Who Needs Superstars?
    The N.B.A. without Jordan. A “Babeless†baseball; or even the N.H.L. without Gretzky. It just wouldn’t be right; or would it?Â
    Sunday as I watched Tom Brady’s season vanish along with hopes of Patriots fans around the country; I can’t help but think, does the NFL or all professional sports for that matter need their respective superstars to reach their potential?
    I can only imagine how this injury will affect the television schedule. Will New England games be considered for nationally televised games each week? Will the injury of one player on a phenomenal team alter the way we watch the N.F.L. this season?
    The answer is yes; but it’s not only Tom Brady who will have this effect on us. When was the last time you really watched or at least paid attention to how the New York Jets did, other than when they were playing you’re favorite team? Let me answer that for you, it was this weekend. Like many of you, I too found myself milking the cow the sporting world has created over the Brett Favre saga as if something special was going to happen. And yes all of this was because of a single athlete.
    Now listen to what I’m saying; by no means am I even suggesting that any one player is bigger than the sport that made them into who they are. But what I am saying is that sports need their superstars to draw the most interest. Whether you love to watch them win, or applaud when they lose, we are drawn to superstars in sports because they’ve placed themselves on new levels.Â
    Disagree? Ask the P.G.A. about life without Tiger Woods. Television ratings, sponsorships and overall interest have diminished because one single athlete not competing each week. It took sensational stories at the British Open like a defending champion repeating or an inspirational 50 something year old relive the magic of his younger days for us to pay attention.
    By the way; who won the Tour De France this year? Oh, that’s right. Lance Armstrong didn’t race for the third consecutive year and we didn’t care. But as reports swirled Tuesday that he’d be making a comeback, it’s on almost every sports outlet in the nation.
    Can you imagine, as the N.H.L. tries to reinvent themselves and increase interest, would it be possible without their poster boys Sid “the kid†Crosby or Alexander Ovechkin? I couldn’t.
    What I can see is evolution. Each sport has seen its resurgence as times and athletes evolve. Mantle, Ruth, and Mayes have been replaced by Rodriguez, Jeter, and Maddux. Nicklaus and Palmer with Woods and Mickelson. Montana, Namath, Theisman have seen Manning, Brady and Favre replace them as the names kids across the country call themselves as they play football in their backyards. And who knows, maybe Brady’s injury will leave room on that list for the likes of Matt Cassel; a lifelong backup who hasn’t started a game since high school.
    As unfortunate as injuries, retirements and players exiting the prime of the playing careers is, there will always been the next wave of superstars for sports and their fans to hold on to. So rather than needing athletes as a lifeline to sports, fans should embrace superstars and their talent while they have them. When they’re gone, sports fans should anxiously wait for a new era of talent emerge to thrill us, just as the legends of the past did; if not we might just let them pass us by.
    Log on now to the Phanlanx Message Board and discuss how superstars play a role in the state of professional sports.
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