Briz I don't know you so basically I have no idea of whether you played team sports. For all I know you were the second-highest Heismann Trophy vote-getter in some year or another, got drafter by Cinci, and couldn't face that future. Or, you could be a guy who never played anything, or you might be someone who played around in the back yard and in youth leagues, like me, then hung it up.
As you can see above, I'm not some kind of jock king. Far from it.
But this suggestion of rooting for losing? It makes even the least jock-kingly among us want to say, "Have you ever actually PLAYED football?"
Now I know, like I said, that you might in fact have a great deal of pride in what turns out to be a distinctive football resume... but playing to lose? Total non-starter.
Especially if some of these guys will be back. You take that pride with you into next year, if you make the most of a bad situation. A few wins, and there are many available on the schedule, and a break or two, and this team exceeds expectations, not only getting into the playoffs, but winning a game or two. My serious expectation is that this team does NOT turn around like the 07 Giants. My expectation is that they miss the playoffs, or barely squeek in, then possibly win in the wild-card round. After that, well, let's just say whatever level of confidence we drum up -- and we will -- will be founded on shaky ground at best. But you never know.
4-0 in December may just get us in, and it's not over til its over.
As for much-beloved draft pick slots and draftable individuals, the Pats never take who you want them to anyway ... after all we ended up with plain ol' Jerod Mayo instead of every other linebacker our local savants were drooling over. (If we'd only gotten Vernon Gholston!!! Tragedy!) And think what we could have done with Robert Gallery...
The guys who are already here are proven guys in a bad year, not some disposeable resource who understand "it's just business, let's tank this season." Uh-uh.
Root for the worst draft pick we can get, dude. I know it's counterintuitive, but it also means the team is winning.
Maybe Herm should have added an obvious corollary: "... NOT to win the draft!"
congrutulations for beating your head against a wall err...briz.