BradyManny
Pro Bowl Player
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2006
- Messages
- 11,103
- Reaction score
- 1,520
I'm not quite ready to look back on 2007 with the fondness that I know one day I will hold towards it. February 3rd is still too close. Thinking of the traumatic manner in which we lost the Super Bowl still triggers anger & sadness in me at any given moment my mind wanders to that game. That said, I think what we've seen right now from all the NFL teams thus far really puts last season in perspective. Just looking at the league so far and how much parity there is - I think it does make the 16-0 achievement look more special.
The Super Bowl champions, the best team in the league, just got crushed by the Browns.
The Patriots did not have a letdown game for the entire regular season - its unheralded in this era.
I'm convinced now that they may truly have lost to the better team in the Super Bowl, but 16-0 is certainly #4 on the resume of this Patriots dynasty.
Looking back, I wonder how the players truly feel about it - but I can say without question that the "pursuit of perfection" was a burden that I wasn't prepared for simply as a fan. It felt a little bit like Frodo Baggins being asked to bring the ring to Mordor. Naturally athletes are more mentally tough than fans, but I have to imagine that even with that, the players felt it ten-fold, and yet still managed to win week after week after week.
What I'm getting at is that if weren't for the horrifyingly, gut wrenching, excruciatingly painful manner in which we lost the Super Bowl, I think I'd honestly trade the SB win [that wasn't] for the 16-0 season at this point, with the benefit of a little perspective. 4 months of greatness outdoes the 2:42 seconds of suckiness that deprived us of the "ultimate goal", particularly considering the team has 3 rings on the resume.
The Super Bowl champions, the best team in the league, just got crushed by the Browns.
The Patriots did not have a letdown game for the entire regular season - its unheralded in this era.
I'm convinced now that they may truly have lost to the better team in the Super Bowl, but 16-0 is certainly #4 on the resume of this Patriots dynasty.
Looking back, I wonder how the players truly feel about it - but I can say without question that the "pursuit of perfection" was a burden that I wasn't prepared for simply as a fan. It felt a little bit like Frodo Baggins being asked to bring the ring to Mordor. Naturally athletes are more mentally tough than fans, but I have to imagine that even with that, the players felt it ten-fold, and yet still managed to win week after week after week.
What I'm getting at is that if weren't for the horrifyingly, gut wrenching, excruciatingly painful manner in which we lost the Super Bowl, I think I'd honestly trade the SB win [that wasn't] for the 16-0 season at this point, with the benefit of a little perspective. 4 months of greatness outdoes the 2:42 seconds of suckiness that deprived us of the "ultimate goal", particularly considering the team has 3 rings on the resume.
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