N.F.L

The first five games of the 2013 NFL season have provided us with a measure of what may be the story-lines that define this season. There are teams that have met expectations so far, some that have fell below those same expectations, and others that have exceeded what was expected to be altogether. However this is what happens every NFL season as prognosticators and pundits, fans and spectators, and even the regular passerby make declarations and observations about how things will unravel.

As this season continues we will analyze the trends, notions, and philosophies that permeate the league. Are certain teams as bad as they are? Are others as good as they may seem? We all know that the NFL (as dubbed so many years ago by the great, but unorthodox coach Jerry Glanville of the then Houston Oilers) stands for "Not For Long" and why this saying truly applies to a league which plays only 16 games in the regular season. A league where things are over even before they get started. A league in which you are only as good as your last game. A league where the championship is pretty much decided by a war of attrition.

This is the NFL. And this is the 2013 season, the 94th season of its kind. But trust me, you have never seen a season of this kind...

Name's the Game

The New York Yankees have such a team that (even if based on name alone) is built for October. Not to say that paper and pen win pennants and titles in a game which is known for humbling its participants, but it's a start, and no team in the history of the game has employed that notion to greater effect than the Yankees. This current batch of Yankees is no different. With names like Granderson, Cano, Sabathia, and Rodriguez, this is a team that is built to operate at a high level. The roster is filled with names of similar ilk. Rivera, Suzuki, Kuroda, and Jeter. You get the point: This is a team that is built to operate at a high level.

Alas, a rash of injuries and misfortune have derailed and delayed all of that. A hole built by a mediocre start at the beginning and into nearly two-thirds of the season due to the absence of some of those names has literally left the Yankees close to dead and buried. If they are to dig their way out it will indeed take the efforts of their recently restored name-machine. They will need their stars to shine brightest in this darkest of holes. The dirt is piling on but there may still be life and valor in that hole, and a team that is built to operate at a high level...a team that has the names to make a difference, a team that is built for October, will soon find out.