How much does sports success & failure affect your life?

[Success]

Just curious to see if I'm a deranged loser, or if my own experience is normal for sports fans.

 

My main teams are the Bills and Knicks.  I started liking the baseball & the Yankees about 7-8 years ago, and don't watch hockey.  I don't count any Yankees past championships as "mine," so I've never seen one of my teams win it all.

 

I'm in my late '50s, and particularly w/ the Bills, the longer I'm in it, the more it all affects me.  I definitely feel like I've invested so much time at this point, I'm just all in until we get one.  I would say without feeling embarrassed that I don't think my life will feel complete until the Bills win a title, and each failure gets worse for me. I'm still dealing w/ the Cincy loss, and will be for at least a few more weeks, if not longer.  It's all a bit of an obsession.

 

My younger self would have thought that I'm pathetic today.  I would have been like "get a hobby...get a life."  I have hobbies, and a great life, with a family I adore, lots of interests, and a job that I really enjoy.

 

Anyone else?  Or do I need professional help?

 

 

 

[T&C]

Sports are something we have no control over... so no, it doesn't affect my life. I'm just a passenger so to say. Hanging out with other fans is fun though.

[US Egg]

“How much does sports success & failure affect your life?”

 

None.

 

3 hours ago, Success said:

Just curious to see if I'm a deranged loser, or if my own experience is normal for sports fans.

 

Anyone else?  Or do I need professional help?

Not for this.

[Wacka]

I survived a stroke in 2014, lost a nephew in 2017 and my mother  in 2021. Nothing negative about sports affects me. There are more important things to worry about.

[Mark80]

No affect until my cousin's husband from Boston comes to visit.

[LeGOATski]

This is just a symptom. You need psychiatric help for the causes. A lot of fans do.

[Gregg]

It doesn't affect my life. There are more important things like family, health, job. Although I will admit it is frustrating that the Bills can't get over the hump and win a Super Bowl. I just want to see one in my lifetime. As for my other teams (Yankees, Islanders) I have seen both win especially the Yankees. Although it has been a while since they won a WS. George is probably turning over in his grave.

Edited February 9, 2023 by Gregg

[WhoTom]

Win or lose, my contribution was sitting on the couch drinking a Bloody Mary, so I take no credit when the Bills win and I feel no shame when they lose.

 

Don't get me wrong - I'd be elated if the Bills won the Super Bowl, but there are so many more important things happening in the world, and in my life, that I can't let sports affect me that much.

 

[Gugny]

I only closely follow the Bills and Mets.

 

As I've gotten older (I'm 52), the losses bother me much less.

 

A lot of it is just having realistic expectations.  For the Mets, last season was the only season since the 80s that I felt like they SHOULD go to the World Series.  It was a great ride and I actually had the pleasure of watching their season end vs. the Padres with @Beerball and his family, as we were all in Buffalo for that week's Bills game.  At that point, I really didn't expect the Mets to make a run because of all of their injuries, so the loss/end of season didn't really hurt much.

 

 For the Bills, the drought years pretty much conditioned me to expect very little.  The Rex Ryan/Tyrod Taylor era was easily the worst for me.  I really thought the Rex hire and his pursuit of Taylor set the team back years and it was frustrating to watch it all unfold.

 

It was the closest I've ever come to saying f*ck it and just taking a hiatus.  But I didn't.  I continued to watch the games, but I was numb.  

 

Then came McDermott, Beane and Josh.

 

For the 2018, 19 and 20 seasons, nothing could get me down about this team.  I enjoyed all of the good stuff that happened and the majority of the bad stuff affected me very little.

 

With success comes higher expectations (for me, anyway).  The last two seasons have been full of ups in the regular season and painful losses in the postseason.  

 

I'm less optimistic about our chances of winning a Super Bowl with Josh and it's not a great feeling.  But it's nothing that affects my life in any way, shape or form.  Going into next season, my expectations will be more realistic than they've been for the past two seasons.  I've gotten to the point where I feel that as long as the current coaching staff is in place, there is no chance at winning a Super Bowl.  So next season, I'll enjoy the regular season and expect to win (maybe) one playoff game before getting bounced the following week.

 

And then I'll set my sights on baseball season, like I always do.

[Johnny Hammersticks]

Losses bother me for a little bit (especially Bills losses), but I’m not the type of fan that lets something like that ruin my week.  Gotta keep things in perspective.

[DaBillsFanSince1973]

back when I wore a younger mans shoes I took the bills very seriously, right down to buffalo bills shoe laces.

