America is a religious nation no matter what the Constitution says about the separation of church and state. And there is no greater ritual in America than the worship of football.The football season began last night, amid the more obscured actual religious holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Ramadan. While some people were fasting or just breaking that fast, the majority of the nation was taking in chicken wings, beer, and the sights and sounds of the Vikings and Saints mauling one another.The New Orleans Saints played host to the Minnesota Vikings in a rematch of last year’s NFC Championship Game. The Saints had a magical season last year, which culminated in a Super Bowl victory. Drew Brees, quarterback for the Saints, completed 27 of 36 passes for 237 yards and one touchdown, as the Saints won 14-9.The football season begins in earnest now, with the meaningless preseason junk out of the way. A full slate of games begins on Sunday, Sept. 12 at 11 a.m., with the Denver Broncos taking on the Jacksonville Jaguars. The schedule ends with the Dallas Cowboys playing the Washington Redskins in a game that begins at 6:30 p.m.And just like that, America’s got its true national pastime back. While baseball may have occupied that territory early in the last century, it’s clear from the devotional fervor that adorns even the commercials for the NFL that our deities have shifted. Fantasy football is almost as big as the actual games, and the Super Bowl is the biggest TV draw in the U.S. It remains to be seen if that attitude will shift again in the future, but for now, football is king and football is back.
All Rise: The Return Of The Nfl
2 min read
