this was a therapeutic email I just sent off to a friend and thought I would share my thoughts with all of you here even though I don't post often....
In addition to the mid-dynasty hiccups by the 40s Bears (beaten by
WWII and the Skins of Sammy Baugh that they once owned, as well as the
Packers, Rams, Cards and Eagles), the 50s Browns (stymied by Detroit)
and 80s 49ers (neutralized by the smash-mouth front sevens of the NFC
East)....and we also have the 1960s Packers.
Lombardi's bunch won two titles in 61 and 62, and the 62 team may be
the best ever (just about ten more hall of famers than the one-hit wonder 85 bears). But to everyone's surprise (even their own), they didn't make it back in 63 and they had a bunch of injuries in 64 and went 8-5 (despite Bart Starr not throwing an interception in his last 11 games -- sound familiar?)....then they came back and won THREE more titles (including the first two super bowls) to close out arguably the most dominant stretch in pro football history.
But in 1964 it looked to be over. History can be a fan's best friend
when perspective is needed....but most football fans knowledge of the
game goes as far back as the inception of their first fantasy league.
Of course the Steelers had a 6 year stretch where they won 4 titles
cementing themselves as the team of the 1970s....but nobody thought
they'd make it back after 76 and 77...it was time for a raiders
dynasty or cowboys or dolphins or someone else, but pittsburgh's time
was up. Still having a lot of talent on their roster, they didn't
rest on their laurels but totally reinvented themselves into a more
balanced offensive team and actually came back and were more dominant
in 78 and 79 (rampant steroid use also helped even the playing field
in the 70s).
But this is the parity-era. The league actively helps bad teams
become better and tries to shake up the top each year. They do it
through the draft and scheduling but above all through free agency and
salary caps. The era of teams competing for championships year in and
year out is supposed to be OVER.
This was a REBUILDING YEAR.
Yes the season ended prematurely but we have to retool and refocus, there is cause for optimism. The Jets went from preseason favorites to trying to psyche themselves up to play us and explain to Rachel Nichols that they weren't afraid of us. This loss, as much as it hurts, doesn't change the fact that the Pats have flipped everything around and now have the upper hand -- it will just feel that way for the entire offseason
The Pats were coached
to play for 60 minutes every week but for young players, experience is
the best teacher.
I'm sad that the Welker benching is being blamed for the "lack of
focus" and such at start of the game. There's even a poll blaming
Bill for 0-3 in last three playoff games and asking Kraft to 'step in"
WTF???
I'm sure Welker's benching was not a surprise to the team. I'm sure it
was addressed in the locker room from a discipline perspective as the
punishment for breaking Bill's rule about not talking during the week,
no matter who the player is -- and I'm sure Wes, who IS a veteran, understood it was for the benefit of the team. As I said, I don't have a problem with it...in the past we've had veterans like Rodney or Willie who did speak out and respond to trash talk during the week. But Rex Ryan has taken this to a new level and with the young team I think Bill is treating the
players differently and I'm ok with that.
Did the Welker mini-drama help us win the game? No. But neither did
it PREVENT us from winning and it was the right thing to do in the grand scheme of things given the development and maturation of the team. I realize we need to harp on something because this is hard to
comprehend/swallow.
This is the parity era....with 32 teams and 16 games and it's just f'ing hard to go all the way. I'm proud of them this year -- after the Cleveland loss I wasn't sure if we would end up above .500. Honest.
Now we have to find a way to move on, but we would be wise to not
forget this and learn from it. We are lucky to count on a fired up HoF
QB next season -- don't take it for granted, it's really REALLY special. So bash away all you want for the next 24 hours but then its time for a reality check. You can have Rogers or Sanchez or Vick or Manning or Clay Matthews or whoever you want, I'm still starting my team with #12.
We're on the cusp of having the right balance of talent and depth.
Now the young players have some experience under their belts. Rookies
can sometimes have a great first year and then take a step back in
year two as teams focus more on them....clearly our rookies were taken
seriously this year and are very talented so expect them to be even
better next year....especially the defense.
Think about all the unknowns we addressed this season after the humiliation of the Ravens. After the Ravens loss, it was clear we were not a tough team. This team now is capable of playing tough if they just don't think of themselves as invincible (easier said than done after a 40 point blowout over the same team).
Psychology was a huge factor in this game. In the past with all our veterans we weren't used to needing fire to go out and perform...most Pats fans have been conditioned to think that emotion = hype or lack of focus.
With all our youth it was clear we fed off intensity and we just didn't have it tonight. Part of that is probably blowing the same team out. Part of it was the refs allowing really tight coverage (not one PI flag in the entire game???). The Jets accused the Pats of being finesse and we played like it today. We needed smashmouth football tonight -- we can play either way now...we have the personnel. Finesse is good some weeks (i.e. against steelers) but when Sean Ellis decided to become a monster and was tossing Dan Connolly like a rag doll and guys were flopping on the ground and the backs were missing blitzes and inside stunts....that's not a good formula when 7-8 guys are in tight coverage on each play. Not only were they getting home on defense but their O-line was ripping our defensive front to shreds running it straight up the gut which then opened up the sideline passing game for Sanchez (who really is not good and doen't even deserve the game manager title). For whatever reason on offense we kept using the scalpel when we needed the sledgehammer -- the second quarter and first half of the third quarter were inept -- I can't remember a first down in that 20-25 minute span...perhaps coming from behind we were worried about burning too much clock with more of a direct attack?
I'm not an offensive coordinator and I didn't sleep at a Holiday Inn...I'm sure, like most fans and pundits, I'm oversimplifying things, even with hindsight.
Who knows.
All I know is that Randy Moss was suddenly gone after about 4 games and I thought we were done (not that we would give up on the season but I guess it was just at an impasse).
The trade of a hall of fame receiver was not because of some grand master plan but because it just stopped working and we desperately had to do something or would end up doggy paddling to a 2nd or 3rd place finish in the division.
After that desperation move, I predicted a sub-.500 season....but
necessity is the mother of invention and we went back to the drawing
board and almost hit the jackpot.
This s**t is hard. It's the most competitive league in sports. The team can expect success because they have to do it but I'm a little tired of some of the fair-weather newbies who feel it's their birthright to win super bowls and dominate.
It was a remarkable season in every sense.
Now I gotta shower and take a long walk. Selfishly as a Jets hater, the worst thing about the outcome this is it unfortunately validates all their smack. I can actually deal with not winning the Super Bowl, that's all about long-term historical perspective which our 24-7-365 news cycle has none of....but the Jets validation is by far the hardest thing to deal with.
Go Packers!
