What is a Patriots fan to do after seeing the 19-0 dream turn into the 18-1 disappointment? I will say this, that Super Bowl was one of the finest played by either side in quite some time. This game was football the way it was meant to be played – relentless and tough. Both defenses really brought the lumber with them on every single hit, and the game was a joy to watch as a fan of the game. It has taken me almost this entire week to try and let it all sink in. I’ve watched the game three times now on my DVR, and a few things are sinking in.
- The Patriots offense isn’t as unstoppable as we thought
- The Giants aren’t a “Turd Sandwich” (compliments to Double C) of a Super Bowl team
- Much like a No-Hitter, a perfect season should never be mentioned by any serious fan of an undefeated team until the final second of the final game is over
Why did the Patriots lose?
As Money Mike perfectly documented, the front four of the New York Giants was nearly unblockable. The trio of Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, and Justin Tuck brought pressure from every conceivable angle. The delayed blitzes of Steve Spaganuolo had what many to believe to be the best offensive line in the National Football League look simply pedestrian. “Spags” (That’s what I’m calling him. When a man rapes your hopes of rooting for the greatest season in team sport history, you are allowed to give them a pet name) had Tom Brady spending more time on his back more than Jamie- Lynn Spears. The Giants pass rush was an absolute terror. The bottom line in this is that the Giants just played a better game of football than the Patriots did.
Where do the Patriots go from here?
The big question will be, “Do we sign Randy Moss to stay with the team?” Knowing how Robert Kraft and the rest of the Patriots front office squeeze money, the answer will probably be a negative. I think this is absolutely foolish. Donte’ Stallworth will probably go somewhere and get overpaid, leaving Wes Welker as the only viable first option in the passing game. Welker is a fantastic receiver, and is one of my favorite players in the game, but he is not, nor will he ever be a true number one receiver. He is the perfect compliment to a Randy Moss, a Terrell Owens, or even a Chad Johnson. Welker is almost impossible to take down in the open field one on one, but he will hardly ever get those scenarios if he doesn’t have a true down field threat taking some of the pressure off of him. If this Patriots team does not re-sign Randy Moss, the offense will collapse like it did the year before.
The Patriots also need to inject some new blood in the linebacking corps. The crew is still solid, but they were exposed over the playoffs as the old men that they are. In football, age isn’t kind. What they lack in speed and athleticism, they more than make up for in savvy and knowledge, but it’s just not cutting it anymore. They are in desperate need of that dynamic outside linebacker that can cut off one side of the field to prevent big plays on screens and stretch/cutback plays.
The legacy of “Spygate”
Much like MoneyMike, I detest the word “Spygate”. I hate how the media (and therefore I hate myself) uses “gate” to lump every type of pseudo-scandal together. If this Matt Walsh guy has anything substantial, he will just confirm what everyone else already thinks, that the Patriots are a bunch of cheaters. I will tell you this though; I guarantee at least half the teams in the NFL do the exact same thing that the Patriots are getting crucified for. The difference is, the Patriots got caught AND the Patriots are the most successful team of this generation. Much like how everyone vilifies the Yankees and Red Sox, the Patriots are going through the same jealousy/hatred cycle.
What did this season feel like as a Patriots fan?
I’ve slept on this and come up with the conclusion that the only realistic movie comparison for me is “The Running Man” with the immortal Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Internet Movie Database’s plot outline for this movie is, “A wrongly-convicted man must try to survive a public execution gauntlet staged as a TV game show.” Somehow this seems fitting to me. While I will not say that we are “wrongly convicted” because Belichick’s fingerprints are on the smoking camera; I will say that this is being blown way out of proportion by the rest of the media. Everyone loves a scandal, and everyone loves a scandal that happens to a winner. It’s the perfect storm of the instant news age and the fact that a good scandal always gets everyone fired up. As Schwarzenegger is being sent to this underground game show of death, he looks at the host of the show and says, “I’ll be back” which Damon Killian responds with a cryptic “Only in the re-runs.” After that first Jets game when the story broke, that’s how it felt. Like Richards the Patriots just turned into “fuck you” mode from there on out.
Much like Ben Richard’s (Schwarzenegger’s character) struggle for survival, the Patriots survived the regular season by putting a huge chip on their shoulder and fighting for their lives. Also like Richards, the Patriots started to pick up steam as the season went along and fans had to be impressed by how dominant this team was, destroying every opponent in their respective paths. As we got past the mid-season mark, fans of the game were now openly rooting for the Patriots to finish the season undefeated, “Spygate” seemed like a distant memory, and America was ready for a Patriots Super Bowl win and the undefeated season to be capped off with a thumping of the hapless Giants. Then this whole Matt Walsh thing came about and blew it all up again. America, the fickle woman of intrigue that it is once again started hating the Patriots and the Giants became the sheik pick.
In the movie, Richards finishes defeating everyone in his path and takes out the controversial host of the show, played by the wildly underrated Richard Dawson (his hosting of Family Feud shattered the unintentional comedy scale), and overthrows the barbaric game show and everyone lives happily after.
Now, all I’m left with is the 18-0 start and the 18-1 nightmare. Can I ever be happy about this season? As Killian said, “Only in the re-runs.”