Comparing The Bachelor & The NFL

I don't watch much TV these days. Like many in my generation, I cut cable's cord and rely solely on streaming and the 5-ish major network channels I receive over the airwaves.  Since Scandal & How to Get Away with Murder ended a few months ago, 95% of my television has consisted of:

• The Good Wife
• A few maddening games of Purdue basketball
• Portions of Cowboy games
• The two semifinal games and College Football National Championship
• Occasional Jon Stewart
• 2 episodes of The Bachelor

In the last 72 hours I have watched an NFL game (still don't see how that wasn't a catch), my least favorite college football team win a National Championship, and 90 minutes of 20 women swooning over 1 male.  A few minutes into the swooning, I began to see several similarities between the NFL and Bachelor hype machines, which set in motion the following technical analysis.

The testosterone laden frenzy that fuels the NFL and its ups and downs is well documented.  Some of the country's most physically gifted athletes - regulated modern gladiators - stride onto striped fields bearing their tribe's insignia up to 20 times each year.  Through this physical adversity, bonds are forged, rivalries created, and lines drawn.  On game day, these relationships are on full display, as players employ both physical strengths and mental deception to distract their adversaries from gaining competitive advantage.  All of this is captured weekly in stunning 1080p or 4K, with dozens of cameras highlighting the toned muscles, cursing coaches, drunk fans, and manicured fields (okay maybe not in Chicago or Pittsburgh) that comprise the NFL game day experience.

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Tonight I saw cameras capture toned skin, drunk women (Jordan), beautiful scenery and and manicured nails on the manicured lawn of a picturesque mansion.  Some of the nation's most beautiful women - modern day Aphrodite's - used their sass, fake laughter, and cleavage to battle one another for a man they hardly knew.  As past seasons have taught us, these women will forge friendships, passive-aggressive pacts, and rivalries in their attempt to win Mr. Chris Soules, a handsome farmer from Iowa about whom they know little else.

Surrounding the NFL is an army of other related industries.  These include journalism efforts emanating from every type of media known to man, ranging from the Worldwide Leader and major newspapers to small college newspapers and thousands of official and unofficial blogs.  In recent decades, Fantasy Football - sports gambling light - has continued to grow both in popularity and in dollars invested.  The hype has perhaps caused the NFL to be "too big to fail," as media giants cater to its scheduling demands.  As we near the Super Bowl, the Pantheon of programming hyperbole, the ghosts of Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson seem like distant bumps on a long road trip, speakers blasting the entire way.

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The Bachelor does not match the NFL's standing in modern culture, although the world was rocked last week when Andi and Josh announced their break-up.  However, as I have recently learned, the Bachelor has its own cavalry of "journalists?" who chronicle the show's every move, faux pas, and rose delivery.  Accompanying these dedicated reporters of romance are Bachelor Bracketologists, who predict how long each of the girls will last on the show.  Much in the same way that ESPN and other sports outlets have their own Fantasy Football gurus, this hardcore sleuthing helps supply information to those guessing completing their Bachelor brackets.  Given these complementary guessing games, it is fair to ask: Can someone be any more sure that Rodgers will Discount Double Check or that The Legion of Boom will shut out an opponent based on last week's stats than they can be sure that Mr. Soules won't eliminate a girl next week based on his rose delivery this week?  These are tough decisions!

Further, as this blog entry fully illustrates, people who might not initially be interested in either of these shows can become interested as part of their infatuation with their significant other.  While some females truly love the NFL (I see you Stef!), I'm sure throughout history, after going to enough watch parties, some wives decide they might as well enjoy football.  In addition, I know of at least one other boyfriend or husband who watches the riveting... drama that unfolds weekly on ABC because they want to share common interests with their wife/girlfriend and I would surmise there are other male Bachelor viewers in hiding.  Unlike series like Game of Thrones or House of Cards, the NFL and the Bachelor likely have more disparate audiences if segmented by gender (and I would argue that the Bachelor still does).  Yet, anecdotal evidence suggests that in some social circles, the NFL and the Bachelor can draw interest from across the gender boundary.

To be fair to the NFL and its supporters (including me), it is a live event where fans can pay exorbitant amounts of money to attend and prove that what you see on TV actually occurs in real life.  For this, I have long argued that sports was the original reality TV.  You can see past the editing and experience the ungodly TV timeouts in person, never having to ponder what happens at the stadium in the time it took you to use the restroom, get another beer, fold your laundry, and rotate your tires before the game returns. The Bachelor does not afford us this luxury, perhaps my biggest complaint with this genre of "reality television."  This leaves us forever wondering how a group of 20 women who had never met really spend their week when not on exotic group dates. Yet despite the uncertainty of what happens in the editing room, many would agree that these shows draw significant (if not massive) weekly television audiences.

Millions tune in weekly even though many supporters would acknowledge that both shows have issues.  The Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, Greg Hardy, and other violence related stories that gained traction early this NFL season were simply the latest in a barrage of issues the NFL has faced, ranging from how players treat women to the lasting impact of head injuries.  Most individuals would also likely admit that despite the attractive contestants and exotic locations, finding love on camera in the middle of a battle royale with 20 other contestants is a recipe for drama, crazy emotions, and embarrassment, rather than an ideal setting to find love.  

It is likely that we engage the NFL and shows like The Bachelor at least in part to put our own lives on hold and to live vicariously through others pursuing more unique activities.  I have no doubt die-hard NFL fans could provide a laundry list of other reasons they watch the NFL, and I'm sure most are legitimate.  All I can say is that after a long 3 hours of pondering, it is hard for me to say that cheering for grown men to advance and stop the advancement of an oblong, formerly pig-skin object is more logical than gasping at how someone you've never met offered a pruned red flower to someone else you've never met.  I only wish that the next girl to receive a rose would spike it, dunk it over a goal-post, or throw up the X, as the Bachelor has no 15 yard penalty for taunting.