Are you ashamed of 18-1?

[Kontradiction]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

We played in a ton of "Super Bowls" last year:

Week 2 vs SD - we had to validate 6 years in 60 minutes in front of a national audience
Week 6 at Dal - "Duel in Dallas" anyone?
Week 9 at Indy- "Super Bowl 41.5" - need I say more?
Week 17 at NYG- this game was carried by 4 channels in Boston, unreal
SB42 - the "real" Super Bowl, but our 5th of the season

Out of all of those, I think the Dallas game was the most fun to watch (because my friend is a Cowboys fan and bet me $100 on the game). Very close second was the Indy game (no money on this one) which was exciting because we were getting pounded all game long and came back in the 4th quarter.

 

[Mike the Brit]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

It's a weird phenomenon.

Yesterday I was giving a friend a hard time about Auburn-Alabama (he's a huge Auburn fan, I root for Saban) and he said if I keep it up he's going to buy an 18-1 shirt to irritate me.

I was on a Browns' board and a Pats fan (not me) posted something and a Browns' fan replied : 18-1.

Now, don't get me wrong, I would have killed for 19-0 or 18-1 with the 1 not being the last game. But like I told my Auburn friend, there's a lot worse that you can go through as an NFL fan (on the field, forget the stupid camera) than what we saw last year. The first 16-0 regular season ever. A Super Bowl appearance. It still grinds at me that we lost but last year was still a badge of honor for the Patriots and their fans, not a black mark of embarrassment.

If you give him a hard time about his team, that sounds OK to me. 18-1 is fair game, Bill Belichick cheated his way to three Superbowls certainly isn't.

 

[BradyManny]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

16-0 is still one of the greatest accomplishments in [regular season] sports. The mere fact that we can even talk about the possibility of going 19-0 going into this season without laughing is a testament to what this team achieved last season. I never thought a team would run the table, and for the regular season - we did. It is most certainly something to be proud of as a fan.

 

[richpats]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

18-1 and the best Super Bowl game I've ever seen in my life. Yeah, we lost, but we still won 18 games in a row on the way to it, and that's not changing.

Name me a team that has done that, and I'll listen to their fans talk **** for eternity.

The Pats 2007 season was like Raiders of the Lost Ark and going into the Super Bowl undefeated was like finding the Ark. But once they opened it up......

 

[richpats]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

Out of all of those, I think the Dallas game was the most fun to watch (because my friend is a Cowboys fan and bet me $100 on the game). Very close second was the Indy game (no money on this one) which was exciting because we were getting pounded all game long and came back in the 4th quarter.

The Dallas game was special for me (other than the fact that I was there) because the Pats evolved from this great team to something incredible. After that game, I really thought the Pats might run the table.

 

[Deus Irae]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

Agreed - also with Deus Irae - but opposing fans seem to think we should be ashamed of it. It's REALLY weird.

It's just their way of trying to tear down the opponent. The Patriots are on the greatest winning clip NFL history, and have had the greatest period of success in the Super Bowl era. The fans of the other teams all know that they'll likely be looking at the Patriots vying for the title against this season, and that pisses them off. It's one of the reasons why 'spygate' got so ridiculous, and it's why 18-1 is something they pin their 'logic' on.

Wear 18-1 with pride, and gently (or not so gently) point out to those giving you grief about it that the Patriots are 86-26 (.76785) from 2001-present, with 3 Super Bowl wins, 4 Super Bowl appearances and 5 AFCCG appearances in those 7 seasons.

Even the Steelers, in their best 7 years of the 70's (1973-1979), were only .76767. The Steelers 8 year run was 88-27 (.76521). So, New England can top that 8 year run with a 12 win season. No matter what fans of other teams say, New England is one of the 5 great dynasties of the Super Bowl Era:

Patriots (86-26 .76785, 3 SBs in 7 years)
Steelers (88-27 .76521, 4 SBs in 8 years)
49ers (191-63 .75196, 4 SBs in 16 years)
Dolphins (104-39 .72727, 2 SBs in 10 years)
Cowboys (86-42 .6718, 3 SBs in 8 years)

So, when they give you grief about 18-1, let them stew.

 

[Hawg 73]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

Question to anyone. Would you trade the 16-0 for a Super Bowl win?

 

[BSR]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

I may be alone in this but I couldn't wait until last season was over. With all the talk about undefeated season, running up the score, spygate, and the F-U season, it really wasn't all that enjoyable for me. Each game felt like a potential stumbling block that we simply had to get by and I always felt relief instead of accomplishment when they won. They HAD to win all their games and they HAD to win the superbowl. It was just like a build up to that one big game. I couldn't wait until it was over and it shouldn't have felt that way.

Now looking back, I can actually appreciate the season for how great it was. It will never be as great as I wanted it to be but that is only because our standards have maybe grown to large. However, when other fans through the 18-1 at me I tell them "thanks, it was a great season wasn't it?".

 

[tobias funke]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

I may be alone in this but I couldn't wait until last season was over. With all the talk about undefeated season, running up the score, spygate, and the F-U season, it really wasn't all that enjoyable for me. Each game felt like a potential stumbling block that we simply had to get by and I always felt relief instead of accomplishment when they won. They HAD to win all their games and they HAD to win the superbowl. It was just like a build up to that one big game. I couldn't wait until it was over and it shouldn't have felt that way.

I just ignored ESPN for the most part, starting around week 9. You'd be surprised how much of the crap you can miss doing that.

