Who is your NFL team and why?

Here is the thread and the poll. 🙂

It would be wonderful if everyone could share a few sentences about how they ended up rooting for their specific team.

I became a Ravens fan back in 2011 while watching the NFL Playoffs despite having almost zero knowledge of the rules or the game itself. That loss in the AFC Championship (Evans / Cundiff) was the single moment that broke my heart. 😢

Beyond that, there’s David Simon, Edgar Allan Poe, and those incredibly sharp uniforms... I was a goner. 😍

Everything paid off the following year, of course, and I've been paying the price ever since. 🙂

I’ve been keeping an eye on the NFL for a while now, but honestly, things didn't really click for me until the games started airing on ESPN and SK. I remember watching Super Bowl XL when the Colts pulled it off, and even though the franchise itself never quite felt like my kind of team, Manning was something else entirely. Once everything went down between the Colts and Manning and he made his move to the Broncos, that was it for me—I finally had my team and my guy.

Panthers.

I’m not really the type to root for a specific team in any sport; I usually just follow certain players or eras [you can see my Mayfield obsession this year or how much I loved Foles last year on this thread]. But I think I love the Panthers the most because I fell for them all over again after freezing them out for a while. I guess you could say it was complicated.

Well, from 2011—which was my first year watching—until last year, I didn't follow the NFL too closely [except for the Playoffs / Super Bowls]. I mostly watched it as entertainment rather than rooting for anyone, except for two constants: FUCK THE PATS and FUCK THE CHOKER, aka Peyton Manning. I was leaning towards the Seahawks for a bit (still crying over Super Bowl XLIX), but after that loss, I needed a new team. Who was better suited for that during the Super Bowl 50 season than the Panthers? Especially with the mission to stop the choker from matching the Super Bowl count of his brother, who is obviously much more likable to me. Well, nobody. So I ended up loving them even more than the Seahawks, hyping them up for about a month, only for the Super Bowl to turn into a Hello Kitty show where they got crushed because that idiot choked again.

Meh, I figured I wouldn't care and would just find another team once I started following the league more closely next year [which finally happened last year, maybe a little out of spite since I missed Super Bowl 51—a sad story for another time]. So, I headed into the new season.

Then, I watch the first couple of weeks, and what happens? No matter how hard I try to hate Cam because I'm still mad at him, I just can't. And now there's this RB who isn't just some boring power runner, but a little playmaker who can go anywhere. Man, I guess that's it. This is my team, no matter how much I might like others, I always seem to come back to them. 😍

Falcons

How did it all start... well, about seven or eight years ago, I asked my brother to grab me a hat from the States while he was out there for work. He picked out a Falcons cap because he loved the colors and the logo... At the time, I didn't know the first thing about them, but I started following along, getting more into the NFL, and just... well...

Just another Panthers fan here, though I actually started out as a Patriots supporter. Honestly, I was just misled by the people who first introduced me to the game, but eventually, I realized how misguided that whole thing was.🙂

Why the Panthers? Well, I’m a Hornets fan in the NBA, so I suppose I just drifted over to them through sheer momentum. There isn't some grand, deep-seated reason, really... other than a certain sense of sports hipsterism, which I suppose I cultivate quite intentionally.🙂

This really should’ve been a multi-choice poll 😬

I can't even make up my mind like this 😬

Back in the early 90s, I picked up a bunch of gear featuring their logo. By the end of the decade, once I started following the NFL, I found myself wearing that Patriot logo again for years. It stuck. Long before that guy became a menace out in the Boston suburbs for the Patriots...

Bears, but for a completely stupid reason. I love everything coming out of Chicago. 🙂

I’ve got a soft spot for the Colts because of Manning—and then the Broncos right after him.

I didn't really start following the NFL until 2012—it was actually thanks to that inspiring story about Ray Lewis that caught my eye. Naturally, my loyalties swung straight over to the Ravens once that happened.
Then you had the Seahawks burst onto the scene with that whole "Legion of Boom" defense thing, and I have to admit, they were pretty intriguing to watch. But since I’m such a die-hard OKC fan in the NBA... well, I just couldn't bring myself to root for an NFL franchise from a city that struggled so much with everything happening in the NBA back then.

These days, though, I'm riding with Mariota and the Titans. Honestly, they feel like the NFL equivalent of OKC in the NBA. 😁

Go Lions, because they’re basically the Chelsea of the NFL—just a bunch of lions.

Plus, they’re total underdogs, so I guess I’m holding out hope for some Super Bowl run that actually shakes the world.

The Patriots, man... they're just better than the Celtics, honestly. And I’ve gotta admit, I’ve completely fallen for BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Vince Wilfork after watching them play a few games. How can you not love guys like that?

dustypanther6 said:The Patriots—well, through the lens of the Celtics, honestly—but I actually found myself falling for BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Vince Wilfork after watching just a handful of games. How could you not respect guys like that?

I’m with you on that.
Originally, I was pulling for the Giants because I have a soft spot for all the teams out of NYC, but there's just something about the Patriots...

Perhaps the Browns will finally find their voice 😁

Since there’s really only one way to play this, I have to say the Patriots are the ones catching my eye right now. It isn't quite like I'm die-hard about them or anything—I haven't been following the league long enough to claim lifelong loyalty to any single franchise, having only really started paying close attention during the recent playoffs and diving deeper this season.

Right on their heels, though, the Chiefs, Falcons, and Browns are definitely worth watching.

Go Panthers.
The reason is pretty straightforward. I started following the sport back in 2015, and I slowly found myself falling for Cam and that almost flawless season the Panthers put together.
Ever since then, I just haven't been able to find another team that captures my loyalty quite like this one.
Maybe the Browns are my second favorite team—probably because I’ve always had a soft spot for the underdogs, and I’d love to see them finally catch a break and achieve something great.

If we are discussing "other teams," my focus shifts to the Saints, though they can't match my level of intensity when it comes to following them.

Last year, I nearly flew out to London just to watch both the Ravens and the Saints lose by massive margins for two weeks straight. 😵 Fortunately, I exercised some common sense.

I started getting really into the NFL back when Favre was running the show, before Aaron Rodgers took over the reins.😁

The only fan-owned franchise in the league, based in the smallest market out there.

Nothing but love for the Green Bay Packers.😍😍

I’ll be honest—I was expecting a bit more from the Green Bay Packers. 😁

Eagles.

I’ve been following the NFL since Wentworth’s rookie season. I’m actually a huge Philadelphia 76ers fan in the NBA, so I figured I’d check out the other local team to see what the hype was about, and honestly, I got hooked! Plus, you just can't beat those team colors 😁

edit: I see everyone mentioning their favorite teams. For me, I've always had a soft spot for the Baltimore Ravens and the Kansas City Chiefs, and starting this season, I've really begun rooting for the Cleveland Browns too, along with a handful of individual players I follow closely...

The Giants, Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots... 🙂

Steelers

Digging the colors ( 😁), plus there's a decent amount of our people out there—not that it matters much. Ever since then, I’ve kind of grown on Pittsburgh as a city.

Funny enough, I actually liked the Ravens at first. Now? I can't stand them, especially after what happened last Sunday 😁

Started following the league back when I moved to SK—the commentators were solid, which helped. Been following seriously since last season.

As for the "other" teams, I guess they're the Buccaneers, Titans, Lions, and Falcons 🙂