Memory lane right there for me. M.U.S.H.A., Thunder Force III and IV (Lightning Force in the U.S.), etc were all on my gaming shelf. I loved that genre and supported it as much as I financially could.

Much like you, I don't have the patience, or the skills, to play those types of games today and get far. I still load them up and play a few rounds for nostalgia sake and am surprised when I see a boss or two before losing my last life. They are great games but man, those "bullet hell" ones are ridiculous in my opinion. I know tons of gamers love them, I am not one of those gamers.

The football game like that that I am most familiar with is this one:

Not sure if that is the one you are talking about but it meets your description. It was primitive but it was fun back then.