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CLICK HERE to Register for a free account and login for a smoother ad-free experience. It's easy, and only takes a few moments.Some Patriots critics still scoff at their success because of the Spygate scandal, one of the biggest NFL stories of the decade. Belichick was turned in for illegally videotaping opponents' defensive signals. The NFL fined him and stripped the Patriots of a first-round draft pick.
But ESPN analyst Herm Edwards, the former New York Jets and Kansas City Chiefs coach, laughs at the overblown notion.
"If you're naïve to believe that helped him win a Super Bowl, you're kidding yourself. I don't believe that," said Edwards, who on one of the tapes submitted into evidence could be seen waving to the Patriots' cameras.
All I can think is that the ESPN website must have been hacked and that this article will be taken down in a couple of hours and that ESPN will announce its real winners, Tony Dungy, Peyton Manning and a tossup between the Colts and Steelers for best team. It'll happen any minute now. Checking the site as we speak.
:singing:
No, it's a lot simpler than that. ESPN is simply a division of a company trying to maximize profits in a nevr ending attempt to appease corporate headquarters. Reality is they don't love or hate any team or player - they love the stories that generate ratings and hate the stories that don't. And as we've seen on television and newspapers throughout our entire lives, "good" stories don't sell, but "bad" stories do.All I can think is that the ESPN website must have been hacked and that this article will be taken down in a couple of hours and that ESPN will announce its real winners, Tony Dungy, Peyton Manning and a tossup between the Colts and Steelers for best team. It'll happen any minute now. Checking the site as we speak.
:singing:
No, it's a lot simpler than that. ESPN is simply a division of a company trying to maximize profits in a nevr ending attempt to appease corporate headquarters. Reality is they don't love or hate any team or player - they love the stories that generate ratings and hate the stories that don't. And as we've seen on television and newspapers throughout our entire lives, "good" stories don't sell, but "bad" stories do.
The public loves the underdog (see SB 36), but win more than once and you're the big bad bully. Outside of New England NFL fans were already saying "I'm sick and tired of the Patriots winning all the time" before SB 38 had taken place. The bad guy has to win his battles to be feared and loathed; who's afraid or despises a 7-9 team? Traditional villains Oakland and Dallas were in need of replacement. ESPN seized on that, along with BB's emotionless press conferences, and they had their new villain.
Now to make the bad guy seem even more despicable, ESPN needed the good guy in the white hat to contrast the image. The logical choice was the second best team in the conference, the Colts. Enter Saint Dungy and "aw, shucks" Peyton Manning and the Colts, with their fan base right out of a Norman Rockwell painting and their middle American values in contrast to the "big market" Boston area and you have all the sterotypes of a pro wrestling match.
After that all they have to do is print a story about the villain - it doesn't matter if it was positive or negative - and fans of the 31 other teams react like the towns folk in Frankenstein, with their pitchforks and torches ready to burn the monster. On one hand it's laughable as to how easily the audience is led, but at the same time it's also sad and scary that the public buys in to these portrayals so quickly and easily.
Bottom line is that ESPN doesn't hate the Pats. They love them because all they have to do is mention the Pats, and they get a ton of hits to their web site, which results in more profits. Just get used to it, because as long as the Pats are competitive, it's not going to change.
No, it's a lot simpler than that. ESPN is simply a division of a company trying to maximize profits in a nevr ending attempt to appease corporate headquarters. Reality is they don't love or hate any team or player - they love the stories that generate ratings and hate the stories that don't. And as we've seen on television and newspapers throughout our entire lives, "good" stories don't sell, but "bad" stories do.
The public loves the underdog (see SB 36), but win more than once and you're the big bad bully. Outside of New England NFL fans were already saying "I'm sick and tired of the Patriots winning all the time" before SB 38 had taken place. The bad guy has to win his battles to be feared and loathed; who's afraid or despises a 7-9 team? Traditional villains Oakland and Dallas were in need of replacement. ESPN seized on that, along with BB's emotionless press conferences, and they had their new villain.
Now to make the bad guy seem even more despicable, ESPN needed the good guy in the white hat to contrast the image. The logical choice was the second best team in the conference, the Colts. Enter Saint Dungy and "aw, shucks" Peyton Manning and the Colts, with their fan base right out of a Norman Rockwell painting and their middle American values in contrast to the "big market" Boston area and you have all the sterotypes of a pro wrestling match.
After that all they have to do is print a story about the villain - it doesn't matter if it was positive or negative - and fans of the 31 other teams react like the towns folk in Frankenstein, with their pitchforks and torches ready to burn the monster. On one hand it's laughable as to how easily the audience is led, but at the same time it's also sad and scary that the public buys in to these portrayals so quickly and easily.
Bottom line is that ESPN doesn't hate the Pats. They love them because all they have to do is mention the Pats, and they get a ton of hits to their web site, which results in more profits. Just get used to it, because as long as the Pats are competitive, it's not going to change.
The honors were bestowed with consultation from NFL general managers, coaches, scouts and players
I absolutely agree with your characterization about espn and that story. It was rather disappointing that almost nobody else called them out. The witch hunt mentality grew so large and so quickly that anybody in the media with a dissenting opinion was, ironically, labeled as being biased and untruthful. Others soon saw there was more benefit (i.e., more web traffic and increased ratings) by following their lead with similar stories.yada yada yada...i like my explanation better...
but, seriously, i do think that ESPN of all the national sports platforms was the most distorted and biased in its treatment of the pats during spygate.
After that all they have to do is print a story about the villain - it doesn't matter if it was positive or negative - and fans of the 31 other teams react like the towns folk in Frankenstein, with their pitchforks and torches ready to burn the monster.
Bottom line is that ESPN doesn't hate the Pats. They love them because all they have to do is mention the Pats, and they get a ton of hits to their web site, which results in more profits. Just get used to it, because as long as the Pats are competitive, it's not going to change.
And the accolades just keep coming. Sometimes even I can't believe the ride this had been. Anyone who lived through the misery years (pre-2001) should be soaking this up and basking in this franchise. Those of you who weren't around for the misery years . . . well, I guess I'll allow you to enjoy it just this once. Seriously, we should all be proud of this team. Bill Belichick is the greatest football mind that I've seen in my time of watching football, and he's done a masterful job with this franchise.
After that all they have to do is print a story about the villain - it doesn't matter if it was positive or negative - and fans of the 31 other teams react like the towns folk in Frankenstein, with their pitchforks and torches ready to burn the monster.