A Patriotic Choke

Here are just a few headlines from some of the nations newpapers you may enjoy...

Defeated!!!
Greatness Takes a Beating
Patriots Dream Year left with a Giant Hole
Offense Bruise, Beaten
Don’t Count Your Chickens…
Mr Perfect? It’s Eli Manning
History Derailed
SuperBowl Shatters more than Hearts
9 ways to get over the Patriots
Gag Reflex
18 and Done!
Giants Ruin Pats Perfect Quest
In the End, it was all for naught

Patriots should not have tested Karma. Placing a legal copyright on the term “19-0.” Writing checks their team could not cash. There will be no Hub Parade on Super Tuesday. There will be no commemorative books about “Path to Perfection.” Having the gumption to begin taking pre orders on said book. That’s what they get for arrogantly messing with Karma and testing fate.

In New England the Church bells all are broken.

How sweet the outcome of Superbowl XLII was to Giants and Dolphin fans. Finally we can rest assured for another year that the NFLs only perfect team, the 1972 Miami Dolphins, can relax knowing they are alone in declaring this incredible accomplishment. You have a feeling that this record may go unchallenged much longer than another year. I still think it will be broken one day, but not by the Pats.

Good for the Dolphins. Things worked out pretty good for the historic 72 team. Not only do they remain the only undefeated NFL Team in history, but they gained tremendous exposure this year as a result of the Patriots failed attempt at perfection. Many of the younger NFL fans have now been educated on the 72 Dolphins for probably the first time. Hopefully the 72 alumni will see more cash come their way as a result of this positive exposure over the last four months from book deals, commercials, sponsors, etc. Remember, this 72 team was paid pennies compared to today’s standards, and the NFL retirement package leaves much to be desired.

Good for them. They deserve it.

The New England Patriots coughed up a tremendous fur ball in Superbowl XLII and it was an emotional rollercoaster watching their season go down in flames. All for naught. The Giants punched the Pats squarely in the nose and I have to admit I enjoyed watching the beating.

I was just in plain shock that the Patsies lost this game as the next guy. On Friday I wrote on this site I had thrown in the towel and convinced myself that the Pats would win and I might as well pull for them for many far reaching reasons. I was not excited about this Superbowl matchup. Looking back at my Fridays submission, it now sounds to me as if I was a five year old in a doctors office reacting after a nurse walked in with a handful of needles and I was about to be administered some vaccines. I hated the fact that I was about to get shots, but I was trying to convince myself all of the positive reasons why I should not fight it, and just let the nurse stick me in the ass with four needles(or be happy for the Pats going 19-0 and winning the Superbowl).

I convinced myself I would be the good sport and root for the Patriots. Once the game began however and the Giant beating began, I realized just how hard I was pulling for the Patriots to lose. There was no way possible I could pull for the Patriots. When the Giants ended their 10 minute opening drive with only a field goal, I knew the Patriots would answer with a touchdown, and I suddenly thought about the Chargers/Pats title game two weeks earlier. Here we go again.

Hind sight is 20/20. Too many glorious moments from the game and the two weeks leading up to the game. At least Plaixco Burress had the balls to stand behind his prediction all week that the Giants would win 23-17. I love how the smug Brady appeared insulted that Plaxico had indicated that the Patriots would ONLY score 17 points in this prediction. You could tell it rubbed Brady the wrong way. He commented “…We would only score 17 points??? That’s it? Wow.”

Last weekend, NFL Radio and ESPN both confirmed that a anonymous Patriot player had told a media member in confidence that the Patriots were going to put up a “half a hundred” on the Giants, and The Giants “would not know what hit them.”
Coward. Some may not like players coming out with game predictions but at least Plaxico had the stones to face the music and not hide like this anonymous Patriot player. Suddenly I am a Giants lover.

Now Brady is wishing his team could have scored 17 points. Maybe they would have had it not been for a bonehead coaching decision made by the once great Belichick to not kick a 48 yarder but opted instead of going for it on a 4th and 13.

According to overnight Nielsen figures, the Super Bowl last night was the most watched Super Bowl and the 2nd most watched program in TV history. About 97.5 million people watched. In other words, the whole word saw the Patriots take a beating like they have never had before.

According to the Associated Press, the Giants’ last-minute win trumped the ratings for the 1996 Super Bowl in which Dallas beat Pittsburgh. The game overall fell only to the 1983 finale of “M*A*S*H,” the No. 1 program of all time, which drew 106 million viewers.

Twenty four hours ago, the media was prepared to honor the Pats as the greatest team ever, the greatest franchise ever, the greatest dynasty ever, Belichick the greatest coach ever, and Brady the greatest QB ever. Superbowl was just a formality. But now all of those debate will be held without ever a mention of the Patriots, Belichick and Brady. Forever.

I enjoyed watching Belichick squirm after the game. Two seconds left on the clock, and Belichick runs inside the locker room leaving his team behind. The game was technically not over, one more ball had to be snapped, and although Bill did the right thing by congratulating Coughlin, Belichick left his players hi and dry. If the players are forced to remain on the field to finish the game, then so too should not their leader, their head coach lead by example and stand behind their players? Not the selfish Belichick, he could not get off that field fast enough. You can just tell that this Superbowl will have a tremendous carry over effect that will psychologically impact this once great franchise for years to come and they may never be the same again.

The beginning of the end for the Patriots begins now. Lets hope Parcells can capitalize sooner rather than later.