pats1

After my masochistic side won out and I re-watched some parts of The Game That Shalt Not Be Named, there was one comment that stuck out to me by an unabashedly dejected Jimmie Johnson (remember, he is a FOB (Friend Of Bill) who has attended his Super Bowl practices and defended him after Spygate) during the post game show when Curt Menefee asked Jimmie if he had ever experienced such a disappointment, one which Belichick "described" to Chris Myers just before:

"Well, everything's relative. I know it's on the collegiate level, but back when I thought I had the best college football team that ever played ('86 Hurricanes) the game and went undefeated through the regular season and was upset by Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl, I was devastated - never, ever got over it - but, one positive thing, just for the Patriots, the next year we came back undefeated again and won the National Championship, and so there is redemption, but I don't know if he'll ever get over this loss."

Just a thought to consider for 2008.

N.B.: One other thing I couldn't help but notice was how totally irrelevant the first 3 1/2 quarters of the game felt when watching them again. Sure, a better performance during that time would have benefited the Pats. However, the game still came down to three drives: the Patriots' scoring drive to Moss, the Giants' scoring drive to Burress, and the Patriots' failed last-ditch attempt.

This is something I experience many times during games themselves too, especially this last one. Unlike the game thread where our members live and die with every play, I'm laid back and calm through 90% of the game, no matter if the Pats are up by 52 (see Redskins) or down by a few (Ravens). Undefeated or not, there was this overriding feeling that the Pats would pull through - and they usually did. Come Super Bowl XLII, I was casually watching Brady get sacked and throw incompletions, and even did a mock cheer for a Giants touchdown. That part of the game just had no relevance.

Yet, when I finally looked up at the game clock in the fourth quarter, seeing there was only 6:00 left as the Pats drove down 10-7, the nervous attention and pacing began. The newfound 14-7 lead with 2-something left served only as a reconfirmation that the Patriots were in the drivers seat and would once again prevail. As you would imagine, this entire feeling came crashing down I saw see the ball floating into Burress' hands against a backdrop of Joe Buck's "WIDE OPEN IN THE ENDZONE...TOUCHDOWN GIANTS!!!" and a raucous, predominantly "sick-of-the-Patriots" crowd going crazy. Standing, hands on my knees, I twirled around and let out a growl as the desperate reality of the situation (vaguely present as Manning drove downfield) came rushing in like a tsunami. I found myself saying the same things I had a little more than a year before - "they have some timeouts (3), and Brady. Just watch." Still, even before Brady heaved up his fourth-down toss, I knew it was over.

BadMoFo

How sweet would this offseason have been sporting that 19-0 tag? I also wonder how would we have gone into next season, obviously we couldn't top an accomplishment like 19-0.

alvinnf

19 and 0, ends all arguments
18 and 1, is a punchline
simple as that.

BadMoFo

Thanks for whatever that was.

patsfaninpa

I'm a PSU fan. You know what's funny about that game. It actually hurt PSU in the long term too. I feel it made the staff think they could win by playing conservatively. Miami kicked their butts up and down the field. Fortunately for us(PSU), and unfortunately for them. Vinny played like a drunken sailor, handing PSU the game. JJ should have recognized how poorly Vinny was playing and ran more. He had Highsmith and Bratton. They could have won a conservative game about 16-7. He tried to kill PSU and it didn't work.

I hate it when Tom Bradley PSU def. coordinator keeps bringing that game up. He shows it to the team before big games. The defense caused turnovers, but Miami was able to move the ball all night. He still plays a soft zone and expects his db's to make turnovers. Athletes have gotten better over the years. Wr's and db's. You can't let them catch the ball and run. You have to attack the qb.

alvinnf

sorry i'm off my meds, you were being optimistic...

ctpatsfan77

No, 18-1 is a disappointment. 16-1 is a punchline.

__________________
"Momentum was quickly snatched away by New England, who once again proved that any Patriot, at any moment, can make a play." —Inside the NFL, Packers v. Patriots

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BadMoFo

Sorry, they are both punchlines. 18-1, 17-1, 16-1, all of them.

alvinnf

I am confused, neither is acceptable, but exactly how is 16 and one better. Is it along the lines of it is better to have loved and lost , then to have never loved at all... just wondering.

alvinnf

The point is you'll never get over this game, ever. It will always be thier, but like bad medicine let's hope we choke it down with a couple more rings..