This week is a bit of a departure from my usual pop culture fare, though I argue fantasy football still fits under that umbrella if you squint. And even if you don’t care for American football—fantasy or otherwise—I think you’ll enjoy listening to me chat with my brother. We have the same sense of humor, and we share stories from our childhood.
One of the surprise revelations that came out of this is the role fantasy football plays in keeping us connected. It’s one of those things I knew, but didn’t really internalize until we were talking. Probably half our texts revolve around fantasy football.
Men often don’t put forth the effort to maintain their friendships, and over time those relationships atrophy. It’s not something we do intentionally. It just happens when we’re busy doing life. But fantasy football—and its dorky cousin Dungeons & Dragons—is at least partly responsible for keeping me talking to my friends on a regular basis.
The moral of the story: Elaborate games of pretend are great for relationships.
Topics Discussed In This Episode:
- Why do we play fantasy football?
- How fantasy football is played
- Our first fantasy experience
- Preventing fantasy football from ruining your life
- The origin story of our 20-year-old league
- The components of a good league
- Why the draft is the best time of the year, and draft tips
- Some picks we love and regret from this year’s draft