say they don't watch hockey, so opinions vary.
 

JoePoulson

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Haven't purposely watched a game this year nor actively sought out scores. It's honestly been easy with the Sox and now Red Dead 2. And my family.
 

riboflav

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I did not purchase Sunday Ticket this year though, as a Pats fan, it’s admittedly a half measure given most of the games are on National TV. I have only watched maybe 30 minutes of non-Pats games, usually as a result of curiosity (I.e. seeing how a few rookie quarterbacks look)
Same. First time in nine years since moving from NE that I have not bought Sunday Ticket. I love baseball, football, basketball, and golf. The NFL is easily the worst product among the four. And the two biggest reasons are all the so-called player safety rules and reviews. The games are almost unwatchable.
 

MyDaughterLovesTomGordon

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I’ve found myself watching a couple times, like the Chiefs game, when I switched over from the Sox during commercials, but often find that it’s Sunday and don’t know when the Pats are play or whom.

I think the product is just really bad and now that I’ve changed my routine, I don’t miss it.

I check the scores sometimes for something to do. But I’d say I’m at 10 percent of the attention I gave the NFL last year and for the 30 years before that - high school was where I got invested.

Maybe it’s a time out. But I don’t think so.
 

SMU_Sox

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Jul 20, 2009
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They didn’t enforce the new anthem policy. I was not going to watch over that. But now that they scrapped that shitty and imo racist policy I feed the addiction. Maybe I would have watched anyway. Football is my favorite sport and I like my comforts. I watch the same amount which is all day Saturday and Sunday, Monday night and Thursday night.
 

luckiestman

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Jul 15, 2005
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Never bought Sunday ticket. Jets are still appointment television. Redzone is a nice product. I love the quality of SNF.

Love so many things about the NFL* and it has been great this year. MNF being unwatchable is the only thing that is bothering me this year.


*this is probably a personality thing but I often find myself either all the way in something or all the way out. The NFL allows this with the one game a week format.

I watch almost no hockey now (used to follow Bs closely) and I’m almost off baseball (and I love baseball, but 162 of 3-4 hour games is a part time job). Two kids and trying to be superdad means some things get cut and I do not enjoy being a casual fan of things.
 

riboflav

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Never bought Sunday ticket. Jets are still appointment television. Redzone is a nice product. I love the quality of SNF.

Love so many things about the NFL* and it has been great this year. MNF being unwatchable is the only thing that is bothering me this year.


*this is probably a personality thing but I often find myself either all the way in something or all the way out. The NFL allows this with the one game a week format.

I watch almost no hockey now (used to follow Bs closely) and I’m almost off baseball (and I love baseball, but 162 of 3-4 hour games is a part time job). Two kids and trying to be superdad means some things get cut and I do not enjoy being a casual fan of things.
I read this sort of thing a lot on SoSH and always thought it would happen to me when I had kids. Now, that I do have kids I find myself watching more sports than ever. :)
 

luckiestman

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Jul 15, 2005
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I read this sort of thing a lot on SoSH and always thought it would happen to me when I had kids. Now, that I do have kids I find myself watching more sports than ever. :)

I watch a lot too, just not professional. I’ve become a real connoisseur of 8 and under swimming.
 

Average Reds

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I'm not one who said I was done with the NFL, but I can say that I'm watching a lot less. Which is odd, considering that my team somehow found a way to win last year.

A big part of that is the Red Sox season going the way it did. A playoff run like we just had tends to place everything behind baseball as a priority.
 

BillMuellerFanClub

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I never thought i’d cut back, but the NBA is a far more attractive product at the moment. So much so, that its scratching my sports itch to the degree, coupled with a deep Sox run, that i’ve missed two Pats games this season - something that’s never happened in my 25 years of being a Patriots fan.

That being said, I’ll continue to watch on a week by week basis.
 

MuppetAsteriskTalk

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I'm probably at about 50% of normal. Have caught most Pats games (or recorded when unable to watch live) and drastically cut down on other games. Although as it turns out I may watch all day today.
 

E5 Yaz

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I'm watching much less. Usually, I'd try to see the best game available to me in a given week, but now I don't really tune in unless it's something particularly worthwhile -- Saints/ Rams this week, for instance.

I still watch/follow the Patriots, but my weekend following for the rest of the league is down to just online when I'm not doing anything else.
 

Jed Zeppelin

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They didn’t enforce the new anthem policy. I was not going to watch over that. But now that they scrapped that shitty and imo racist policy I feed the addiction. Maybe I would have watched anyway. Football is my favorite sport and I like my comforts. I watch the same amount which is all day Saturday and Sunday, Monday night and Thursday night.
This is pretty much me. Watching football on Sunday reminds me of skipping church, indoor soccer, diving into piles of leaves with our Shepherd, unfolding our fake Christmas tree, sitting next to the fire in my #11 jersey, hearing my dad swear for the first time, and cherishing the last vestiges of the weekend. I doubt I will ever stop watching.
 

