Listen up, I got a story to tell.

A year without football

At the beginning of the season I had a decision to make. Ride with Kap in protest of police brutality to unarmed African Americans or do nothing and meekly wait out the unnecessary violence until it subsides. I decided to do two things, joined a local commission and boycotted the NFL. Now, I understand that a lot of different agendas came out of the kneeling during NFL games in protest of police brutality but my focus is on the NFL and others diverting the attention to disrespecting the flag from the actual innocent people being murdered.

I started out paying attention to ESPN and playing fantasy football, thinking that I'm still not watching the games so it doesn't count. Well, one day a game was starting on my television and even though I wasn't paying attention, my 9 yr old was. "Daddy, I thought you were protesting the NFL!". After that moment I went all in. I thought that it would be a daunting task but not watching the NFL wasn't difficult at all. I spent more time with the family and experienced my 9 yr old catching her first fish.

I admit that I continued to watch Undisputed because the Shannon and Skip dynamic is untouchable and Joy is well, joyful. I recall that the players union had come to deal with the NFL over getting money for the communities (opinion for another time) and I remember thinking, "Is the boycott over? Can I watch the NFL, now?". I soon realized that I had taken the red pill and was too far gone to turn back. This thing had developed into a personal battle of will power. I didn't care what was happening in the NFL because I had made a promise to myself to protest the wrongful activities by way of boycotting the NFL and more importantly, my daughter is watching.

The season flew by and when I was around people discussing the games, I would sometimes divulge that I wasn't watching the NFL this season or I would just stay silent because I actually and proudly didn't know what they were talking about. As the Superbowl came around I found myself contemplating if I could turn it on just or the commercials and cut it back off. Well, I knew that wouldn't work and respectfully for the first time since I can remember, I didn't watch the Superbowl.

I have fasted during Lent for the last 10 yrs or so and I have to admit that this boycott is a close second to the feeling of accomplishment and dedication. I haven't decided if I'll watch next season or ever again but I do know that I have some inner searching to do because on top of all that I am a Redskin fan.

Out