 

now, I realize there is much more to life than sports or a football team so now I just watch and enjoy what I can in the moment.

[BillsFan4]

I get nervous during games (sometimes very nervous!), and annoyed if they lose. But i’m usually over it by the next day. I may still be somewhat annoyed but I don’t really let it impact my life. 

[Nextmanup]

16 hours ago, Success said:

Just curious to see if I'm a deranged loser, or if my own experience is normal for sports fans.

 

My main teams are the Bills and Knicks.  I started liking the baseball & the Yankees about 7-8 years ago, and don't watch hockey.  I don't count any Yankees past championships as "mine," so I've never seen one of my teams win it all.

 

I'm in my late '50s, and particularly w/ the Bills, the longer I'm in it, the more it all affects me.  I definitely feel like I've invested so much time at this point, I'm just all in until we get one.  I would say without feeling embarrassed that I don't think my life will feel complete until the Bills win a title, and each failure gets worse for me. I'm still dealing w/ the Cincy loss, and will be for at least a few more weeks, if not longer.  It's all a bit of an obsession.

 

My younger self would have thought that I'm pathetic today.  I would have been like "get a hobby...get a life."  I have hobbies, and a great life, with a family I adore, lots of interests, and a job that I really enjoy.

 

Anyone else?  Or do I need professional help?

 

 

 

I'm kind of the reverse of you.  The older I get (early 50s now), the less I care about any of it.

 

I was in my sports viewing prime (undergrad years) when we lost 4 Super Bowls in a row.  I have to say, that genuinely had a negative impact on me.  

 

Now, I just don't care enough to really be bothered by any of this.  I was pretty good with our loss to the Bengals about an hour after it happened.

 

At this point, I just want to see a Bills SB win, and a Sabres Cup win before I die.  Actually, I'd take one or the other at this point.

 

I am also a lifelong Red Sox fan, so I've made it to the top of the mountain there, after years of suffering.  

 

All it takes is 1 championship to forever change you as a fan.

 

 

[Another Fan]

17 hours ago, Success said:

Just curious to see if I'm a deranged loser, or if my own experience is normal for sports fans.

 

My main teams are the Bills and Knicks.  I started liking the baseball & the Yankees about 7-8 years ago, and don't watch hockey.  I don't count any Yankees past championships as "mine," so I've never seen one of my teams win it all.

 

I'm in my late '50s, and particularly w/ the Bills, the longer I'm in it, the more it all affects me.  I definitely feel like I've invested so much time at this point, I'm just all in until we get one.  I would say without feeling embarrassed that I don't think my life will feel complete until the Bills win a title, and each failure gets worse for me. I'm still dealing w/ the Cincy loss, and will be for at least a few more weeks, if not longer.  It's all a bit of an obsession.

 

My younger self would have thought that I'm pathetic today.  I would have been like "get a hobby...get a life."  I have hobbies, and a great life, with a family I adore, lots of interests, and a job that I really enjoy.

 

Anyone else?  Or do I need professional help?

 

 

 

I’m in my late 30s and don’t really care much anymore.  I was a Knicks fan as well up until the point Oakley and Starks got traded.  Idk I never fully warmed up to them after that.  But as a kid I hated the Bulls with a passion.  At my age now I look back with appreciation on what those Chicago teams accomplished 

 

 

In my 20s even during the Drought, losses would linger on for weeks with me.  The Dallas 07 loss was terrible as was 09 opening night.  Even the Stevie drop game in 2010 against the Steelers I took hard.  But I grew up and all those 3 games I took harder than 13 seconds.  The Bengals game I was over it 20 minutes later.  I mean it was sad the team didn’t meet their goals but c’est la vie.  I’ve seen and been through things a lot worse than that in life 

 

Im older.  I see it all as a big business sports.  But in general sports doesn’t have the same effect on me as a kid.  I can’t say I love sports anymore 

Edited February 9, 2023 by Another Fan

[teef]

absolutely none.  i enjoy sports, but i refuse to let them mold my mood in any way.  not that i haven't been annoyed by the bills before, but come on.  that's why i never understand the sheer anger after losses.  i get being disappointed, but some posters let it go on for months.  sack up and move on with life already.

[Fleezoid]

It's everything. It affects me deeply, and eternally. If I don't have the Bills or Sabres to look forward to, I spend my days sitting in an empty room, staring at a blank wall

 

[Success]

I truly appreciate the responses. Things weren't getting to me as much until the past couple of years. I think 13 seconds sent me into a whole new realm of questioning how I feel about this whole thing. 

