America's true pastime

As the NFL season is shortly coming upon us, there is a true discussion to be had.  Is baseball America's true pastime? I would argue that football has overtaken baseball for this title.  Yes, there are greats like Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron that are legends in baseball and have paved its history, but football is the dominant sport today.  With the dawn of the steroid era, the "purity" of baseball had started to vanish.  Football is a hard-nosed game.  The grit and determination are evident through players' facial expressions.  I read an article that argues that football is America's pastime.  Kate Coil states,

"...football is America’s way to relax after Thanksgiving dinner and a reason to get together with friends and family every winter for parties, commercials and tossing around the old pigskin."

Football is more than a game.  It is a social event.  It is a bonding experience.  Not that baseball isn't these, but football is becoming more popular.  Even awful teams can sell out their stadium that occupies 70,000 people, whereas baseball has half-empty stadiums a lot of the time and baseball stadiums can only hold about 45,000 people.  Also, not that many people are waiting for one great baseball game because teams play three game series' and there are 162 games in the season compared to football's 16 games.  I look forward to every single Bears game for the whole week before.  I say this as a huge fan of baseball.  I consider baseball to be my favorite sport.  Nevertheless, I would much rather watch football.  So on Sunday when you're wondering what to do, plop down on your couch, turn on the TV, and enjoy America's true pastime.