Fantasy football has steadily become one of the most popular games to play in North America. Fathers, mothers, children, grandparents, house pets -- almost anyone who watches football plays fantasy football as well. But has the rise in popularity of fantasy sports lessened some fans sense of humanity when it comes to watching sports? Seattle Seahawks star Richard Sherman believes so.
Speaking with the Seattle Times following the Seahawks' Sunday night game, Sherman discussed how he thinks some fans may have forgotten that football players are people too, citing people's reactions to his teammate Chris Carson's serious leg injury.
“It’s devastating,” Sherman said of the injury. “This is really devastating. I think a lot of people, a lot of fans out there have looked at players less like people because of fantasy football and things like that. You go and say ‘oh, man this guy got hurt.’ But you aren’t thinking ‘hey man, this guy got hurt, he’s really physically hurt and he is going to take some time to recover and it’s probably going to affect his mental state and now he has a long rigorous rehab.’
“You are thinking ‘oh man, he’s messing up my fantasy team.’ They don’t care about how it affects your fantasy team because they are really players — this is real life. This is real life and this is their real job. that is affecting their well-being. Now your fantasy team may not win and hey, guess what? You’ll live the next day. This is their well-being. They may not ever get another shot. They may never get another down, another play. “I think that is why it is so devastating for players.” (Richard Sherman - Seattle Times)
Obviously not every fan simply views players as just another piece on their fantasy sports chess board, but Sherman's point is still worth considering. While it may be inconvenient to lose your top player to an injury, all you have to do is scan the waiver wire, while that player has to rehab for the next few months of their lives, pondering how the injury may affect their career.
