During my short time at St. Stephen’s, I’ve noticed the love for our Saints football, college football, and the NFL. Due to some parents and faculty not being from Washington DC, there are more diverse responses to their favorite NFL team. One question that I’ve always had was how diverse of an NFL fan base St. Stephen’s has had, and when making the survey, I set out to answer some key questions. At the top of that list was finding out just who the favorite teams are among faculty, staff, and students. In addition, I wondered about the feelings people had about their team to see if there were any patterns.
What I found interesting among the ten faculty responses was there was not an overwhelming favorite; only two teams had more than one response. The New Orleans Saints received two faculty members’ votes for their favorite team and both similarly felt their team is playing average to above average. They also both said that they were a solid playoff team, but not a Super Bowl contender. Another similarity was in their tenure of fandom between both faculty members, with both being fans of the team for decades (49 and 56 years respectively). This is where the similarities end, with both responses having a major disagreement on their quarterback’s production.
This offseason, the New Orleans Saints signed four-time Pro Bowler Derek Carr to a four-year, $150 million contract, the biggest quarterback addition via free agency in the 2022 off-season. With this contract comes expectations, and it has been polarizing according to the faculty’s responses. One teacher has been most surprised by the lack of offensive production from our new quarterback, while the other responded, “That they (New Orleans Saints) have possibly found a great QB since Drew Brees retired.” There’s a clear difference in how they perceive their new quarterback. Although they are watching the same game, each person has their own perspective and how the players are performing.
Another aspect I was interested in was what team the majority of both teachers and students like. To no surprise the Washington Commanders were the most popular team according to the survey, with 18 people saying that they were their favorite team, taking up 22% of the overall vote. After that, it was the Dallas Cowboys with 10 votes (12%), the New England Patriots with 8 votes (9.6%), and the Giants, Ravens, and Saints tied with 5 votes each (6% respectively). This was followed by the Bengals, Packers, Bears, and Jets all with 3 votes. Down below you can see the results and see if your NFL team is potentially there. Where I was surprised was seeing the Cowboys as the next most supported team, considering that they are arguably the Commanders’ biggest rival. I am also surprised to see the amount of New England Patriots fans we have at SSSAS, with there being a historical dislike for the Patriots in recent years.
Another question that I asked was what people’s expectations were for the season up ahead. The multiple-choice question asks “What expectations do you have for your favorite team this season?” The options provided were “Bottom of the division, pretty bad”, “Middle of the pack, not good not bad”, “Playoff caliber team, not a Super Bowl contender though”, “Super Bowl contenders”, and in case people didn’t connect with any of these options I provided an “other” option. Specifically, I want to focus on people who believed their favorite team was a Super Bowl contender.
Surprisingly the team that had the most votes didn’t make the Super Bowl, didn’t make the AFC/NFC championship game, and they barely won double digit games last season. The Baltimore Ravens had the most votes, with 5 out of the total 24 responses, (21% of the total vote) followed by the Cowboys with 4 votes, (16% of the total vote) the Commanders with 3 votes, the Dolphins, Bills, and Bears all with 2 votes. Other responses included the Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans Saints and Cincinnati Bengals.
It seems like not everyone is excited about the season ahead. In the survey, students were asked if they were excited for their team this year. Nine people responded with a “no”, compared to 77 people saying “yes.” A resounding five out of the nine responses were New England Patriots fans, then followed by the Chicago Bears, New York Giants, Carolina Panthers, and Pittsburgh Steelers all with one singular vote. This is hardly surprising since the New England Patriots haven’t started 0-2 since 2001, even if the games were close. This is also hardly surprising about the other teams being mentioned. The Chicago Bears have been extremely disappointing, especially Justin Fields, who’s thrown 4 interceptions and been sacked 13 times. Also, the first overall pick in the 2023 draft, Bryce Young has bee
n disappointing for the Panthers so far, who’s thrown two touchdowns and two interceptions so far this season. The New York Giants went scoreless while giving up 40 points to the Dallas Cowboys in their season opener. Lastly, the Pittsburgh Steelers also lost in a blowout in their season opener to the San Francisco 49ers, 30 to 7.
Other questions that I asked included what grade you are in. The answers were pretty spread out, with the freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors being pretty even amongst responses.
These results have been very interesting to look at, seeing expectations and disappointments from their favorite team, as well as what teams are popular amongst Saints’ students and faculty, However, it is early into the season, so it’s hard to get a full grasp on how teams are going to play for the rest of the season. Teams that we see as Super Bowl contenders could potentially miss the playoffs, or teams that have underperformed these first few weeks can become playoff teams, and injuries are always a factor when regarding sports. It seems only time will tell if these statements are true.
