"Please, spare us another title from Patriots"

[shatch62]

“The other face of the Patriots is Tom Brady, who is, by almost all accounts, a good guy. But he’s everywhere — on every “SportsCenter” broadcast, on every sports magazine cover, in every talk show discussion.”

Tom Brady is everywhere…really. Who does all the Mastercard commercials? Who does the Direct TV commercials? Who does the Sprint commercials? I think his name is Manning. You know “6’5, rocket, laser arm” Manning.

“Don’t forget, too, that aside from Brady and Belichick, the rest of the Patriots make minimum wage or thereabouts.”

I think Seymour, Vrabel and others that make more than minimum wage would disagree but you know what? This guy is right. The Pats should overpay guys. From now on I will be a Redskins fan because that is the way a football team should be run.

 

[marty]

The guy who wrote the article to me hasn't watched the patriots the last 6 years. And I'm getting sick and tired of hearing that the Charger's game was handed to us. Yes, the flaming Chargers made lots of mistakes and turnovers but people other than Pat fans forget that the Pats had to capitalize on those turnovers. They didn't hand the Pats the points. The Pats had to earn them. The whole article makes me sick and I wish it was Monday so I can hear the Colt fans winning.

That article was written IMO with a heavy emphasis toward humor. In regards to SD, I believe he said that the Pats have a knack of making opponents appear inadequate. I didn't get any feeling that he was saying that the Pats were handed the games.

 

[Jacky Roberts]

Upon further review, Ventre has to be a Jets fan. Has to be.

I dont think so. I was a very veiled complimentary article to the Pats and a shot at American society overall. We don't like excellence and efficiency (the Pats), we like smack talkers and sound bytes (the rest of the NFL).

 

[PatFanInChina]

That article was written IMO with a heavy emphasis toward humor. In regards to SD, I believe he said that the Pats have a knack of making opponents appear inadequate. I didn't get any feeling that he was saying that the Pats were handed the games.

I was talking about the overall opinion of the sportswriters and fans (other than Pat fans) this week. Not about the jack*** who wrote the article. Sorry for the misunderstanding.

 

[upstater1]

Ventre majored in creative writing; journalism was his elective.

In my experience, that makes him a much better writer.

 

[marty]

I was talking about the overall opinion of the sportswriters and fans (other than Pat fans) this week. Not about the jack*** who wrote the article. Sorry for the misunderstanding.

In that case I'd have to agree with you wholeheartedly! At least you don't have to read the dribble in newsprint here in Boston!

 

[PatFanInChina]

The only thing that sucks is that I wont get to watch the game this weekend. If the Patriots loose (highly unlikely) then all I’ll is bunch morons ranting about how great the Dolts are and how Mr. Jack**s Payton s*** don’t stink.

 

[PatFanInChina]

The only thing that sucks is that I wont get to watch the game this weekend. If the Patriots loose (highly unlikely) then all I’ll read about is bunch morons ranting about how great the Dolts are and how Mr. Jack**s Payton s*** don’t stink. And you know where all the reporters heads will be. All up Payton's ...

 

[PatFanInChina]

Sorry for the double posts. The Internet here is very slow since the Taiwan earthquake so when I post a comment I'm completely sure if it went through.

 

[patchick]

OK, I'm baffled that anyone got mad at that piece or thought it was genuinely anti-Patriots. First off, it's very obviously intended as humor. But more to the point, it's wildly complementary of the Patriots as a football team. Compare these descriptions of the Pats and the Colts:

The Patriots certainly should be admired for their ability to come up with big plays when they need to, and for their extraordinary record in the playoffs. They also have an uncanny knack for making the other team appear inadequate.
vs.
Imagine J.D. Salinger on “Oprah.” Or Bobby Fischer doing an infomercial for an instructional DVD on chess. Or Harper Lee spilling her guts on “Letterman” about why she never wrote another book after “To Kill a Mockingbird.” That would approximate the shock and amazement of seeing Peyton Manning in a Super Bowl.

