Jump to content

American Football and the NFL


Vinnie

Recommended Posts

Starting to follow the NFL and as much as I look at the NFL website for the rules and the objectives to follow it a little better, I find my self confused by the leagues.  AFC North, AFC West, NFC South and East or whatever way round they are -  why are they split into sub divisions, yet a team in AFC North will play an AFC West team in the league season?

How many folk on here follow the NFL and can understand all the little rules and intricacies?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nobody?

Love the sport, but have lost touch with it a bit, so I'm not 100% on this. 

However, really I think that that's just the system that they use. The NFL is split into 2 conferences (or rather was formed when they merged having been previously independent until about the 60s I think) - the NFC and the AFC.

All the teams are split between the two and then further subdivided into the regional divisions. Used to be West, East and Central, but with a few new teams added, and some pretty ropey definitions of East and West, they revamped the whole thing in the 2000s i think.

Teams compete to top their division and the winners get through to the playoffs, as do the teams with the best won/lost records across each conference.

The playoffs remain divided into AFC and NFC, until the 2 championship games to win the respective conferences. These are now effectively the semi finals for the Superbowl, where one AFC team takes on one NFC team to win the overall league and the Vince Lombardi trophy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for that Sanguine, does that mean that we have to play East Fife again before we get to the final.

All joking aside I went to a game in Texas several years ago, Houston Texans against Chicago Bears and it was much better than I thought it would be and if any of you go on holiday to the States I would recommend a trip to anyone of the games if possible.

When I was there I had the added bonus of a wee numptie in an engerland strip coming up to the man who was sitting next to me saying you are in my seat now get out. Before it got too out of hand I asked to see the mans ticket to check the seat number and it was ok, I then asked the little englander to see his ticket and said to him well you have the right seat but unfortunately you have the wrong stadium. I do not know how he got in but he was supposed to be watching a basketball game in a stadium about half a mile away.    

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cheers @SanguinePar.

Im looking forward to the live game on Sunday at Wembley. Im hoping Im able to pick up on more of the rules by watching a full game, rather than just the highlights.

Im hoping to go to Vegas in a few years, by which point Oakland Raiders will have moved there. Would like to be able to follow enough to be able to go to a live match.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sundays game at Wembley was a bit crap.  A slow first half with only one field goal, littered with fouls and mistakes.  I don't think it was a great advert for the game that the NFL would have hoped for to bolster its UK merchandising and TV revenues. 

There is another live match on 29th October - hopefully thatll be far more appealing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

I have tried to watch a couple of games and just cant follow what happening, partly because I just lose interest.

I have been persevering and I'm getting there.  There is a game at Twickenham this week, and then again next week too.  I don't think I could follow a game live - as in, in the crowd - though.  

The BBC live coverage gets plenty of time to explain what is actually happening, what makes a great play, what makes a foul a foul, which definitely helps.

Why Tampa Bay?

Pretty colours?

I have been following Oakland this season - black and white.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

American football is ace. If you have SKY TV, tune in to NFL Redzone on Sky Sports Mix (it's free to air on channel 121) on a Sunday night - they basically have all the games on at the same time in both kick off slots (early afternoon and late afternoon US time) and flick between games when anything exciting happens. It's on for about 7 hours and hosted by one guy (Scott Hanson) who seems to do it all day with no break. I've been to a game at Wembley and I try to watch The Superbowl live every year. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

American football is ace. If you have SKY TV, tune in to NFL Redzone on Sky Sports Mix (it's free to air on channel 121) on a Sunday night - they basically have all the games on at the same time in both kick off slots (early afternoon and late afternoon US time) and flick between games when anything exciting happens. It's on for about 7 hours and hosted by one guy (Scott Hanson) who seems to do it all day with no break. I've been to a game at Wembley and I try to watch The Superbowl live every year. 

I have started watching NFL Redzone too.  Its like Soccer Saturday for the NFL, but with live coverage of games.  And because they have to fill seven hours of coverage without adverts, they tend to fill the breaks in play with tons of stats and explaining fouls and decisions as you go along. 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...