 

I realize on the surface that letting it affect me beyond game day is completely irrational, and kind of immature.  I'm working on it.

 

[Logic]

To some degree, I have always felt the same as you. That the Bills have been an absolutely enormous part of my life, have taken up countless hours and dollars, and that I'd give just about anything to see the Bills just win one title. That life somehow won't feel complete until it happens. Losses, particularly really BAD losses, would upset me for an inordinately long amount of time afterwards, negatively affecting the rest of my week until the next Bills game.

Last year I was diagnosed with a potentially fatal illness. I beat it, for now. I'll be damned if it didn't put something as small as football -- and my obsession with it -- into perspective. Life is incredibly short. Too short to be so negatively affected or absorbed by something like a sport. To think that I'd waste even one moment that I could be enjoying a fall evening or having a laugh with my wife, simply because the team I like to watch lost a game...it's not worth it. 

Like Von Miller said: Don't let the game beat you twice. That is, the first loss is the game itself, and the second loss is that it takes away from your day-to-day after the fact. Don't get beat twice. After a loss, go take a walk, reflect on the things in your life for which you're thankful, watch a funny movie, listen to some music you love, hug your wife, pet your dog...It's easier said than done, but life is short, and it's just a game.

 

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

Amazingly, I think the drought years hardened my resolve and made me more invested and addicted to the team. I sometimes wonder if had we had more success whether I might be more apathetic as a fan.

 

[muppy]

sports success and failure effects my life that same day. Maybe  into the next day if it was particularly ugly a game. Or if I'm hungover. That just makes it feel worse.

 

I think I've wised up in my elder age and keep things in Perspective.  I have learned that physical and emotional health is a worthy goal to put ahead of sports. It is unwise to place ANYTHING you have so little control over at such a high priority in our lives.

 

one of my fail safes is spending time Outside.  I also vowed to dance more this offseason. That's just me though. I'll always be a diehard and my Hopes are every spring eternal.  But Im living every day until I die. I have no time for undue suffering and undue baloney. It is a Choice we can make to keep it moving in as happy a fashion as possible.

[BillsPride12]

The older I get the less it truly bothers me...I mean 13 seconds was pretty bad.  That felt like a gut punch that took a few days to get over.  I think part of it is maturity as you get older and honestly I think another part of it is the NFL product just isn't as good as it used to be.  

[DaBillsFanSince1973]

22 minutes ago, BillsPride12 said:

The older I get the less it truly bothers me...I mean 13 seconds was pretty bad.  That felt like a gut punch that took a few days to get over.  I think part of it is maturity as you get older and honestly I think another part of it is the NFL product just isn't as good as it used to be.  

fact.

[LabattBlue]

23 hours ago, Success said:

I'm still dealing w/ the Cincy loss, and will be for at least a few more weeks, if not longer.  It's all a bit of an obsession.

Not even sure what this means? You don't talk to your wife and kids?  Kick the family dog?  Haven't gone into work since the loss?  Road Rage?  Crime spree?

[Success]

31 minutes ago, LabattBlue said:

Not even sure what this means? You don't talk to your wife and kids?  Kick the family dog?  Haven't gone into work since the loss?  Road Rage?  Crime spree?

 

Those are all quite extreme options.  More just something that nags at me sporadically.

 

[Augie]

28 minutes ago, LabattBlue said:

Not even sure what this means? You don't talk to your wife and kids?  Kick the family dog?  Haven't gone into work since the loss?  Road Rage?  Crime spree?

 

Maybe it’s time to start hitting the bagel store again in the morning for that cinnamon bagel with crème cheese he loves so much? 

 

OK, I’ll give you $10 for a toasted bagel with crème cheese. 

1 minute ago, Success said:

 

Those are all quite extreme options.  More just something that nags at me sporadically.

 

 

There may be an ointment for that?   🤷‍♂️

[Success]

Can't do cream cheese on the cinnamon raisin.  Always butter.

 

Cream cheese on the sesame or everything for sure.

 

[Process]

By the morning after the Bengals loss, Josh was halfway to California to play some golf, Diggs was strategizing to see how many girls he can get into a hotel room on Valentine's day, and Von had already done fifteen podcasts about how good he is mentally and how we shouldn't feel bad or sorry for the guy that just signed a $120M contract. 

 

These guys are children and young men getting paid millions to play a game. Don't let it bother you more than it should. I have to remind myself this too sometimes. It should bother you less as you get older, not more.

 

The most upset I got after a game this year was the Vikings loss. But that's because I had Bills moneyline in a parlay that would have paid $3500. That one still stings.

