I need help picking a new NFL team

[Guest Mr. AKA]

I've been a Dallas fan my whole life, but if they trade for PacMan I will need to find a new team.

so I've been asking people for suggestions....

I live in the bay area, so the bucs make sense

I'm from the Chicago area, so the bears make sense

I'm moving to NC after grad., so the panthers make sense.

I need advice..

[Triple B]

The question that begs to be asked is why were you a Cowboy fan and not a Bear fan in the first place?

[BullsWinBucsWin]

Go with Arizona.

[80mins]

I've been a Dallas fan my whole life, but if they trade for PacMan I will need to find a new team.

so I've been asking people for suggestions....

I live in the bay area, so the bucs make sense

I'm from the Chicago area, so the bears make sense

I'm moving to NC after grad., so the panthers make sense.

I need advice..

I'll forgive you your current sins (sorry, I'm an Eagles fan)... I've always been a shameless homer, so my support, based on the ones you listed would be the Bears, since you're from the Chi. When you make your way to NC (whereabout, by the way?) you will be surrounded by Panthers stuff, though.

[mikebeau]

I've been a Dallas fan my whole life, but if they trade for PacMan I will need to find a new team.

so I've been asking people for suggestions....

I live in the bay area, so the bucs make sense

I'm from the Chicago area, so the bears make sense

I'm moving to NC after grad., so the panthers make sense.

I need advice..

Root for the bucs(you live here, is this even a question?)

follow the bears(hometown team, but don't show up to a local bar or game with a bears jersey on)

**** the panthers-worry about that **** when you move there.  Nothing would sound dumber than cheering for the panthers and then explaining that you are moving there in a couple of years.

[Velcro]

this may help:

from Rules of Fandom by Bill Simmons:

http://proxy.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/020227

(see link for rest of article)...

Loyalties

18. If you live in a city that has fielded a professional team since your formative years, you have to root for that team. None of this, "The Bengals weren't very good when I was growing up in Cincy, so I became a Cowboys fan" crap.

Also, you can't start rooting for a team, back off when they're in a down cycle, then renew the relationship once the team starts winning again. All those Cowboys fans who jumped off the bandwagon in the late-'80s, jumped back on during the Emmitt/Aikman Era, then jumped back off in the late-'90s ... you know who you are. You shouldn't even be allowed out in public.

You are required to root for the home team under almost all circumstances.(There's nothing worse than a Bandwagon Jumper. If sports were a prison and sports fans made up all the prisoners, the Bandwagon Jumpers would be like the child molesters -- everyone else would pick on them, take turns beating them up and force them to toss more salads than Emeril Lagasse.)

19. Once you choose a team, you're stuck with that team for the rest of your life ... unless one of the following conditions applies:

Your team moves to another city. All bets are off when that happens. In fact, if you decided to turn off that sport entirely, nobody would blame you.

You grew up in a city that didn't field a team for a specific sport -- so you picked a random team -- and then either a.) your city landed a team, or b.) you moved to a city that fielded a team for that specific sport. For instance, one of my Connecticut buddies rooted for the Sixers during the Doctor J Era, then happened to be living in Orlando when the Magic came to town. Now he's a Magic fan. That's acceptable.

One of your immediate family members either plays professionally or takes a relevant management/coaching/front office position with a pro team.

You follow your favorite college star (and this has to be a once-in-a-generation favorite college star) to the pros and root for his team du jour ... like if you were a UNC fan for the past 20 years, and you rooted for the Bulls (because of MJ) and then the Raptors (because of Vince). Only works if there isn't a pro team in your area.

The owner of your favorite team treated his fans so egregiously over the years that you couldn't take it anymore -- you would rather not follow them at all then support a franchise with this owner in charge. Just for the record, I reached this point with the Boston Bruins about six years ago. When it happens, you have two options: You can either renounce that team and pick someone else, or you can pretend they're dead, like you're a grieving widow. That's what I do. I'm an NHL widow. I don't even want to date another team.

If you're between the ages of 20-40, you're a fan of the Yankees, Cowboys, Braves, Raiders, Steelers, Celtics, Lakers, Bulls, Canadiens and/or Oilers, and you're not actually from those one of those cities ... well, you better have a reason that goes beyond "When I was picking a favorite team as a kid, they were the best team, so I picked them."

If you live in New York, you can't root for both the Yankees and Mets. Pick a side!At least give me a reason like "Reggie Jackson was my favorite player growing up," or "I always liked the red Bulls uniforms," or even "Everyone in my gang wore Raiders colors." Do you really want to be known as a bona fide Bandwagon Jumper?

20. If you hail from New York, you can't root for the Yankees and the Mets. You have to choose between them. Repeat: You have to choose between them. Don't give me this "As long as one of them is doing well, at least New York is winning" spiels. What is this, the sports fan's version of bisexuality? How about making a choice? Any New Yorker who said the words "It's the Yankees versus the Mets ... I can't lose!" during the 2000 World Series deserves to be tortured with a cattle prod.

Besides, as we mentioned in the beginning of this column, you shouldn't practice "Sports Bigamy" in general. Sports teams are just like wives ... you can only have one wife, you can only have one sports team, and for the love of God, I will not argue about this.

(And yes, I'm talking to you, KJ.)

[flsportsfan83]

why would you ever change your team? I could never see myself rooting for anyone other than The Dolphins, Marlins, USF, or University of Miami.

[Carolina_Bull]

I grew up in Dallas and have the Cowboys in my blood.  I am sick of always having to answer for bandwagon fans like you.  Good riddance.  Don't let the door hit you in the a#s.

Pick the Giants.  They are the champs and seem to have the least amount of controversy right now and that is what seems to be important to you. . . . and you can switch next year when another team wins the trophy.

Sorry for my angst Mr. AKA, but seriously, stay the course man.  Why would you walk away from these:

[Carolina_Bull]

In other news.  The triplets officially turn their backs on Mr. AKA.

[flsportsfan83]

I grew up in Dallas and have the Cowboys in my blood.  I am sick of always having to answer for bandwagon fans like you.  Good riddance.  Don't let the door hit you in the a#s.

Pick the Giants.  They are the champs and seem to have the least amount of controversy right now and that is what seems to be important to you. . . . and you can switch next year when another team wins the trophy.

Sorry for my angst Mr. AKA, but seriously, stay the course man.  Why would you walk away from these:

Banwagon fans make me sick. Mr AKA why dont you become a UF fan as well.