Fantasy vs. Reality

As I’m settling into my seat at the Linc this past Monday night to watch the debacle that was the Eagles vs. Bears game, I had a lot on my mind.  First off this was a huge game for my beloved Birds.  A loss could be devastating.  Obviously I had the thought of “Ugh, a Monday night game.  That means Tuesday is going to blow.”  Finally my other favorite football team was engrossed in a fierce battle with a division rival.  The Philadelphia CoalCrackers were down 7 points to the BallzBusters.  Yes, the Crackers are my fantasy football team. 

 

There are actually 3 CoalCrackers teams (Varsity, JV, and Freshman – the levels are based on how much money I paid to join each league).  The JV and Freshman squads had already won their respective games on Sunday but the varsity team had to wait until Monday night.  Therein lies the problem. 

Ordinarily being down 7 points heading into the Monday Night Football game and still having Matt Forte left to play would allow me to go to bed at halftime knowing that the Crackers had pulled off a fantasy sweep.  The problem with this game is that Matt Forte was playing against my Eagles AND I would be in attendance.  Obviously there’s a dilemma. 

On one hand obviously I want my REAL football team to beat the Bears.  I paid a lot of money for my season tickets and I definitely don’t want the money to go to waste.  One way for them to win would be to shut down Matt Forte.  As I stated before, a loss could spell the end of the Eagles season.  On the other hand, I paid a lot of money to participate in this fantasy football league (hence the Varsity title).  The Varsity CoalCrackers were 3-5 and playing the Least Division leading Busters.  A loss would as well be devastating to the Crackers 2011 playoff hopes.  3-6 is a tough hole to climb out of. 

So what am I to do?  Do I root with my heart for the Eagles to shut down Matt Forte and ultimately win the game?  Or do I possibly root for Forte to get me my 8 points needed for the victory?  This is enough to make even the sanest person go insane.  After much deliberation, I decided I can do both.  Why can’t Forte run for 40 yards and a touchdown?  That would allow the Eagles to win (and contain Forte) while also allowing the Crackers to win.  Problem solved….or so I thought. 

At halftime I asked a friend of mine to check to see how many yards that Forte had.  (You see I have an Android…great phone but crappy battery life but I digress)  Big mistake.  I had a few people (none from my group) unload on me.  Saying things like “I could careless about fantasy, I’m an Eagles fan and that’s all that matters”, “I can’t believe you’re actually worried about Forte, the Birds are losing” “How about living in reality, this is the season” or my personal favorite “I can’t even believe you’re an Eagles fan right now”. (Very Avantesque)

Now a few years ago I would’ve taken great offense to this and probably have introduced those guys to my right hand.  That was then.  Monday I just laughed it off and reveled in the fact that Forte scored me the points I needed to win for the Crackers Trifecta.  Too bad the Birds couldn’t hold on.  That would’ve been the icing on the cake.  It did get me thinking however.  This was not the first nor will it be the last time that fantasy football interferes with my real life rooting interests.  I think I handled this situation perfectly.  You root for your fantasy player to get the points you need while still rooting for your team to win the game.  Yes I love my Birds but I also like the green stuff that goes in my wallet as well.  The guys in front of me seemed to disagree.  I want to hear your thoughts on this.  Leave a comment with either a similar story or your opinion on what the proper protocol is. 

That’s all for today.  Can’t wait to hear your thoughts.  Follow us on Twitter @Obs_Views_Blog.  Until next time this is Jimbo saying It’s just a sweet, sweet fantasy…..