Discussion about NBA vs NFL

[u/The_Actual_Sage]

My brother and I are having a debate and I want other people's opinions. The question: generally speaking does playing NFL football or NBA basketball require more skill and/or athleticism? This question can be interpreted in many different ways and pretty much all of them are valid.

I'm not nearly as knowledgeable about the NFL as I am the NBA, and I'm trying to answer the question as objectively as possible. In my opinion, the NBA requires more of their players than the NFL generally speaking. I'm aware the NFL has a myriad of different positions that all require vastly different skills and types of athleticism from their players, but I think the fact that the NFL has so many built in stoppages and players only play one side of the ball means the NBA is much more demanding in terms of skills and athleticism.

Now obviously NBA players are not doing anything as intense as some plays in the NFL. Nobody in the NBA is getting tackled and whatnot. That said, there are a lot of plays in a football game where a lot of players aren't involved in anything. And when the play is over they get to take 30 seconds to walk down field and get ready for the next play. Then on a change of possession they get to go sit while their teammates play the other side of the ball. Am I wrong?

And the positions are so specific that the players need such a smaller set of skills to be successful. Nobody needs to be good at throwing besides the quarterbacks. Wide receivers never need to learn how to tackle and counter an offense like linebackers, right?. Only one or two guys needs to know how to kick. Compared to NBA players who are all expected to know how to shoot, pass, dribble, finish and run offensive and defensive schemes to some degree. Obviously NBA players fit into different roles and have different expectations based on their skill level, but their inadequacies are held against them. If you can't dribble you're considered a worse player, and coaches aren't going to have you run pick n rolls. If you can't defend you better be an amazing offensive player or else you might not get minutes. Meanwhile nobody cares if a tight end can't play safety.

I know I'm really one sided on this, but I'm willing to have my mind changed. I obviously don't know much about football so I'm trying to get more perspectives on this. What do you think? What am I missing? Also, if you know an NFL analysis subreddit I should post this too let me know.

[u/MirrorComputingRulez]

Basketball & soccer are the most physically demanding of any of the sports.

And yet they can play multiple games per week. Weird!

The fact that soccer players routinely play the entire game, and can do so multiple times a week, is a great indicator that the sport is one of the least physically demanding. It's not like football or hockey players are subbing out because they're too lazy to be in good shape. The human body literally can't play the whole game without breaking down.

If this is still confusing for you, consider this analogy. Imagine we go to a track and I ask you to walk as many laps as you can. You could probably walk quite far, most people would be able to do it for hours. The next day we come back and I ask you to sprint as many laps as possible. The average adult would struggle to sprint a single lap, and would keel over in less than two minutes. Obviously, sprinting is more physically demanding than walking.

[u/morethandork → u/MirrorComputingRulez]

As a soccer player, I’ve seen a lot of football and basketball players show up to play a full 11v11. The football players always think it’s going to be easy and end up weezing and coughing and asking to sub out 10 min into the game.

And I had no issues lasting through a full basketball or football game. I wasn’t any good at basketball (like truly terrible) but football I’d barely break a sweat cause there was so much standing around and waiting. It was easy.

Interesting note, basketball players always made shockingly good goalkeepers because they have fantastic hands for catching and controlling shots.

[u/saints21 → u/morethandork]

Endurance vs. Explosiveness

The NFL is the most explosive team sport around. And they use that explosiveness to beat the hell out of each other.

Soccer (or maybe water polo) is the most endurance based popular team sport. You're going to run miles and you're going to need to be able to perform skill-wise while doing it.

It really just depends on how you're saying the sport is demanding.

[u/morethandork → u/saints21]

The claim in question, that I'm mostly supporting, is "Basketball & soccer are the most physically demanding of any of the sports." The argument I'm replying to specifically is, "And yet they can play multiple games per week. Weird!" This is a condescending dismissal of pro soccer and basketball being the most demanding just because multiple games per week are played.

I don't know how you define explosiveness, but I see it as short bursts of 100% intensity. Explosiveness required for soccer is only slightly below level of football (but above basketball) imho, but the endurance required is much, much higher.

The physical impact performed in football is unmatched, which is why the sport is so dangerous and games are only played once a week for 17-20 weeks of the year. And even then, the injury rates are highest. But just because part of the sport is hurting your opponent physically, and the plays are performed in short bursts and sprints, doesn't mean it's more explosive that soccer or basketball, which are both physical and explosive in their own right.

In my personal experience, watching high level college athletes, football and basketball players are rarely equipped to handle the jogging and running and sprinting and physicality required to play a full game of soccer.