My favorite professional sports team is the Cincinnati Bengals. If you know me, you already know this. Every single year that I have ever been a fan of the Bengals I have entered the season confident that it could be the year that they win it all.
Prior to the 2003 season it didn’t matter that they had just finished the prior season with a 2-14 (that’s 2 wins and 14 losses) record and that they had not had a winning season since 1990, I still believed that they could win the Super Bowl that season. Why do I feel so confident in my team year in and year out? What keeps me believing and hoping that things will be different? Below are a few factors that make me confident in my team each year:
1) In 1987 the Bengals finished with a 4-11 record and last place in their divison, in 1988 they went 12-4, won their division and went on to the Super Bowl (in which they were only 23 seconds away from winning against the 49ers). So things can drastically change in only 1 year.
2) I am a firm believer that 1 player can not win games by himself, but I do believe that 1 player can make a huge difference and cause the rest of the team to play better. With the turnover that occurs with each NFL team each season there is hope! There are 7 rounds in the NFL Draft where each team drafts new players from college and also with new players coming and going in free agency each team will most likely have a different type of chemistry each year and a different talent level.
3) Injuries. Teams that you think are going to be awesome prior to the season often experience injuries during a season which can drastically affect their performance. This can often help teams that are projected to have less talent and not win many games over-achieve and win. This can also have the reverse affect and bad teams can perform much worse.
Basically, it is easier for fans of a team to find whatever reasons they can to have more hope and confidence in their team, I know I do. I think one of the great things about having a favorite sports team is that you never know what is going to happen, if you knew, you may not be a fan.