BradyManny

I was thinking about the Pats 01 season the other day. I was a senior in HS at the time, and growing up locally, the school was abuzz with Pats and Brady fever that winter. (Ironically, I'd been a Bledsoe homer and took some time to convert to Brady, LOL ) It was an excitign time, and it was one of - if not the - most amazing seasons I've ever participated in as a fan of sports.

Anyway, going into the AFCCG v the Steelers, most of us were quietly confident that the Patriots could knock off the Rams if it came to that. But at some point, some dissenting voice brought up the idea that maybe they couldn't, that maybe the Rams couldn't be beat anyway. I can vividly remember saying in response to that something to the effect of "I don't care anyway, I just want them to win [the AFCCG] so I can watch them play one more week." The point was, that 01 season was a fun, carefree ride. Each week was guaranteed excitement, and seeing ourselves as overachieving underdogs, you felt like there was nothing to lose. More than anything, I simply wanted them to beat the Steelers for the sake of extending their season so that I could enjoy said season for one more week.

Contrast that to this season. Super Bowl Sunday, I called up a couple of these buddies from high school in the hours before the game. During the conversations with one of them, I said something to the effect of "I just want to win and get it over with." It wasn't the first time in the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl I'd uttered such a sentiment, but it struck me at the time as I was talking with someone who I'd enjoyed the 01 season with how different it was rooting for this team last year. I just wanted the season to end, the pursuit of perfection had become such a burden.

Don't get me wrong, last season, for 3+ hours every week, we were privileged to the best season of football any fan could ask for. But in between game days, and particularly at the end of the season, it was not a fun carefree ride by any stretch. It felt more like a laborious and taxing perfunctory ride to inevitable victory that would bring contentment and relief rather than euphoria. Ironically, we never got that, and I wish I had just ignored all the spygate BS, all the perfect season crap, all the other distractions, and spent more time enjoying the season for what it was - one of the best played regular seasons in the history of sports.

Bottom line, I'm vowing to not let the BS in the media or anything else re: this team get to me next year. I'm just going to enjoy the games, and block out all the other noise. I encourage others to follow, b/c it's not worth it otherwise.

KontradictioN

Good thread.

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Ownagedood

Ya, good post. I see your point.. It's like that as a Colts fan every now and then as well.. But most of the time you guys have most of the spotlight so it's not as bad, we still get to fight as "under dogs" while we are yet one of the best in the league.

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BelichickFan

We needed to win the SB. Then we'd have done everything we could ever hope for and I could sit back and enjoy. As it stands, we won 3 SB in Brady's first 5 years and have yet to win another - while that is still GREAT, we really need to win one more before Brady retires so the pressure is still on for me.

KontradictioN

Actually, the Pats just got a lot more publicity last year because of the perfect regular season. Had the Pats lost a couple of times, the conversation would again be on the Colts. In 2006 and 2007, football conversation on ESPN was dominated by the Colts.

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AndyJohnson

I guess Im just different because none of that crap bothered me at all.
To me the season is about 3-3 1/2 each Sunday, for 16 games, and each additional playoff game. What happens between the lines on the field is 95% of all that matters, with the other 5% being what I find to be excellent entertainment value in post game press conferences and recap shows, as well as all the media comments, which I simply gauge as 'lets see how far off the 'experts' are and how many moronic things they can say'.

2007 was the same as 2001 to me, with the exception of being a better ride (5 games worth of better at 16-0 vs 11-5) and the ultimate ending.

I was absolustely shocked by the SB, but I never felt it was a birthright, and winning would be relief, or losing any different than any other year.
Quite frankly, I took the AFCC game loss the year before harder, because there was nothing to grab onto. We lost to the Colts, we blew a lead, they won the SB, we were not the dominant team in the reg season, in fact didnt even earn a bye. This year there was a lot more to grab onto. The best reg season ever, a Patriot team that for the next season, as of 2/10 looked better going forward than any ever had at that juncture, and a real confidence of getting back and avenging the loss.

I never felt the 'get this over' feeling, or the fact that not finishing the job this year would be any different than not finishing it under any other circumstances.
The only difference in this season to others (other than destroying the myth in my mind that no team could ever beat a BB team in a SB) was that during the season, the games were different, i.e. it wasn't watching a game with winning or losing at stake, but in many games, just how big were we going to win. In an awful lot of games by the 2nd half, the result was determined, and the watching was kind of going thorugh the motions.

Patjew

I like your idea, but I don't think I'm going to be able to do it. I'm all about redemption in 2008.

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ne5patsfan4

same here i want to just enjoy it but damn i want that last win!! haha

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bbabin

I agree very much with this post. Even looking back at last season, though, I will remember it in good terms. Of course I was upset when the Pats lost (quite devastated really), but considering the season as a whole: it was remarkable.

cincipatsfan

Agree also, but by redemption do you mean another run at a perfect season, or a superbowl?

I'll take the latter, with the former being nice icing on the cake, but not something I'd attach to the season being a success.

The pressure towards the end did suck and it's definitely different when you're expected to win vs being an underdog.

All that said, despite the outcome, it was an amazing season on a lot of levels.

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