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Football

Modern American-style football is an amazing game. The more I study it the more it reminds me of a turn-based strategy game and less like an athletic sport. The minds of NFL coaches are more interesting to me than those of chess grandmasters, and that’s saying something.

There have been a couple of really interesting profiles of football coaches in the past two days that have really reinforced this in my head.

The first sees a reporter stepping through the immortal 1958 Super Bowl coaches tape with Andy Reid, the coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. Mark Bowden, the author, highlights what a complex game of tactics and strategy football really is.

The second is an appreciation of John Madden. It’s hard to overstate the influence he has had on how the game is played on the field, displayed on the TV, and appreciated by fans. He has made it possible for a guy watching at home to appreciate and understand the intricacies of the game. That wasn’t nearly as possible before his tenure.