InstaFace

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I used to watch 1 Patriots game + ~1 other game on a sunday, and sometimes the monday or thursday night game as well.

I think I've seen 6/8 Patriots games this year and basically nothing else - and every time I think to watch, I go check scores first and it's usually a blowout. The interminable ads and delays really don't help me push through when I'm not watching the brilliance of Brady and Belichick, so I'm not missing much. I find a european soccer match far more entertaining, and over in half the time with ten times the action. The NBA likewise is a much more digestible dose of sports on a weeknight - 2.5 hours and it's done, barring overtime, rather reliably. So I'd say I'm watching a little less, arguably much less. But I'm more convinced than ever that I won't miss it once Brady and Belichick retire.
 
Jul 18, 2005
29
Not sure if any of the choices apply. I used to watch all of the Pats games and at least one other game per week. Ballghazi was the trigger that caused me to take a hard look at what the nfl was doing.
The logical position would have been to ditch the nfl entirely, but I've taken the morally ambiguous route of watching every Pats game and absolutely none of the rest. My irrational dream is that Brady wins 4 more championships, retires, and then Kraft secedes to join the CFL.
 

Jordu

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I was not among the posters who said they’d be watching much less NFL this year, but I have stopped watching. I’ll have tonight’s Pats game on my TV while I work because my godson is visiting from London and will be at the game and I want to be able to talk with him about it tomorrow night. It’ll be the first NFL game I watch this season.

I haven’t missed the Pats at all, which surprises me a bit. I’ve always been more of a Pats fan than a football fan. I’m not entirely sure why I’ve stopped watching. Part of it is that I never played football and don’t understand the “inside game,” part of it is the grating pomposity of the NFL (read Mark Leibovich’s book), part of it is that I don’t enjoy seeing someone’s body badly broken, and part of it is the silliness of the arcane and ever-changing rules (tediously chewed over during the replay challenges).

My wife will occasionally wander into the den, find me watching something other than baseball or hockey — Premiere League soccer or tennis or something — and ask, “Why are you watching that?” I always answer “Because it’s sports.” I guess in some way I don’t really see the NFL as sports any more.
 

nighthob

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I'm in the same boat as wiffleballhero, but I haven't watch a non-Pats game in about 3 years. This season I watched about 10 minutes of the Pats game against the Chiefs, and that's it (so I came very close to saying I have watched none, but I think that would have been a lie). I am tracking scores and standings, and know the Pats are doing pretty well, and will likely watch playoff games, though. I also might watch some of today's game, because a Brady vs Rodgers matchup is about as good as it gets.
This is, more or less, where I’m at. I watched the KC game, and fourth quarters of a couple of other New England games, but that’s about it. I was in the When Brady & Belichick are gone so am I camp. But this year I have one foot out the door. I’ll probably watch tonight’s game, though.
 

TrotWaddles

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I’m Pats only at this point. The Sox enabled a big part of that. My oldest son starting to ask in-depth questions about basketball zone defenses and man pic schemes has taken up the other.
 

Spelunker

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Jul 17, 2005
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I've missed several Pats games, and I haven't seen a single non-NE one this season. Last few years I've watched all the Pats games and caught a few others here and there.
 
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taoofoj

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Jan 16, 2007
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I caved and have no excuse.

I watch every Pats game and casually have the TV on for one of the other games - whatever the best matchup is. I said I would watch Pats only and none of the other games. I did not follow thru on that. My habits did not change. I like having football on and I guess I was not truly committed to punishing the NFL by depriving them of my eyeballs...
 

Bozo Texino

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I watched a little bit of a Texans game when I visited my dad a few weekends ago. That’s all I’ve seen from this season.
 

aksoxfan

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Pats only and not every game. Recorded the Buffalo game and deleted it without watching it. Other games don’t interest me; don’t care for the broadcasts and commercials.
 

SoxFanInCali

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I used to go to my local bar and watch games all day Sunday. I still watch pretty much every Rams game, and went to the Rams-Packers game in LA last weekend, but I can count on one hand the number of other games I've watched.
 

Papelbon's Poutine

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Dec 4, 2005
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I was not one that said I wouldn’t, but it’s been years since I’d spend all
Day every Sunday glued to the TV. Watched all the Pats games as always but today was first day I’ve watched any non Pats - unless in a bar or channel surfing for back ground noise - and will day the early games sucked, all the late games were awesome. They need to do a better job with scheduling, both for matchups and TV.
 

Sausage in Section 17

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Mar 17, 2004
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I made a mild resolution to watch less due to caving on the anthem thing, and I’ve generally found myself less interested. I agree with Jordu above when you say it almost doesn’t feel like sports anymore. More like some Roman gladiator public entertainment spectacle. The historical achievements of Brady and Belichik are worth tuning in for, but it is otherwise slowly losing me, it feels like.

