Welcome to another edition of Shelf Discovery in which I take a look at some form of media I’m currently enjoying and use it to inspire some self reflection and see what answers may be uncovered. 

This week lets look at the incredible amount of football I’ve been watching over the last few weeks. 

Kevin? Watching football?! Has something happened? Has the real Kevin been replaced? Does he have interest in a woman who likes football and thus he is pretending to also enjoy it? All of these are valid questions. No, the answer has nothing to do with any of that. 

The answer would be my son. Out of no where at 12 years old he decides he has interest in football. Not enough to watch every moment of every game, but enough to want the games on in the background to see if his predicted teams win. Last week he went 5 and 1. As I write this he is 1 and 1 for this week. 

I start asking him the same questions. Has something happened? Have you been replaced? Are you interested in a girl? Or, more likely at 12, does your best friend like football and thus you want to know more about it? 

To my surprise, none of these were the reason. The cause was my own family. 

During the week between Christmas and New Year’s we spent many days in my hometown at my mother’s (his grandmother’s) home. Aunts and uncles and cousins were visiting. Presents were exchanged. Meals were shared. Through much of this time, there were football games on TV. During our hour and a half drive back home after the holidays, he spent an hour asking me questions about football. 

While I am known for not watching sports, I’ve picked up information along the way. I’ve overheard enough while friends and family were talking. One of my favorite moments is when my college girlfriend and her roommates were throwing a football party. They invited friends, boyfriends, co-workers, people from class. I only knew my co-workers and we were all a bunch of bookstore nerds. I spent the morning and early afternoon setting up chairs and tables and otherwise prepping the downstairs for guests. The football pre-shows were on TV and I paid attention enough to know what was going on later in the day. Guests came over and asked me who I thought would win the games. “Well, Smith took that bad sack last week and is questionable for today which puts a lot into question.” Random lines like that, analysis I heard an hour earlier that I’m repeating to someone I’ll never see again. I looked smart and my then girlfriend had that aforementioned reaction of who are you and what did you do with the real Kevin? 

Enough of that knowledge is still in my head to give my 12 year old son a basic 101 explanation of things in football. Yards. 1st down. Sometimes a kick is worth 1 point, sometimes 3. He asks who’s my favorite team. I don’t really have a favorite team in any sport. Just for being a member of my family, the Yankees in baseball but that’s more by default. My son decides to support New York and picks the Bills. I tell him I’ll work on it. I still don’t have a team but I’m narrowing it down. 

I turn on some games because there is a severe lack of wrestling on TV the last few weekends. I need some noise in the house, so football it is. I love watching the Packers and Bears beat the hell out of each other. I love seeing a come from behind win in the 4th quarter. But I also love doing something else for two hours and while the game is on I’m not really paying attention. Until the replay shows me what just happened. 

My son starts picking winners. He went 2 for 2 the first Sunday he picked. Fuel for this just starting fire. Last week he was 5 for 5 going into the Monday night game and that was his only loss. As I said, so far this week he’s 1 and 1, and that 1 loss was close. We have things to do today but we’ll be paying attention to the games in between other activities. He’s already planning on watching the SuperBowl this year, and for the first time, not just for the Marvel movie trailers. (And there better be both an Avengers and a Spider-Man trailer!) 

A funny side effect of all of this has been the new conversations it has spawned. I’ve talked more football with my dad in the last couple weeks than ever in my life before combined. My friends who love football and/or gambling are calling to talk to my son. Congratulate him in his victories and send positivity in his defeats. Men don’t really have random conversations with other men, but this football thing has proven to be a great starting point. Is everyone else already aware of this? 

Sure, there were times I hoped my son would discover wrestling and spend weekends watching pay per views with me. He’ll go to a live event sometimes but even that has its limits. He hasn’t watched wrestling on TV with me in at least over a year, maybe more. 

But this football thing. I probably know as much, or as little, as he does at this point. As he and I have decided 2026 is a year of discovery and adventure, I guess the NFL is part of that now too. Much like the first time we visit a new place, we are going into this together. Discovering the good and bad, the cheers and boos, of this new thing side by side. Instead of being side by side walking a mall, or in a new town, or on a nature hike. We’re side by side on the couch wondering if under a minute left in the fourth quarter really is enough time to win. I already feel like I’m winning. Who’s my favorite team? Whoever you’re cheering buddy.