The International Fantasy League: Poland takes a trip to Tampa Bay

Daniel Krysiak

Nothing compares to seeing the NFL in person.

In an example of the IFL members' fandom outpacing that of most NFL enthusiasts, Daniel Krysiak of Team Poland went to Tampa, Fla. a couple of weeks ago to catch the Bucs playing the Vikings. It was the first NFL game for the lifelong Packers fan, and we asked him to share his thoughts about the experience with us.

U.S. vs. European Fandom:
"If you are a fan who happened to find himself in the wrong section because it was the only ticket available, you keep quiet and all levels of cheering stay inside. The visiting Vikes fans regularly talked 'smack' to the Bucs fans—again, something that would never happen in Europe—unless of course one is feeling a bit suicidal."

The Festive Game Day Atmosphere: Krysiak, who enjoys watching football with a nice glass of vodka, noticed immediately that people "were definitely on their way to getting hammered" and added that there were both "positive and negative aspects to this."

The level of play: "When you watch Adrian Peterson on TV, you can see his skill. But when you see him in person making everything look so smooth, you can see the difference in skill level with him and the rest of the players. The guy is just on another planet." And this was a game in which Peterson, who'd topped 100 yards in the preceding four games, tallied only 85 yards on 19 carries without a score.

Sideline Obsession: "I think football cheerleaders are the best in sports." We'd agree, especially when you're on your way to getting hammered.

LEAGUE UPDATE: PLAYOFFS BEGIN

It's Week 1 of the IFL playoffs this weekend. I didn't realize that, kindergarten-style, everybody's in! Even Team USA, whose weekly totals look like soccer scores, faces off against Team Poland, which boasts a better record than Team USA despite missing the draft and autodrafting six RBs. The byes go to Team Chile (11-2) and Team Mexico (6-7), division leaders. (Even though Team Saudi Arabia is from the same division, has the same record and beat Mexico twice, I believe Mexico gets the bye because of total points scored.)

Prince Abdullah's Team Saudi Arabia is hurting, having lost five in a row. With Steven Jackson back on the field for the Rams, perhaps he'll pick it back up. Hard to bank on that, however, with Maurice Jones-Drew in his backfield, running behind a line that can't seem to block.

Predicting a winner is hopeless and futile, but let's give it a shot. First, though, I'll pay tribute to Team New Zealand's Kiran Paima for starting both Chris Johnson and LenDale White, two RBsfrom the same team, and getting 46 points! He lost, but that's a sweet move. Going into the playoffs, I'll pick Team Chile to continue rolling and Team India as the dark horse.

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