The impact of COVID-19 on sports is never more pronounced for football fans than during the beginning of the NFL season in September. Some teams had initially planned to allow a limited number of fans inside their stadiums, but by August, nearly 75% of the NFL chose the safest option, given the current situation. They did not allow in-person attendance in games and encouraged fans to watch at home instead.
While watching at home is comfortable and convenient, it cannot make up for the palpable excitement and energizing scream of the fans sitting with you on the stands. If you’re the type of fan who likes to predict team tactics, uses your radar gun, and marvels at the impressive speed of the quarterback or wide receiver, watching on TV certainly won’t compare to being in a stadium. Even the mindless task of buying hotdogs and drinks from roaming snack vendors adds to the experience — unfortunately, we can’t even have that.
What’s the first thing you will do when the pandemic is over and it’s finally safe for hordes of fans to watch the games in person? Here are a few things we’re quite sure fellow fans can’t wait to do again at the NFL:
Flex Our Stats Knowledge
All the plays and stats knowledge is of little use if you don’t have fellow fans to bounce ideas off of. Coming up with “dream teams” and drafting players based on their 40-yard-dash averages, cone-drill performances, passing accuracy, and ball velocity with friends (and even strangers you just happened to sit next to in the stadium) is part of the fun.
You can hardly wait for the day that you can do this again, especially since Stalker Sport released the Stalker Pro II: the first sports radar gun in the market that can show the real-time velocity of field players and ball throws. Stalker Pro sports radar guns are definitely not just for baseball; they’re also widely used by NFL scouts, trainers, and fans.
Witness Legendary Plays in Person
It would be such a thrill if the next iconic event in the NFL — one as game-defining and memorable as Brandon Graham strip-sacking Tom Brady in Eagles vs. Patriots in 2018 — would happen when we’re finally back in the stands. Sure, we’ll still need to watch the slow-mo replay, but simply being present and seeing the event happen in person would make the experience a hundred times more satisfying.
Post-Game Bonding in Sports Bars
One of the best ways to celebrate a team’s victory is to find a sports bar filled with fellow fans and spend the next couple of hours bonding over beer and wine, merrily recounting the most exciting moments of the game. We daresay it’s one of the things most fans miss the most, too. Sports matches are community events, after all, and deeply ingrained in American society and culture.
We may never know when the pandemic will pass, but one thing is sure: we’ll have a bigger appreciation for all the things that make each fan experience memorable.
Can’t wait until COVID-19 is over to start recreating your NFL fan experience? We got you covered on one key item: radar guns. Radar Sports, LLC, is an official retailer of Stalker Pro II. You can order one right here on our website.