The beginning felt like too early a place to start.
Jokes were made about snap judgments. Opinions were ignored. The bigger picture was being missed. But the beginning was actually the foundation being laid.
It was not until the structure was completed that we saw the value in what was created ahead of time. Predictions that either stood or failed the test of time were of immense importance. In essence, they were the most scrutinized.
It usually began on a Tuesday, but we couldn’t help ourselves from allowing it to seep in as early as Sunday night. After all, picks were made, lineups were set, and we could do nothing more than watch. And, in addition to watching for the pure fun and enjoyment of the sport, we were there to research and study for next week’s test. Why not begin as early as possible?
In both picks against the spread and assembling a daily fantasy sports lineup, there are striking similarities between the mindset of the person making the decisions. For many of us who are truly sports fans – never forget that the origin of the word ‘fan’ is ‘fanatic’ – we carry a level of superstition near us. If we change seats at the wrong time, we believe our team will fail. If we wear our lucky jerseys, fate smiles upon them.
If we remove a player from our lineup, he will surely have a career day and whatever side of a game that appears to be evenly split that we pick, we will be wrong.
If you have been able to bypass this mental hurdle, you’ve won the battle. Thankfully, with more recognition of this issue, we can overcome it. But it is naive to pretend it doesn’t exist, entirely.