Super bowl chances don't grow on trees....

[stcjones]

I don't know which one of those idiots on ESPN radio made this comment......Maybe Golic.....Maybe The other skinny little puke Mike......but one of them made a comment about New Rngland talking about their not taking advantage of their super bowl chance this year, or their AFC playoff game against Indy where if we had won....there is a very good chance we would have beaten Chicago (who we had beaten earlier in yr) in last years SB.

I know this is coulda/woulda/shoulda crap....However, I get their point.

Super Bowl appearances are not guaranteed obviously, even though we as Pats fans have become accustomed to being there or close every year......But in reality, making it to the final TWO teams in any given year.....IS DAMNED hard......and in reality, IT MAY BE a long time before we get back there again. I know everyone is saying that the Pats still have the nucleus to go back and be there again......But we will be losing several players in key positions this year......It will all depend heavily on how fast the "new recruits" (FA/Drafts) can absorb the defense/offense in order to not skip a beat.....And again, in reality.......we may not get the same caliber of player like a Bruschi....Harrison....T. Brown......Seau.....to replace them...(I know some of these guys mentioned may be back.....But they are slowing down and are not the players they once were obviously.......

Anyways......what I guess they are saying, and as much as I hate to hear it.....they are right......Is that you have to take ADVANTAGE of any chance you get to play in the big game and not even allow yourselves to get in a position to lose a game in the last seconds like the Pats did....In all reality...this game should not have been close....The Gint secondary SHOULD have been picked apart....We should have been able to make some adjustments so our top O weapons could have gotten involved......instead they all came out tight, unenthused, and never made adjustments......They DID NOT WANT THE GAME as much as the Giants did.......

And in doing so, let a chance at greatness slip away.........and who knows when our next chance will come along.....San Diego....Indy.....Jax......Pittsburgh......Denver (yeah they will be back) and even our own division stand in our way......Food for thought......GO PATS

 

[Bertil]

With the talk all last week about Brady getting 6 or 7 SB wins, the Pats and Brady being referred to as "best ever", I was very nervous and, as it turns out, justifiably so. They may NEVER win another one. That's the thing that makes the loss so frusatrating. But that's sports. That's life.

You've gotta make the most of every moment and take nothing for granted.

 

[xmarkd400x]

Brady could suffer a career ending injury. The Patriots could win the next 3 super bowls in a row.

Don't try to write history before it happens. Just sit back and enjoy the games.

 

[Pats726]

They DID NOT WANT THE GAME as much as the Giants did.......

Sorry...That is simply NOT true..and pure BS...unless you have some more realities that week or such...that lead you to say that..

 

[Watson's IQ]

They DID NOT WANT THE GAME as much as the Giants did.......

I find that pretty hard to believe. The "they wanted it more" thing is one of the most tired cliches in sports, especially in the playoffs. You can say the Patriots wilted under the pressure if you want, but don't say the desire wasn't there.

 

[richpats]

The Pats have gone from a team that does the unthinkable (beating the Rams, winning 3/4 in the salary cap era with injury-plagued teams) to a team that nearly does the impossible (hosting an AFC-title game with one of the worst defenses, winning the AFC title with squat at WR, going 19-0).

 

[Pat the Pats Fan]

With the talk all last week about Brady getting 6 or 7 SB wins, the Pats and Brady being referred to as "best ever", I was very nervous and, as it turns out, justifiably so. They may NEVER win another one. That's the thing that makes the loss so frusatrating. But that's sports. That's life.

You've gotta make the most of every moment and take nothing for granted.

There is some historical truth in your statement. The last team to suffer a huge SB upset, the Rams, haven't been back. The other team that had a similar upset, although some would say the worst, was the Colts against the Jets. The Colts and the Pats had similar seasons, in my opinion, since I lived through both, as a fan of both. I live in Maryland and was a loyal Colts fan until they moved. I felt the same after both losses.

The Colts only lost one game that year, to the Browns, by a few points. They defeated the Browns in the NFCCG (yes thats right) 35-0, totally dominating them. The Colts were thought by many to potentially have the greatest season ever. And of course, they lost to the Jets in a stunning upset similar to the Pats. The Colts the following year openned the season 0-2, finished 8-5-1 and out of the playoffs. The following year they got back to the playoffs and the Superbowl, but that was it, they were old, tired, injured and soon to be broken up. They never returned again until last year.

 

[JoePats]

I'm not disputing that Super Bowl chances don't grow on trees.

Watch the America's Game for Super Bowl 5, the Colts win over Dallas TWO years after they lost that game to the Jets.

The three players interviewed were Bubba Smith, Mike Curtis, and Bill Curry, and they all said many times throughout the piece about how crushed they were to lose Super Bowl III. They said this one definately does not make up for it.

Bubba Smith went as far as to say, when they were walking off the field after winning Super Bowl V, someone mentioned to him they were getting a ring, and he said that this should have been number 2. This was ON THE FIELD after winning a Super Bowl, and this same general sentiment was there for all of the interviewed players. They could never shake this one loss, and they still feel that way almost 40 years later.

So the point is, no matter what happens next year or the year after that, this is one that the players are never going to be able to live down, even if they do get back and win another one.

And the Colts weren't undefeated.

 

[Pat the Pats Fan]

I'm not disputing that Super Bowl chances don't grow on trees.

Watch the America's Game for Super Bowl 5, the Colts win over Dallas TWO years after they lost that game to the Jets.

The three players interviewed were Bubba Smith, Mike Curtis, and Bill Curry, and they all said many times throughout the piece about how crushed they were to lose Super Bowl III. They said this one definately does not make up for it.

Bubba Smith went as far as to say, when they were walking off the field after winning Super Bowl V, someone mentioned to him they were getting a ring, and he said that this should have been number 2. This was ON THE FIELD after winning a Super Bowl, and this same general sentiment was there for all of the interviewed players. They could never shake this one loss, and they still feel that way almost 40 years later.

So the point is, no matter what happens next year or the year after that, this is one that the players are never going to be able to live down, even if they do get back and win another one.

And the Colts weren't undefeated.

Exactly.......

Brady made the statement to Terry Bradshaw in an interview shown before the SB. He said the players would remember this game forever, if they won, for achieving perfection, and if they lost, for missing the opportunity.....
Another ring won't make up for this loss.....

 

[tombonneau]

Agreed. As much as I hate to say it, this new Pats team is drawing eerie parallels to the Yankees.

The Yankees went on a championship tear for a 5 or so year stretch, but haven't won a championship now since what, 2000? Sure, they are competitive every year, and they have made it back to a few World Series, but they haven't gotten in done in 7-8 years.

Hopefully this won't be the fate of the Pats, but just because you are consistently competitive is no guarantee to making it back to the Super Bowl, let alone winning.

I'd still like to think before all is said and done, say when Brady/BB hang it up in 7-8 years, that the Pats have won 2-3 more Super Bowls. Wishing any more than that is actually rather greedy and unrealistic.