The New England Patriots are the easiest team to hate in the entire sporting world. Regardless of who you cheer for, regardless of who is in your team's division, regardless of what sport you follow, Bill Belichick's squad is the obvious villain.
Now, a few years ago, the New York Yankees may have held this award. They are the most successful franchise in all of sports and they have sustained their high level of play for better than a century. The Bronx Bombers, however, have never been convicted of breaking the rules to attain their victories. Therein lies the Patriots' stake to this property. They are good, they are a perennial powerhouse, and they are convicted cheaters. The Yankees could win the next 5 World Series' and spew hate speech and racial bigotry every step of the way and still not reach the universal bad guy status that the Patriots have landed upon.
During the Patriots' three Super Bowl runs- in 2001, 2003, and 2004, they totaled 9 playoff wins before getting found out in 2006 for illegal spying. Add their one playoff win in 2005, and you've got eight franchises- the Raiders, Steelers (twice), Rams, Titans, Colts (twice), Panthers, Jaguars, and Eagles- that had their season ended by a Patriots team that was breaking the rules. That's 8 entire cities full of people that have good reason to believe that they were cheated out of a football season.
Then, you've got the individuals. Tom Brady's brash arrogance, designer scarves, and roughing the passer demands. Rodney Harrison's dirty hits, personal fouls, and positive HGH test. Randy Moss and his poor work ethic, refusals to run routes or block when he's not the primary receiver, and the way he quit on the Raiders to join the Patriots. Wes Welker and his sharp, inbred rat-like features and laughable on-field trash talking. The list goes on and on with none being worse as the head coach himself, who may be the most immature loser in the history of professional sports.
Indeed, the Patriots are an easy bunch to dislike. Not unlike the Nazis in World War II Germany, the Patriots are the type of villains that can bring the rest of the entire world together in united disdain. Just like in the movies and in real life wars, the villain sometimes wins the battle, which is precisely what perpetuates their villainous status. The fact that we can take refuge in is that they cannot ultimately win the war, for history, particularly sports history, remembers failures and dishonestly even more than it remembers successes. Shoeless Joe Jackson is not remembered for his slugging percentage, he is remembered for throwing the 1919 World Series. Mike Tyson is not rememberd as the youngest Heavyweight Champion, he is remembered for being convicted of rape and for having bitten Evander Holyfield during a fight. Not many people know what year Tonya Harding won the US Figure Skating Championship, but everyone knows what her goons did to Nancy Kerrigan's knees.
So, this Sunday, as the world tunes in to watch Peyton vs Brady in the latest battle of good vs evil, just remember that Peyton and the Colts have already won. No victory, not even 10 more last-minute AFC Championship victories over the Patriots, is as good as the whole world knowing that in the history of this rivalry, although the momentum has gone back and forth more than a few times, one of the two teams cheated. And it wasn't the Colts.
My, this could get ugly but remember, this was not my post.
