WRITING QUICK ABOUT A SPORTS QUANDARY: As most of you know, I've grown to love NASCAR over the past three years, due largely to my involvement in a "fantasy" league that began as a joke and has turned pretty serious. All the "owners" in our league started out as NASCAR doubters -- heck, we thought it was funny to be in a fantasy NASCAR league, something we could tell our friends at parties to raise an eyebrow -- but now that we've all learned the tracks, teams, and drivers, it's a whole different ballgame, so to speak. We love it.

While flipping back and forth between the race and the football yesterday, I quickly grasped how NASCAR and football have become the top two TV sports by a long shot, and the only ones that seem to speak to the younger generation today. In a word: passion.

As Robby Gordon jumped out of his wrecked car and flung his helmet at Michael Waltrip...as Kurth Busch scaled the tower of Scott Rigg's crew chief after a crash, looking for an explanation...as Tony Stewart blew off the cameras after Ryan Newman passed him with two laps to go to claim the victory...you just couldn't miss how much it mattered to them. They friggin' cared.

After enough time spent courtside at NBA games and bleacherside at baseball games, you figure out there's a big difference between playoffs and the regular season in those sports. On any given night a basketball or baseball player may phone it in. Not so for football players and NASCAR drivers. Their livelihoods, if not their lives, are up for grabs every week. To invoke an old song, they care a lot. As well they should...

On a related note, I've also been a pretty big boxing fan over the years, and I've seen quite a few fights live, on TV, pay-per-view, etc. But I'm feeling more and more queasy about it of late. As yet another fighter faces serious consequences after a fight, I'm not sure how much more boxing I can stomach.

Meanwhile, as I grow more in love with friggin' auto racing, I'm wondering how responsible it is for me to love sports that can easily kill you, or at least knock you out. Thoughts?