The NFL is one of the most popular sports leagues in America, with millions continuing to tune in and watch the games that are played between September and February each and every year.
Indeed, the sport has continued to grow in popularity over the last couple of decades, with fanbases in countries such as the United Kingdom and Germany within Europe experiencing a huge amount of growth as passion for the game increases, despite the fact that watching matches can be rather hard due to the time differences experienced.
Nonetheless, the NFL has also been extremely popular for a number of Hollywood movie directors, with a many films having been influenced by American football and all that the sport has to offer. Indeed, it would not be a surprise if a movie was to be made in the future that is produced detailing the story of the Super Bowl winner this season. According to an Arizona sports betting platform, that could be the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+475), the Kansas City Chiefs (+600), the Green Bay Packers (+650) or the New England Patriots (+650) with each of these four teams hitting fine form as the regular season approaches its conclusion.
However, what are some of the best sports movies about the NFL to have been produced? Whilst the list is obviously going to be extremely subjective, some of those outlined below would have to be considered strong contenders on anyone’s list. With the film about legendary coach John Madden not set to come out until Christmas Day 2021 and one that could be a huge success, we have to make do with those that have already been released.
The Blind Side
The Blind Side was a 2009 movie that had taken inspiration from the true story of Michael Oher and had been adapted from the 2006 book that had the title: The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game which was written by Michael Lewis.
Oher is a former American football offensive lineman who had an eight-year career within the NFL playing mostly for the Baltimore Ravens, whilst spells also saw him play for the Tennessee Titans and the Carolina Panthers before retiring in 2016.
The film is based on his story as he managed to overcome an impoverished upbringing with the help of his adoptive parents, Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy, with the latter being played by Sandra Bullock.
It is widely believed that this is one of the all-time best sports movies to have ever been based on the NFL and it would be hard to dispute that idea with the number of awards that Bullock had managed to obtain. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role.
The Longest Yard
Although Burt Reynolds was the first to do it in the original, those who wanted to enjoy a comedic film that featured American football would have enjoyed the Adam Sandler remake of The Longest Yard.
Sandler played Paul Crewe, who is a former NFL quarterback that fell short of the law due to being caught for joyriding after crashing his girlfriend’s car. Due to his talent on the gridiron and his reputation, the prison warden quickly plots a plan to encourage Crewe to lead a team to try and boost his own profile as the State Governor elections are coming up.
The Waterboy
Sandler has a reputation for taking on sports-inspired movies, and perhaps one of his most prominent roles was in the film The Waterboy, where he played a character that was socially disadvantaged.
Released in 1998, Robert “Bobby” Boucher Jr, was a 31-year-old who continued to have a problem with a stutter that was serving as the waterboy for the University of Louisiana program.
The film is a feel-good story that uses the sport of American football to tell the tale, as Sandler’s character shows that he can overcome the bullying that he suffered throughout life. He did this by landing a huge tackle on the team’s quarterback which knocked the player out cold. After his coach witnesses this, he urges him to play as a linebacker for the team, which helps to turn Boucher Jr’s life around.