No one's denying that NFL players train heavily throughout the year. But their games are pretty short on action. Pretty similar to your powerlifter comparison, actually.

What I'm trying to say is that just because you dont see the action, that its not there.

Every football fan knows the average length of a football play is 6 seconds or less. But within those 6 seconds there is soooo much: 1. Offensive - Defensive line play 2. Offiensive coordinator versus the defensive coordinator in play calling, formations... (tactical) 3. The safety verus the quarterback. 4. The corners versus the wideouts. 5. Coach strategy. (strategic) 6. Specific Matchups ... 7. QB versus defensive coordinator.

Its all in there ... You have to be able to see it. I was going to write a document on understanding all this from the position and number of players at the line of scrimmage - ie what they show on TV during the play ... but I've not yet had time :( ...

The thing is in a team sport you can either be long on action and short on strategy or vice versa. The main tradeoff is the amount of communication required between players.

I love American Football more than any sport because of the amount of strategy + the great quality of players that you get over here.