2013 NFL Season: I'm from Europe and I don't really know any American football teams. Which one do you support and why?
I'm not going to convince you to support my team, because that's just based on where I'm from. I'm going to convince you to support my 2nd favorite team:The Green Bay Packers.Of any team in a major American sports league, this is the one most worthy of your support. Why?1. They are the most successful NFL franchise in history in terms of most championships. Some might seem to say something otherwise, but that's because they forget that the NFL was around long before the Super Bowl. The Packers have been great in the Super Bowl era with 4 championships (4th most in that span), but overall they've won 13 championships (2nd best team only has 9, so not close).2. Supporting a frontrunner might not be your thing of course, but the thing is the Packers aren't that. Green Bay is by far the smallest city to have an NFL team. By all rights they should have lost the franchise a half century ago like other similar small cities did with their teams...but they didn't. The Packers are the David who keeps beating the Goliaths.3. And of course it has nothing to do with a geographical advantage. Free agents want to play where it's warm not where it's cold. Yet the Packers still thrive.3. The Packers are the only team in a major sports leagues in America that is a community-owned (non-profit) organization.4. At first you may hate the uniforms, but you'll come to love how out of step they are with every other team. This is a team with deep historical roots formed by actual employees of a Packing company.Add it all up, this is the team you should cheer for if you don't have a team to cheer for, and it's not close.
Which is the least known/popular NFL team nationwide?
Popularity in sports comes from two major things Winning and a solid fanbasebefore the 2015/2016 season wins over the last ten years are:1. New England Patriots — 122 wins (9 playoff appearances, 1st in AFC East)2. Indianapolis Colts — 110 wins (9, 1st)3. Pittsburgh Steelers — 101 wins (6, 1st)4. Green Bay Packers — 98 wins (7, 1st)5. San Diego Chargers — 97 wins (5, 1st)6. Baltimore Ravens — 96 wins (7, 2nd)7. Denver Broncos — 95 wins (5, 2nd)8. Dallas Cowboys — 93 wins (4, 1st)9. Seattle Seahawks — 91 wins (7, 1st)10. New Orleans Saints — 90 wins (5, 1st)10. New York Giants — 90 wins (5, 2nd)12. Chicago Bears — 89 wins (3, 2nd)13. Philadelphia Eagles — 86 wins (5, 3rd)14. Atlanta Falcons — 85 wins (4, 2nd)15. Cincinnati Bengals — 84 wins (6, 3rd)15. San Francisco 49ers — 81 wins (3, 2nd)16. Carolina Panthers — 80 wins (4, 3rd)17. Arizona Cardinals — 76 wins (3, 3rd)17. Minnesota Vikings — 76 wins (3, 3rd)19. Tennessee Titans — 73 wins (2, 2nd)19. New York Jets — 73 wins (3, 2nd)21. Houston Texans — 72 wins (2, 3rd)22. Miami Dolphins — 70 wins (1, 2nd)23. Kansas City Chiefs — 68 wins (3, 3rd)24. Minnesota Vikings –– 67 wins (3, 3rd)25. Jacksonville Jaguars — 65 wins (2, 4th)26. Washington Redskins — 64 wins (3, 4th)27. Tampa Bay Buccaneers — 63 wins (2, 4th)28. Buffalo Bills — 63 wins (0, 4th)29. Detroit Lions — 55 wins (2, 4th)30. Cleveland Browns — 53 wins (0, 4th)31. St. Louis Rams — 49 wins (0, 4th)32. Oakland Raiders — 47 wins (0, 4th)Based off of this list the Rams, Raiders, Browns, Lions and Bills should be the least popular teams. But the Raiders and Browns have one of the most dedicated fan bases. I would say the Lions and Rams are the least Popular team nation wide. They are not good enough to hate and for the most part they don't have any star power
In the wake of his release from the Ravens, will Ray Rice ever play in the NFL again?
Yes, for the following reasons:1. The NFL's overall moral outrage isn't real. Although I am sure there are individuals within the league (across all levels), maybe even the large majority, who do realize the gravity of what happened and how despicable it is, ultimately the owners, players, and others are making business decisions. The decisions to suspend Ray Rice for two games, or indefinitely, or to cut him from a team, etc. are being driven by business considerations, not by outrage.2. As we've seen in the past (see recent examples listed by Jason McDonald in his answer), after a couple years a contrite Rice would likely generate a low-enough level of news that a team may be willing to take the chance on him from a business perspective.3. Importantly, Rice is only 27 years old. Assuming he misses the next 3 years, if he is able to keep himself in good football shape, he will have significantly less wear and tear on him at the age of 30 than if he had been playing the entire time. Just for reference, well known 30+ year old RBs in the NFL currently include Fred Jackson (33), Frank Gore (31), Steven Jackson (31), Darren Sproles (31), and DeAngelo Williams (31). Being fresh can make a significant difference despite age (see Ricky Williams in 2009).4. There will be enough hair on Rice that he'll likely come at a backup RB price for potential starter production. Rice had 4 years of great production, good overall usage and yards per carry, good hands, good pass blocking, good ball security. Everything you could want from a running back. 2013 was a serious off year, but having a couple years off (see pt 3) could work in his favor. So a team may find themselves able to sign Rice for an year at the cost of a change of pace / spelling back with the potential for production that would allow him to start for most teams.The NFL is a business, and if a team sees the opportunity to generate more business than they lose (the value of being closer to winning a championship with Rice's production vs. the stigma still attached to Rice after a couple years) then he'll get his chance.