To the editor:
I have played some football in my time and have watched even more. You could say that I grew up on football. Football is a game consisting of quarterbacks, receivers, running backs, centers, etc. Not to mention a load of important defensive men. It is a team effort and a team sport. And that is what I like to watch, the team.Unfortunately, that is not what I see when I watch local TV broadcasts of football. What I see is the football and the player who is handling it at the moment, which is usually the quarterback.
The camera zooms in so close that I can't see the play develop at all. When the quarterback searches the field for an open receiver, I don't see any. They disappear off the television almost instantly after the ball is hiked.
The same is true for the running game. The running back gets the ball then looks up field to see the open lanes, but all I see is him and a player or two around him.
National broadcasts are not plagued with this problem as much because they replay the play at so many different angles.
Next time you watch a local broadcast, think about what you are not seeing develop. I feel like I am being zoomed away from football.
Ralph Brower
Salt Lake City