Oddly, somewhat because my son has become really into hoops, I’ve begun watching and enjoying the NBA again, after giving up on it for years, except for the later playoffs. And it really is night and day in terms of how that league supports its athletes in comparison to the NFL.
 

Leskanic's Thread

lost underscore
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I was never the hugest football fan anyway, but the last few years have really turned me off. I would probably still be hanging around to just watch the Pats, but I'm out of market, plus have some V&N-content issues with decisions the big three (Bob, Bill, & Tom) have made. So I've soured on them as well.

I watched one full game when my parents were in town in September, and it was broadcast here in L.A. I don't even know who they played. I caught bits of a few of their other games, but nothing more than a quarter. With the Sox playoff run plus the Bruins and Celtics starting back up, I haven't missed it.

All that said, I'll tune in for playoff games...or at least the Super Bowl, if they make it. And if they win again, I''ll bring it up with the Steeler fans I know and buy a hat to put in my office. For whatever that's worth.
 

garlan5

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I too haven't watched much in the last couple years. Mostly due to the 9ers sucking. Though the anthem stuff is a big turn off and the debate at work that follows it. Much easier to ignore it all. College ball is easier for me to enjoy these days. As a kid nfl Sunday was an all day event. Maybe chasing my kids around baseball, softball, and football fields all weekend altered things
 

CantKeepmedown

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Aside from the last minute of the Patriots-Chiefs game, when I switched over to NBC to watch the local news, I haven’t seen a second of NFL game action this year, and I can’t say that I really miss it. It’s actually quite liberating not to care what’s going on in the NFL.
Assuming you were a fan and used to watch more, what exactly are you being liberated from? You never had to watch in the first place. Is it just priorities that have changed? Or substituting it with something more fulfilling? Not a critique at all. Just curious.
 

Ralphwiggum

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As much as various things about the league bother me (the fucking camouflage gear worn on the sidelines this weekend as an example) I don't watch less. The Pats are still appointment television for me and the family, and the other games are typically on in the background on Sunday. It's still the only sports league where I can watch a game and pay attention when my team isn't involved.
 

gtmtnbiker

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Jul 15, 2005
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I'm watching the same amount as before. Always using the DVR which means that I can't ever participate in the game threads. I always watch all of the Pats games. As for other teams, it depends if it's an interesting matchup or not. Yesterday, I watched the Ravens/Steelers game and the Rams/Saints. Besides skipping commercials with the DVR, I'm aggressive using the 30 second skip between plays. It worked well for Big Ben because he usually waits until the clock is almost 0. Not so much for Flacco so I have to use fast forward button.
 

NortheasternPJ

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I'm 100% on the Pats at this point but the rest of NFL viewing is down probably 50%, but that's really a result of having a nearly 5 year old. I work all week, I feel bad sitting on the couch for 8 hours being a slug. I have seen though as a result of watching less I do care less about non-Pats games. That said, it's going into the second half of the year, it's now dark at 4pm, I'm much more likely to start watching a lot more.
 

nayrbrey

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Jul 20, 2005
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I’m still watching the Patriots, but I usually DVR the game if it’s on at 1 and watch it later. If the Patriots are playing a 4 o’clock or night game I will mostly watch them live. Haven’t watched more than a few minutes of a non pats game this year, mostly for Fantasy Football purposes.
Of course having a 10 year old and 8 year old has changed my viewing habits greatly no matter what is on TV.
 

simplyeric

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Feb 14, 2006
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I’m way down. Before kids I watched like 70% of the NFL, like most of all day Sunday (regardless of Pats schedule) plus evening games.
But even with kids I carved out sundays to watch the Pats, plus a good portion of evening games regardless of who was playing (including bye weeks).
So I’d say 60+ games a year (regular season)?

I’m on pace for maybe 8 games. I have only watched evening games, I think 4 so far, and only one of those when I wasn’t already in front of my computer doing work.

I’ve specifically avoided having it on at home with my kids. I won’t belabor the point, but there’s too many issues at stake, and too many negative messages for my kids.

But I’m am still weak and I haven’t been able to avoid it for myself completely, and we’ll see how I fare if the playoffs come into play.

But, yeah so I’m down from 60 to 8.

That being said: I loved the game last night.
 

B H Kim

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Assuming you were a fan and used to watch more, what exactly are you being liberated from? You never had to watch in the first place. Is it just priorities that have changed? Or substituting it with something more fulfilling? Not a critique at all. Just curious.
I'm not suggesting that it was a chore to follow the NFL. But, between interest in actual results and fantasy, it became the dominant focus on my Sunday afternoons over the course of the season. I didn't decide to stop watching this season because that focus became too much, but not even having to think about what is going on in the NFL makes it a lot easier to concentrate on and deal with everything else going on on a typical Sunday in the fall. That said, I'd almost certainly still be watching if I hadn't decided that I could no longer enjoy as entertainment a bunch of guys giving each other permanent brain injuries.