Tailgating, Sacks, and Salary Caps, by Mark Yost

Tailgating Sacks and Salary Caps, by Mark Yost, is a book detailing the history of the NFL. I’ll say this now, if you aren’t an NFL nut, you probably won’t be picking this book up; if you are, however, it is a very good read. As I am an NFL nutcase, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Tailgating, Sacks, and Salary Caps was written right after the 2006 Collective Bargaining Agreement discussions between the NFL, the team owners, and the NFL Players Association. For some back-story, the 2006 CBA meetings were some of the most important meetings in the history of the league. Had the meetings gone poorly, there could have been an uncapped football season, or even worse, a work stoppage because of a players’ strike. I don’t know about anyone else, but a year without the NFL isn’t a year I want to think about.

Anyway, as I said, the book was written after those meetings (which obviously went well as there was no work stoppage), and therefore detailed a good deal of the meetings, but also a great deal of the NFL’s history. In the book, Yost explains history of many of the teams, the merger between the NFL and the American Football League (which are now know as the National Football Conference and the American Football Conference), as well as the NFL’s history with and importance to television.

Perhaps to me, the most interesting aspect of the book is the chapters that detail the league’s financial make-up. Even as a diehard NFL junkie, I still find myself lost in issues with the league’s salary cap. While the book doesn’t make everything perfectly clear (I doubt the lawyers who work within the cap are “experts” on it), it does go a long way towards demystifying it. It also details the business side of NFL stadiums, an area of business that now fascinates me that I never really thought about before.

I have to say, I really enjoyed this book. Does that mean it is for everyone? No, it doesn’t, and no, it isn’t for everyone. If you love football, you will like this book. If you don’t, well, you’ll probably get bored with it. As I’ve stated, I love the NFL, ergo I love this book. For all of you NFL junkies, pick up Tailgating, Sacks, and Salary Caps now; just don’t expect your girlfriend to want to read it as well.

5/5 (NFL Fans)