So he thinks the Patriots are a terrific team. He just thinks they're a lousy story. Which makes this probably the single most honest editorial on the Pats all year.

If you're a sportswriter, you root for stories. You dream of Joe Namath predictions, Freddie Mitchell boasts. You want to chronicle a Manning finally scaling the mountain, like Sisyphus actually pushing the boulder into the sea. And at this point, you've done the Patriots to death. Worse yet, neutral fans tune out.

This guy actually admits the truth, while other reporters and talking heads come up with excuses to justify a bias that really just amounts to Patriots fatigue. To quote the piece one last time: "When you know how a movie is going to turn out, there’s no point in watching." Unless you're a Pats fan.

 

[Fanfrom1960]

A lot of "neutral" fans feel the same way too. I've surfed though a few fan sites this morning to take the temperature of the rest of the league and there's a lot of Patriot-fatigue out there. The most Patriots-positive sites I visited were the 49ers and the Seahawks (although there are a few fans starting to panic about Brady matching Joe Montana's four SBs although by and large the 9ers fans seem more even-handed and fair than any others).

That was me (49ers). Kidding, but I do live in 49er (and Raider :scared country and enjoyed the heck out of the 49ers 5 SB titles, and even the Raider ones when Plunkett was the QB. I hope the Patriots eclipse them all, in this decade. As for this area, football-wise, it's pretty apathetic right now, with hope however for the 49ers with Nolan as coach, Smith at QB, etc. I'm not sure many people around here even know that the Patriots have won three this decade.

 

[Fanfrom1960]

The only thing that sucks is that I wont get to watch the game this weekend. If the Patriots loose (highly unlikely) then all I’ll read about is bunch morons ranting about how great the Dolts are and how Mr. Jack**s Payton s*** don’t stink. And you know where all the reporters heads will be. All up Payton's ...

That picture looks pretty seamless. Is it real?

 

[TomBrady'sGoat]

anyone actually refuting anything this guy said needs to chill. the article was meant to be humorous, not factual. with humor you often take liberties with the truth

 

[PatFanInChina]

That picture looks pretty seamless. Is it real?

Well, I’m sure that if you practice yoga long enough anything is possible. From my NFL inside sources, they tell me that Mr. Payton Crybaby Manning is an expert in Yoga. It actually might be him in the locker room game in ’04. But then again it could be his brother. They just look so much alike from that picture.

 

[NovaScotiaPatsFan]

Yeah, the Patriots SBs have been only 3 of the most entertaining ever. I guess they want to go back to the days of the 42-17 blowouts.

 

[chris_in_sunnyvale]

If the Pats play the Saints in SB41, the Pats are going to be cast as the evil empire with Darth Belichick leading the way.

Cue the Imperial March from The Empire Strikes Back...

Regards,
Chris

 

[Kdo5]

And...the Colts defense is more exciting? I didnt read two words into it but I saw that the Pats defense is "boring". They are near the top in turnovers, turn overs and hard hits are usually the only exciting things you will find on defenses.

 

[kolbitr]

Add my voice to the chorus of those who found it funny and entertaining. The Patriots are no longer the "Cinderella story of the year, complete with a young prince named Tom Brady," as NFL Films declared in January 2001. They are now the Empire, the Borg, the Juggernaut. BB is the pigskin Einstein, the mad scientist who clones capable cornerbacks from Playdough, Brady is John McClane, Bruschi is Jack Bauer, Rodney is a Ninja. Heck, according to ESPN, Reche Caldwell = Marvin Harrison (!). That's right, perennial All-Pro, future Hall-of-Famer Marvin freakin' Harrison.

We need to embrace the new identity, even if the team cannot afford to.

And frankly, I am loving it. Think of the Celtics in the 80s (if you're old enough!), or the 60s (if you are my Dad). Noone loved them, and they loved it.