I Still Believe
It is a somber day in New England today. I'm sure I don't need to get into why as even the non-football fans are well aware of the outcome of yesterday's game. I am also quite sure that my disappointment is minuscule compared to what the Patriots themselves must be feeling today. We tell our children who play sports that it's not who wins or loses that matters, only how the game is played. We say it as much to make them feel better about a loss as we do to hopefully teach them a little about good sportsmanship. It is a lesson these seasoned athletes are well beyond.
The loss yesterday, heartbreaking as it is for New England, should not diminish what this team is all about. I've said it before, I dare say it again; this is a team that has made it hard to ignore their mark on the NFL. To say only the Super Bowl win would make their accomplishments matter is just not entirely true. Perhaps Don Shula and some of his boys are celebrating today having held on to their undefeated record, but the Patriot 2007 season is not something that should be ignored.
Patriot haters of course will say the biggest mark this team has left is in tarnishing the NFL with the Spygate thing. The Patriots are scapegoats in that regard, they were made an example. I'm not saying breaking the rules is okay since everyone else does it, but for them to be crucified and vilified as they have been in the media and blog-land because they happened to be the ones who got caught doing what is a widespread practice, is the truest form of scapegoating. A commercial that ran during the Super Bowl illustrated perfectly how most teams know full well there is spying going on throughout the league and coaches cover up their mouths when talking on the sidelines and some even hold towels up to block out even more from spying eyes. Let's just let it go already. Bill and the team have paid the price and to continue crying foul is showing your unsportsmenlike behavior (Mr. Senator from Pennsylvania).
A young lady was recently booed in Indianapolis and became a celebrity because of it. New England fans responded by honoring her a week later. We collectively stated how Indianapolis fans were rotten to the core for behaving in such a manner, but really, isn't booing an opposing team as they come out onto the field just as unsportsmanlike. Fans are fans the world over, and most act with a single-minded, feverish mentality that should just be ignored.
But I am meandering off the path I started on. I still believe in this New England team. I still believe that as long as Tom and Bill and Mr. Kraft are in New England, this will be a team that nobody can call a "sorry sack franchise" anymore. This will be a team that will always be compared to the other franchises we all like to discuss and compare (Cowboys, Steelers, 49ers...). They have made their mark, like it or not. Comments about Tom getting "shoved down our throats" may make some feel better, but the truth is that Tom doesn't get shoved down our throats nearly as much as other past and present quarterbacks (one more commercial with a Manning in it declaring how truly spectacular they are and I swear I will toss my TV right out the window), and those doing the shoving are the same media moguls who would crucify him too. You won't find Tom talking about how great he is, and even Bill keeps his comments for the most part to "I like having him on my roster".
For me this was a season I will never forget. Being in the stadium for some of these games; seeing Bruschi running up and down the side line in jubilation, watching Tom act like a little boy when he got to meet the Red Sox players and touch the World Series trophy at the Miami game, feeling and being a part of the electricity during all the games; they are all moments I won't forget. Being a fan of a team that knows it's a team, knows each game is as important as the last or next, knows that the only way to stand proud is to put forth your best effort and who never, ever trashes another team in the public forum, will keep me coming back for more. I too will drink Bill Belichick's kool aid.
This team has sparked an interest that reached well beyond the typical NFL fan and that just can't be ignored.
Smug??
Complacent? I didn't read Belichick's demeanor as contented or self-satisfied at Sunday's game. He seemed rather disappointed and agitated, but hardly contented. Unless you mean smug in the self-righteous way, but then I really don't think anyone would perceive him as being pious or moralistic, even Bill himself.
I suppose deep disappointment on national TV in front of millions of people is something I really can't speak to having not been there myself. I have certainly seen greater men then Bill carry themselves far worse (ie: screaming at the players) and far better. I don't find the man to have a soft and cuddly personality in the public forum, but that doesn't necessarily make him a sore loser, he acts the same way when he wins too. I also don't think that he or anyone else in the NFL or in life in general is perfect. I like that he and Tom are human, with human faults and conditions.
I've stated before in this forum that I am not one to even watch all the hoopla and media hype, I've even been known to turn off the sound on the TV during a game so I don't have to listen to some of the announcers who make their preferences blatantly obvious. I just like watching a great, skillfully played football game, and Sunday I watched a Giants team that played a far more skilled game then the Patriots.
Does one loss make or break a team? I suppose a lot of people would like to say it does, I personally think the Patriots have raised the bar this season and it's great to see that the teams they played in the last half of the season, rose to the challenge. I hunger for more such challenges. I like football, not media hype, but obviously I am in the minority.
By the way, thank you for taking the time to sign up just to respond. Thank you also for feeling passionate enough about football to do so, that is the true power of a fan.
I agree
Terri,
I agree with your opinions wholeheartedly here. The Patriots and Bill have proved themselves well. One of our counterparts on a Patriots group I'm on thinks Bill acted "badly" when he walked off the field during Manning's final 1 second kneel down in which nothing was going to happen. The game was already over, and the clock was at 00:00 when Bill (and everyone else) went out on the field to congratulate the Giants.
Compared to the way other coaches and Quarterbacks present themselves, our team in a class act. Just listen to one more Manning speech of how they worked so hard to get where they are.. it turns my stomach. There's no "I" in team. I've never seen Brady or Belichik give "themselves" credit for anything.. They always appreciate the combined team in any victory, or loss. Smug, or pompous, or complacent? No way. Never. Of course they are not perfect, but they're pretty darn good.
the eye of the beholder
People get so caught up in the emotions of a game that they only hear and see what they want. When I hear people trashing the Patriots, I usually just shrug and take it for what it's worth. I remember how much I despised the Cowboys and how hearing them called "America's Team" made my stomach turn (still does). I understand not liking another team, or particular characters involved, I can even understand why people don't like Bilichick and take any opportunity to trash him. He doesn't act like other coaches, he's not animated and entertaining. He's dull and methodical and hates dealing with the media, the source so many fans turn to in order to base their decisions on the character of a person. There are plenty of coaches and players I haven't liked over the years who have ended up in the history books and Hall of Fame and have garnered the love and respect of many other fans. So let the mud fly off field, it's what happens on the field that matters most and the Bilichick/Brady pairing will have it's place in NFL history.
Terri-I don't know if you were watching the same game as me, but I saw a smug Bill Bellichick and Tom Brady afterward. Bill is a sore loser, always has been always will be.