The Editor,
Re. "Which is superior: The CFL or the NFL?" (Face to Face, The Tri-City News, Nov. 15).
At last, a meaningful topic for debate. Forget the Senate, Ford Nation and whatever pipeline you choose to despise. Let's talk football.
Rare is the day when I find myself agreeing with columnist Jim Nelson but, sorry Andy Radia, the Canadian Football League has far and away the better game.
The National Football League has become the home of the behemoth, where all positions seem to require size, height and often bulk to go with it. A clash between defensive and offensive lines in an NFL contest looks like the resurrection of Tolkien's Auks. I'll grant you that there are players who fit the NFL bill and still have speed, and I would concede that generally the skill levels of quarterbacks and receivers in the NFL outranks that in the CFL. But the NFL field is small, the game is often slow and much of the play resembles a bad roller derby blended with a Tokyo subway crush. Even the regulated pace of the game is reduced to a crawl. The CFL gets far more plays into 60 minutes.
Three downs brings more passing into play, which adds more drama. The complexion of a game in the CFL can change remarkably over four quarters, and the unpredictable character of the game is something to really enjoy.
Improvised moves and creative play calling seem to be more common in the CFL. Sure, it might not be textbook football, and on occasion it can look like something out of the bush north of Regina. But that's very Canadian, and maybe that's part of the attraction.
Now, Andy, could you back up a yard - you're encroaching.
Robb McLaren, Port Moody
