Professional football is the most lucrative sports franchise in history. Money has ruined most sports for me, and today money is why announcers and other analysts hide the truth from the fans.

I was 13-years-old when the Brooklyn Dodgers became the Los Angeles Dodgers where I grew up. In that same year the Minneapolis Lakers moved to Los Angeles and the beginning of a Jerry West’s and Elgin Baylor’s legacies began.

I was in heaven. I was not a devoted fan of the NFL at that time because I was a skinny little teenager and was more comfortable as a pitcher in baseball and a point guard in basketball. I was very happy to watch every Dodger and Laker game available to me and listen to games on my transistor radio when they were not available on television.

I am 72-years-old and about 20 years ago I stopped watching professional baseball and basketball. Money ruined both games and ‘free agency’ destroyed the team concept.

The only reason I continue to be a fan of the NFL is because it is the only professional sport which remains a team effort.

The truth which has been hidden from fans is that coaching in the NFL is far more important than in any other sport. For nearly two decades the New England Patriots have been the dominant team in the NFL because they have the best coaching. Head coach, Bill Belichick, is in control of all aspects of his team. He has committed several violations, but his ability to get the best efforts from his players is unquestioned.

Talent is overrated. If talent alone won Super Bowls the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys would have dominated the NFL for the last 20 years.

If you watched Saturday’s game between the Houston Texans and the New York Jets you witnessed a perfect example of how the importance of coaching is paramount to success in the NFL. The Texans were the dominant team but barely survived the Jets whose coaches were superior overall.

This brings me to what could possibly be the best game in the NFL tomorrow; but I don’t believe it will happen.

The Pittsburgh Steelers will host the New England Patriots. Both teams are desperate to win; the playoffs begin in just three weeks. Here is my prediction.

The Steelers coaching staff is inferior. They have lost three games in a row to teams they should have defeated easily. The players are not the problem; coaching is the problem.

If I were you, I would mortgage my house and bet on the Patriots. Belichick will out-coach Tomlin and his mediocre staff. The end the game may be close, but the Patriots will win by at least seven points.

This is hard for me. I have been a Steelers fan for most of my adult life. They have disappointed me multiple times and this season may be the worst.

I coached baseball, basketball, soccer, and volleyball in my life. I admit to my successes and my failures. I loved every minute of my efforts and remember my joy and feelings of failure. The truth is that I made a difference in every game; good or bad.

I expect that tomorrow will be another disappointment for me; Big Ben will lose his fourth game in a row, and retirement will become his preferred option for 2019.

As a fan, if you are critical of the coaches or the referees you have a right to your opinions. Coaching is more important than most fans realize, and officiating in the NFL is the worst in all of the sports franchises; collegiate and professional.

I am about to renounce all professional sports; money is destroying team loyalty. I would like to attend professional football games, but I cannot afford to. American sports have become a farce.

The Truth Lives Here

Op-ed by this “Wise Old Fart,” James Turnage

My six novels are available on the free Amazon Kindle app; click here