Ya don't have to be an art aficionado to know that the famous Dali painting is titled The Persistence of Memory. Y'know, with the melting clocks and trees that resemble Daphne? The trouble with history in a world full of subjectivity is that everyone seems to think that they can create their own alternate histories that suit them best. So it is with Steeler fans."It's all about the championships, the rings, baby! We've got six!" This is a common refrain, and something every Steeler fan should rightly be proud of, a hell of a good football team. No arguments there. The 49ers and Cowboys trail with 5, respectively.
The inconvenient truth is that the NFL had a championship game that existed before Mr. Pete Rozelle married the words "super" and "bowl" into a corporate and copy-righted entity. And the undisputed "Kings" of the NFL? The Green Bay Packers, who won 9 NFL championships and 3 "Super Bowls" (which likewise happen to also be NFL championship games). 12-time world champions.
This is where the NFL screwed up. Hockey has it's Stanley Cup. The NBA has their finals. And the records kept by both of those leagues do not delineate between a "modern era" and "pre-modern era", whatever that would be. A championship in a sport is its' championship (or, to borrow a hated cliche, "it is what it is").
If the NFL sells the naming rights of it's title game to some business, does that mean we re-set the clock for the "AT&T Wireless Super Bowl?" The idea's preposterous.
But, hell, it's America. We tend to take a "what's happening lately?" view of things. And, when you're reading a blog written by a guy who obviously is taking something fun and diverting as the Super Bowl and making a big deal out of it, you know the author is clearly taking this sh*t too seriously.
Packers: 12 rings; Steelers: 6. Both have the chance to add to the totals on Sunday.
------------------------------
Is it all really about the championships?
There is much ink and paper being wasted on the "storylines" of Sunday's game. Come Monday, will any of it matter much? By the following Sunday (February 13th) some of us will be hard-pressed to recall who won, or we'll be hearing all about the upcoming NCAA March Basketball tournament. These things tend to seem disposable. Perhaps only the fans really care?
I kinda doubt it, I'll bet it matters to the players on both teams right now.
"It's all about the championships." We hear this a lot.
Is it? A hypothetical NFL player watched last year's Super Bowl at home. By February he's working out hard keeping his body in shape while also aging yet-another year without earning the championship he's dreamed of. Every season he comes up short, and always will. Through the force of his will he continues to drive himself, batter his body on the field and in the weight room - but never feels the confetti.
What did he play for?
Another NFL player is on a Super Bowl winning team in a given year. By February he's in the weight room and studying film and learning the new playbook. He's meeting the rookies and new teammates management added. He punishes his body in training camp, makes weight, and punishes it even more during the season, where he wins another Super Bowl. By the following February, he's back in the weight room......and on and on and on.
It seems monotonous in its' meaninglessness - like something Kafka would write. Or a Russian novelist. Like the mythical Ouroboros, it's a wolf eating its' own tail to survive. A wheel, turning endlessly. Disposable as yesterday's horoscope.
And this is our reflection as a culture. All is disposable, nothing is irreplaceable. Last year's heroes are this year's goats, "the bums." I'm not sure that it's all about the rings. I think the rings help, they create a goal that's worth fighting through pain and doubt to achieve - but I don't think it's The End that some make it out to be.
Let's use Big Ben (aka The Rapist) as an example. Will winning Sunday redeem him? Perhaps to some Steeler fans, sure. A Super Bowl title means endorsements, magazine covers, adulation, and a measure of immortality (tell that to James Washington). Perhaps it gets him back into the good graces of sportswriters like Peter King or the ESPN guys. Does that truly redeem him? Would 100 championships redeem his misdeeds? Plug in the name "Mike Vick" instead. It doesn't make a damned bit of difference.
Like Doc Hudson tells Lightning McQueen in the movie "Cars," the championship (Piston Cup) is "just an empty cup."
-------------------------------------
All of that blah blah blah aside, there's an actual game they'll play Sunday in between the "event" commercials (which will suck) and pomp. It should be a great game, two proud franchises with a combined 18 titles clashing on the NFL's biggest stage. 2 good quarterbacks and 2 good defenses. I think this guy Rodgers has something to prove, but then again so does Roethlisberger. Like last year's Super Bowl, I think a weird play-call or oddball occurrence (like a punt/kick return for a TD) will win the day. In games like that, historically, the Steelers have prevailed. But for some reason (call it the cheese) I'm thinking Packers.
No comments:
Post a Comment