The Wonder Of NFL Films - Just What You Need When Your Team Is Having A Tough Year

Last Sunday, I ended up on the floor. 

Trailing the Washington Football Team 23-15 near the end of the 4th quarter, the 49ers had just picked up 22 yards on a great Kendrick Bourne catch for a first down to keep the game alive, when offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey was called for holding. The penalty negated the gain and one failed completion later the game was effectively over. 

Seconds before I had been standing up cheering. Then, I tumbled in disappointment. It's been that kind of season. 

But the good thing about being on the floor is that once you've hit bottom, you can only go up. 

And by going up I mean you get off the ground, ignore any looks of pity from your girlfriend, walk over to a different screen in your house, and pull up the NFL Films YouTube channel. 

I DEVOUR these videos. I watch them when I'm sad. I watch them when I'm happy. I watch them before games on Sunday to get excited, and I watch them on Tuesday afternoons because I have nothing better to do. Sometimes the polished, musically scored NFL Films product is better than the actual game and that's ok. 

If your team is beset by injuries, losses, and on the verge or completely eliminated from playoff contention, NFL Films is your escape. NFL Films is where you can go to feel excited about football again. 

I'd like to recommend their YouTube channel specifically, because there you can find bite sized chunks of joy. A typical NFL Films video runs around eight minutes, short enough for you to enjoy during a lunch break. Just don't get so fired up you drop your pizza slice on your keyboard. 

Don't know where to start? Try Philip Rivers: A Future Filled With Football running at just over six minutes long. You can learn about the veteran quarterback's plans to coach high school football once his career is over. Watch him consult with his own coaches on the sideline on every facet of the game in this video and you'll see why he'd make a great HC someday. There are also plenty of QB audibles and vintage Rivers' trash talk to enjoy. 

Or try "You Know How To Doughie?" Best of Mike Tomlin Mic'd Up. A little longer at 22-plus minutes, but still worth it. Mike Tomlin is highly entertaining, and though I wouldn't run through a brick wall for him, I would consider maybe slapping one a few times for him after watching his mic'd up video. 

Or, back to quarterbacks, try Josh McCown: The Lumberjack Quarterback running at a little over eight minutes. You can see a clip of Josh McCown as a kid in a family home movie working in his Dad's pallet mill, then relive the highs and lows of his 17 seasons and counting NFL career. 

In January of 2020 McCown became, at 40, the oldest player in NFL history to start a playoff game when he suited up for the Philadelphia Eagles in a loss to the Seahawks. McCown played nearly the entire game (his first playoff contest) with a torn hamstring and NFL Films was there for it all, including the quarterback's emotional post-game address to the team in the locker room. Powerful stuff. 

NFL Films has it all. You want coaches like Tomlin, Jon Gruden and Bill Belichick mic'd up? You got it. You want to get into the details of how the Raiders protected against the Jets' blitz in Week 13 of the 2020 season? You can find out. 

Do you want to watch something called LET'S GO!!! Two Words That Define The NFL a video that is basically just clips of players shouting "Let's Go!" throughout NFL history? You can absolutely watch that. 

NFL Films has something for everyone. If your team is dominating this season or in the playoff hunt, then congrats. Remember, though, that only one team walks away without disappointment at the end of the season. If you end the 2020 season sad that your squad didn't hoist the Lombardi, NFL Films will be there for you when you're ready. Why only today they dropped "I'm Just Here So I Won't Get Fined: The Best of Marshawn Lynch Mic'd Up." I've already started watching it.