The turkey’s in the oven. Your family has descended on the house like a horde of benevolent Vikings. The table is set, even the kids on down at the end of the room. Everything is under control. It’s time to take a deep breath, pour yourself a drink, and go visit with your loved ones. Thanksgiving is underway.
Wait, what is this? Everyone is gathered around the television. They’re watching football! Chomping away on pretzels, yammering about third downs, fantasy points, and encroachment. Gah! Every year this happens. It’s not that you hate football, it’s just that you’ve never understand what’s so special about it. Why do people like it so much? How does it work anyway?
Most years, you’d simply slip out and go smoke a cigar on the roof with Aunt Erma or talk gardening with Cousin Salvador. This year is different. This year, you have a secret weapon, an ace up your sleeve. This year, you read the special Thanksgiving 2014 edition of Dear Sports Fan’s Guide to Football for the Curious. You start out slow, with a few nods and grunts of agreement. Then you break out some technical talk about going for it on fourth down or whether you like the over or under in the game. Pretty soon you’re identifying defensive formations and making accurate predictions about whether you’re seeing a run play or a pass play developing. Your family is impressed.
Stay and watch or leave to enjoy some down time with a book and that pecan pie. You don’t need to watch football on Thanksgiving but it’s a big part of the holiday for some of the people you love and now you know all about it. Of course if you’re the sports fan in your family, you may not need this guide. Now that you understand a little bit of how it might feel to be a non-sports fan at your family gathering, it’s your responsibility to (kindly and thoughtfully) help include them.