- Super Bowl LVII and its festivities overtook the Phoenix area for a week before the big game.
- I left two days before kickoff and have no regrets about that decision.
On Friday morning, I was rolling my bag through Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, like a lone minnow fighting against a current of red-, gold- and green-clad super fans, all just arriving for Super Bowl LVII.
Everywhere I turned, I was reminded that I was actually leaving when anybody who's anybody was just showing up. Signs all over the terminal boasted the big game. Groups of fans were assembling at meeting points. Private jets, emblazoned with the Dallas Cowboys star and the Jacksonville Jaguar on their tails, were parked near a runway at the airport.
But I was on my way out, back home after four days in Phoenix to cover all the events leading to the big one. And let me tell you: I was happy to leave.
Here's why.
Football is a made-for-TV sport
Some sports are better to watch in person — ice hockey and college basketball, in particular — but pro football just isn't one of them. Hockey is much easier to follow when you aren't reliant on panning cameras or switching angles, and TV doesn't really convey the game's sounds and intensity.
The vast majority of college hoops games aren't exactly magnificent displays of skill, but watching in the presence of thousands of amped-up college students, infuses games with an energy that doesn't translate to TV.
This isn't so much a knock on football as it is praise for the NFL in creating a product that's so well-suited for at-home viewing. Action is easily contained on the screen, and the constant starts and stops give the game enough predictability to maintain some quality control over the on-screen product. And with all the advancements in over-field camera angles and goal-line cameras, the viewing experience on TV is far superior to just about anywhere in the stadium.
I like the commercials — so sue me
My formative years of watching sports coincided with the golden age of Super Bowl commercials, back when they didn't all air over YouTube a week before the big game and when they weren't part of a six-week-long social media stunt to get people to start gambling away their money.
So I still have a strong affinity for the breaks in between plays. And this year, Hollywood's biggest stars turned out for those 30-second spots: Ben Affleck, Jennifer Lopez, Bradley Cooper, and Serena Williams. That's some A-list shilling! And aside from the Clueless commercial that made me realize I'm now part of the exact demographic that nostalgia targets, I still largely enjoyed watching these overpriced snippets of marketing.
The atmosphere of the Super Bowl in person, as far as I can tell, is underwhelming
Over my career covering sports, I have seen many raucous sporting environments in person — Duke-UNC games in Cameron Indoor Stadium, the TJ Oshie shootout game at the Sochi Olympics, Madison Square Garden for the Stanley Cup Finals — and one thing these games have in common: a clearly partisan crowd.
The Super Bowl crowd is mostly split, so only half the stadium is ever at full bore at any time.
Moreover, the incredibly high price of admission has given the game a more corporate, business-like feel. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow even remarked last year, "It felt like a dinner party, and we were the entertainment."
Ultimately, I got to spend the day the way I wanted to — with my family
I made it home in time to pick up my two kids from preschool, and after being away for four days, they welcomed me with the warmest little toddler hugs, which were, frankly, priceless.
The next day, we packed back up and headed to the mountains near Lake Tahoe for a few days away. And on Super Bowl Sunday, instead of battling through Glendale traffic or wading through a sea of people pouring into State Farm Stadium, I hit the wide open slopes at Palisades Tahoe with my husband and our four-year-old daughter, who skied her first green circle all by herself!
After a solid morning on a bluebird day, we made it back from the mountain with an hour to spare before Chris Stapleton crooned the National Anthem. With a cozy fire roaring nearby and a tray of BBQ wings in the oven, we enjoyed the riveting game — well, for as long as two toddlers can enjoy something other than Bluey.
Being at the Super Bowl, I'm sure, is an awesome experience for many, but I got to watch the game in some comfy sweatpants with a good meal and in the quiet company of those I love.
Absolutely no regrets about that.