Why this year's Super Bowl is worth watching

The best argument for watching the Super Bowl is that there really doesn’t need to be an argument at all. This is one of the least compelling matchups in what is arguably the least compelling time to watch professional football, and yet, it will be the most watched American television event because you, at the very least, have to pretend to care.

The weekend before Super Bowl I (retroactively named, originally the AFL-NFL World Championship), which featured the Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs, there were still 41,000 unsold Super Bowl tickets for a Los Angeles Coliseum that had a 100,000-seat capacity. Because of the general lack of interest in the game, it was blacked out on television in Los Angeles, and those who wanted to watch it were forced to travel to nearby San Diego, Bakersfield or Palm Springs. The Chiefs' facility was broken into that week, and the burglars ignored a stack of tickets to the game, only taking a small sum of money and causing property damage.

A lot about the NFL has changed over the years, but none more so than the Super Bowl’s ability to make the mundane magical. Just last year, we watched the greatest comeback in the history of the event, but more importantly, everyone outside of Atlanta was able to collectively engage in jokes that revolved around the numbers 28 and 3. There is a sort of converging of cultures when everyone joins the conversation about the Super Bowl, and the discourse can be understood from those who live and breathe the sport to those who watch the game for the commercials.

One of the reasons this year’s Super Bowl will be accessible to everyone is the very reason why some are turned off by the game. The Bill Belichick and Tom Brady era Patriots will take the field for their third Super Bowl appearance in the last four years and the 10th in franchise history, an NFL record. Regardless of the outcome, history will be made as the Patriots’ opponent, the Philadelphia Eagles, have never won the big game. Brady will take home his sixth Lombardi Trophy as a starting quarterback, or Nick Foles will hilariously take down the only true empire in American sports.

The league couldn’t be in a more awkward position in such a contentious era with the intersection of sports and politics, and this weekend is a showcase of the divisive nature of the country’s leadership. The 45th President of the United States has been very outspoken about the silent protesting during the national anthem, hijacking and redirecting the message via social media. President Donald Trump, at the very least, considers Bob Kraft, the Patriots' owner, and Brady acquaintances, calling each out by name during a celebratory dinner with campaign owners early in 2017.

The Eagles, on the other hand, feature myriad players who have been involved in the very protests that have led to Trump using profanities to describe black athletes. Malcolm Jenkins and Rodney McLeod have knelt and raised fists in solidarity with the message that ex-NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick began during last season. The team also employs Chris Long, one of the few white players who has spoken his mind about social justice issues that affect his black teammates.

Neither team’s culture universally leans one way or the other, but there is a division in how each team is perceived when it comes to these issues. With quite literally the whole world watching, we’ll get to see two sides of the proverbial coin. Or we won’t. The NFL has been dealing with myriad PR nightmares for the better part of the last half-decade, and the last thing Roger Goodell and the NFL want is to have the president blast his league on its biggest stage because of players exercising their constitutional right to free speech.

We shouldn’t be surprised if the players lean either way, but we should be surprised if we come across people who didn’t watch to find out at all.