Cold, hard reality
Pro football has its own version of a pandemic. These days, there are an estimated 12 million people playing fantasy football.
This “disease” is so out of control that, on a recent Sunday, employee computers at Denver International Airport logged more than 30,000 hits to football Web sites, reported Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic.
An internal memo was issued, warning that such behavior was disrupting the airport’s computer system.
“It didn’t affect the safety or security of our passengers,” airport spokesman Chuck Canon told Bickley. “The only thing it could’ve done was slow down some work. The main thing is, it was city time and company time being used for private use.”
It’s a passion not necessarily shared by the players.
“I’ve had guys come up to me in night clubs and restaurants and tell me I’m on their fantasy team,” Arizona Cardinals receiver Teyo Johnson said. “I’m like, ‘What? You’re fantasizing about me, dog?’ “
“Fantasy football is lame. Period,” the Cardinals’ Obafemi Ayanbadejo said. “It’s stupid as hell.”
According to Greg Ambrosius, president of the Fantasy Sports Trade Association, each player participates in an average of 2.5 leagues, which means there are 30 million fantasy teams in existence.
Each player spends an average of $154 a year, and if you do the math, you’ll understand why this phenomenon has come under new scrutiny.
The NFL Players’ Association believes it should get a slice of this giant pie, just as it does with video games and football cards. There is the veiled threat of impending legal action.
Soon, there could be a bidding war for the official provider of fantasy football, and the entire industry might undergo a radical change after this season.
“A lot of people don’t realize what’s going on,” Ambrosius said. “The games you’re playing may all go away.”
Putting it in reverse
Running a marathon is grueling enough, but Paula Mairer is making it even tougher: She plans to run it backward.
The 46-year-old Mairer hopes to become the first woman to do so when she competes today in the Munich Marathon.
Mairer told Austrian television she’s been preparing to cover the 26.2 miles backward by running multiple laps that way each day on a quarter-mile track.
Not Starr-struck
Sports Illustrated recently described Alabama quarterback Brodie Croyle as a Ringo Starr look-alike.
Said a dumbfounded Croyle in the Birmingham News: “Ringo Starr? Who’s Ringo Starr? Seriously.”