The first football game I remember watching from start to finish was Super Bowl XXIII between the Forty-Niners and Bengals. I remember betting my dad $5 before the game that the Bengals would win, and I remember him not letting me pay him when the Niners came back and did win. Before that, I can remember the second quarter of Super Bowl XXII, and the pep rallys that we had at my elementary school before the Patriots played the Dolphins and Bears in the '85 playoffs.
After Super Bowl XXIII though is when I became what I like to call a "coherent" Patriots fan. Before then, I was a fan because my dad told me to be, but I don't remember much about it. 1989 was when I started remembering things. And boy, those first couple years were not filled with good memories. The Patriots were terrible then. Hart Lee Dykes came and went faster than Haley's comet. Stanley Morgan's career ended. Andre Tippett was in the twilight of his career. Rod Rust was prominently involved. My church had a banquet for Dick Macpherson, and when I met him I wasn't as impressed as I thought I'd be. And the Patriots only won 14 games over a four year span, and average of less than four wins per season.
Then in 1993 Bill Parcells became our new head coach and the team made the fortunate decision of drafting Drew Bledsoe instead of Rick Mirer with the #1 pick. Since that time, the Pats have had 12 .500 or better seasons in 15. Two of the losing seasons came in Parcells and Bill Belichick's first seasons as coach, when they essentially gutted the team so they could reshape them how they wanted. In those 12 .500 or better seasons, the team made the Super Bowl almost half the time - five times in 12 years. And in those five Super Bowls they won over half the time, winning three of five.
All of this is to say, what exactly do I have to complain about? Am I disappointed the Pats lost last night? Hell ya! But upset, pissed, peaved, distraught? No, not really. I could be a Detroit Lions fan, or an Arizona Cardinals fan, or a Buffalo Bills fan. But I'm not. I'm a Patriots fan, and if I'm going to be upset that my team just finished 18-1, well then I'd basically be a spoiled little b**ch. 18 wins is four more than the Pats won in that famous four year span from 1989-1992, and I thank them for giving me a great season. The Giants deserved to win and the Pats deserved to lose. Yes, if they played nine more times the Patriots would probably win at least eight of those times, but that's quite irrelevant. In football you only get one shot, so as Eminem would say you can't miss your chance to blow. Last night the Patriots missed that chance, but that doesn't mean I'm going to stop being proud of my squad.
Now let's resign Asante, make some good picks in the draft, get Rosey healthy and get back to winning in 2008. Meanwhile, we're less than nine full days away from pitchers and catchers reporting. Let's get it on!
After Super Bowl XXIII though is when I became what I like to call a "coherent" Patriots fan. Before then, I was a fan because my dad told me to be, but I don't remember much about it. 1989 was when I started remembering things. And boy, those first couple years were not filled with good memories. The Patriots were terrible then. Hart Lee Dykes came and went faster than Haley's comet. Stanley Morgan's career ended. Andre Tippett was in the twilight of his career. Rod Rust was prominently involved. My church had a banquet for Dick Macpherson, and when I met him I wasn't as impressed as I thought I'd be. And the Patriots only won 14 games over a four year span, and average of less than four wins per season.
Then in 1993 Bill Parcells became our new head coach and the team made the fortunate decision of drafting Drew Bledsoe instead of Rick Mirer with the #1 pick. Since that time, the Pats have had 12 .500 or better seasons in 15. Two of the losing seasons came in Parcells and Bill Belichick's first seasons as coach, when they essentially gutted the team so they could reshape them how they wanted. In those 12 .500 or better seasons, the team made the Super Bowl almost half the time - five times in 12 years. And in those five Super Bowls they won over half the time, winning three of five.
All of this is to say, what exactly do I have to complain about? Am I disappointed the Pats lost last night? Hell ya! But upset, pissed, peaved, distraught? No, not really. I could be a Detroit Lions fan, or an Arizona Cardinals fan, or a Buffalo Bills fan. But I'm not. I'm a Patriots fan, and if I'm going to be upset that my team just finished 18-1, well then I'd basically be a spoiled little b**ch. 18 wins is four more than the Pats won in that famous four year span from 1989-1992, and I thank them for giving me a great season. The Giants deserved to win and the Pats deserved to lose. Yes, if they played nine more times the Patriots would probably win at least eight of those times, but that's quite irrelevant. In football you only get one shot, so as Eminem would say you can't miss your chance to blow. Last night the Patriots missed that chance, but that doesn't mean I'm going to stop being proud of my squad.
Now let's resign Asante, make some good picks in the draft, get Rosey healthy and get back to winning in 2008. Meanwhile, we're less than nine full days away from pitchers and catchers reporting. Let's get it on!