[Nextmanup]

21 hours ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

Amazingly, I think the drought years hardened my resolve and made me more invested and addicted to the team. I sometimes wonder if had we had more success whether I might be more apathetic as a fan.

 

Absolutely this is true!  So many years of failure is like a form of narrative tension, and the story is pretty darned interesting at this point.  That is absolutely what makes so many die hard Bills fans die hard.

 

Let's say we won SB XXV, and then went on to appear in 2 more, and win 1 more SB.  So the Kelly/Thurman Bills were 2 for 3 in the big show.  I genuinely believe very few of us would still be here living and dying with every little piece of Bills related news.

 

This is how it worked for me when the Sox won in 2004...after that, nothing ever mattered, almost at all!  I was a WAY more hardcore Red Sox fan in the '90s than I am now.  Way more!

 

 

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

1 minute ago, Nextmanup said:

Absolutely this is true!  So many years of failure is like a form of narrative tension, and the story is pretty darned interesting at this point.  That is absolutely what makes so many die hard Bills fans die hard.

 

Let's say we won SB XXV, and then went on to appear in 2 more, and win 1 more SB.  So the Kelly/Thurman Bills were 2 for 3 in the big show.  I genuinely believe very few of us would still be here living and dying with every little piece of Bills related news.

 

This is how it worked for me when the Sox won in 2004...after that, nothing ever mattered, almost at all!  I was a WAY more hardcore Red Sox fan in the '90s than I am now.  Way more!

 

 

Spot on. 
 

I guess “drought” was the perfect word. We got thirstier and thirstier all the while. 

 

 

[eball]

I was bummed out over the Bills' loss to Cinci for a solid week -- at least up until the AFCCG.  Now I'm over it and looking forward to offseason moves, the draft, and next season.

 

When the Sabres lost to the Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals back in 2006 I was really bummed out for the next two weeks, because I knew we would have beaten the damn Canucks.

 

But in the whole scheme of things, my life isn't "impacted" by these results -- just my mood for a short period of time.

 

[Gugny]

1 hour ago, eball said:

I was bummed out over the Bills' loss to Cinci for a solid week -- at least up until the AFCCG.  Now I'm over it and looking forward to offseason moves, the draft, and next season.

 

When the Sabres lost to the Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals back in 2006 I was really bummed out for the next two weeks, because I knew we would have beaten the damn Canucks.

 

But in the whole scheme of things, my life isn't "impacted" by these results -- just my mood for a short period of time.

 

 

I think this loss to the Bengals disappointed me more than it upset me/pissed me off.  They quit.  I know that might not be a popular opinion, but it's how I feel.  It's nothing I dwell on, or really even think about at this point.  BUT ... I will say that I've never been less-interested in a Super Bowl Sunday than I am today, just a couple days from the game.

 

Normally, I've got a menu all set and I'm excited about shopping for all of the food and a day full of cooking leading to an evening full of eating and drinking.

 

I have absolutely zero plans.  Not even any ideas for food.  I don't even know who the halftime entertainment is.  All I know is that I'm rooting for the Eagles, but I'm not even looking forward to watching.

 

I do think that the way the Bills' season ended has a lot to do with it.

[Rockpile233]

I get over the losses pretty quickly now. The bengals game stuck around for a couple days because it felt like a really gutless performance by the team and a step back in the AFC. Players seemed to be over it pretty quickly

[Another Fan]

4 hours ago, Gugny said:

 

I think this loss to the Bengals disappointed me more than it upset me/pissed me off.  They quit.  I know that might not be a popular opinion, but it's how I feel.  It's nothing I dwell on, or really even think about at this point.  BUT ... I will say that I've never been less-interested in a Super Bowl Sunday than I am today, just a couple days from the game.

 

Normally, I've got a menu all set and I'm excited about shopping for all of the food and a day full of cooking leading to an evening full of eating and drinking.

 

I have absolutely zero plans.  Not even any ideas for food.  I don't even know who the halftime entertainment is.  All I know is that I'm rooting for the Eagles, but I'm not even looking forward to watching.

 

I do think that the way the Bills' season ended has a lot to do with it.

 

 

 The Patriots Dynasty era was the start of me being more and more disinterested in the big game so to speak.  At the time I just chalked it up to it seeming like the same teams were competing every year: Patriots,Broncos and or Colts with Peyton, and Big Ben with the Steelers.  Like when the Patriots dynasty breaks up it'll get more interesting again.  

 

But now I am even more disinterested in Sunday's game.  I chalk it up to age and disinterest in the league as a whole these days outside Buffalo and a few other teams.