The rest of the rollercoaster ride... well...

...isn't that why rollercoasters are fun?

 

[BSR]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

Question to anyone. Would you trade the 16-0 for a Super Bowl win?

I would. How about this one:

If you could replay one of these two moments from last year which one would you chose:
1. Before the Jets game, Belichick decides the whole videotapping program and they are never caught. Spygate never happens and the tarnish on their past accomplishments and legacy never happens. The remainder of the season plays out exactly the same and they still lose in the superbowl to go 18-1.

2. Assante Samuel intercepts Manning and then runs out of bounds. TB comes in to kneel three times and they win the superbowl to go 19-0. Spygate, however, continues along with the hate and bad press that comes with it.

Give me option #2 all the way. How cares what the haters say.

 

[Ring 6]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

I look at it this way.
We were exactly the same when it all ended as 31 other teams that didnt win the SB.
By anyone other yardstick we were the 'best 2nd best team ever'.
No doubt you trade anything that happened for having won the SB, but of all teams that didnt win a SB, we were the best ever.
While that may fall short of what we expected, basically, the Patriots were as successful as any team could possibly be with the exception of finishing by winning the SB.
If winning the SB is 10 on a scale of 1 to 10, the Patriots 2007 season would have to be considered a 9.99. I dont know how you find shame in that.

 

[Kontradiction]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

Question to anyone. Would you trade the 16-0 for a Super Bowl win?

Um... HELL YES. I'd gladly go 9-7 and win the Super Bowl than 16-0 and lose it.

 

[Grizzafted]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

to be honest. and ha. i'll probably get ripped or thought of as nuts.

but i'm happy they lost the super bowl. i couldn't be happier with 18-1. its cosmic. like some kind of greek parable. i saw the heights of ecstasy and the pits of misery last season. all at once. i really wouldn't trade it for the world.

 

[Kontradiction]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

to be honest. and ha. i'll probably get ripped or thought of as nuts.

but i'm happy they lost the super bowl. i couldn't be happier with 18-1. its cosmic. like some kind of greek parable. i saw the heights of ecstasy and the pits of misery last season. all at once. i really wouldn't trade it for the world.

I'm not going to harp on you for that, but I saw the pits of misery in the 90's. I didn't need to remember what it felt like last season.

 

[tobias funke]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

to be honest. and ha. i'll probably get ripped or thought of as nuts.

but i'm happy they lost the super bowl. i couldn't be happier with 18-1. its cosmic. like some kind of greek parable. i saw the heights of ecstasy and the pits of misery last season. all at once. i really wouldn't trade it for the world.

there honestly is a part of this for me too.

in fact, a lot of true fans of the game have told me that they like the patriots more because they didn't win.

not that i care who likes them, but really, them losing the super bowl didnt make me like the team less. you can't rewrite history and thinking about what might have happened is useless.

they play the super bowl not just to find a winner, but to hopefully have the best game the two conferences can produce.

and we got that.

 

[PrairiePat]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

Last season was amazing. Of -course- I wish we won the last game too, but geez, 18 in a row to start the season was something I don't think we'll ever see again in the NFL. Hardly anything to be ashamed of!

The best part of it was that every NFL fan knew the Pats had to play last season in a fishbowl of scrutiny, and they had their best season ever (until the final game, at least). Can you even imagine the reaction of the NFL fanbase if the Pats had gone 7-9 or something without the 'aid' of sideline taping? It would have been a nightmare. Last season proved what a joke the whole notion of 'tainted' wins were, and showed that the Pats are still truly the class of the NFL.

 

[denverpatsfan]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

Losing to the "slow" Manning brother IS embarrassing. Sorry but I'll take 10-6 and a SB win over 18-1 any day of the week.

 

[Grizzafted]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

I'm not going to harp on you for that, but I saw the pits of misery in the 90's. I didn't need to remember what it felt like last season.

trust me, I remember. but it was a different kind of misery.

this was like icarus flying too close to the sun. i can't really put it into words but the memories i'll take from last season, complete with living in new york and dealing with that week of depression with all the celebration everywhere around me, the constant fan friends of mine rooting against them week in and week out, the media hysteria....and in the end they came up just a few fluky plays short of perfection. something really human and real about the whole thing.

that and, honestly, i am as happy with the 16-0 season as I am about the super bowls in years past. everybody harps on the "legacy" sh!t, and I really don't get it. football is about instant gratification. the feeling you get when your team wins. the feeling I got when Randy Moss caught the pass from Brady that shattered three of the most meaningful football records at once...wow. really, that was on par with the first two Vinatieri kicks.

another super bowl season that was like 12-4 reg season...eh. I saw those already. yeah they were nice, but this was magic. even the loss was magic.

go pats.

 

[signbabybrady]

I am very proud of it....wish the one came earlier but still proud.

 

[Mogamedogz]

Re: Are you ashamed of 18-1 ?

We played in a ton of "Super Bowls" last year:

Week 2 vs SD - we had to validate 6 years in 60 minutes in front of a national audience
Week 6 at Dal - "Duel in Dallas" anyone?
Week 9 at Indy- "Super Bowl 41.5" - need I say more?
Week 17 at NYG- this game was carried by 4 channels in Boston, unreal
SB42 - the "real" Super Bowl, but our 5th of the season

Don't forget the MNF Baltimore game, when we hung on to perfection by a thread. That was a GREAT game.