Band Wagon Jumping
By Dan on Jan 28, 2008 in Sports
Tom Brady reaches the pop culture pinnacle by appearing on the Simpsons
I don’t pretend to be an actual Patriot’s fan, just an ardent admirer. My NFL affections, which don’t run deeply, still belong to the Bears. But the Bears weren’t fun to watch this year and no team brought me as much joy on Sundays as New England, so I’m repaying them with my support and fondest wishes that they bring home the Lombardi Trophy.
Please know that I harbor no ill feelings for the Giants of New York. I’m not immune to the appeal of the underdog, but for me, an underdog has to be a righteous combatant taking on an evil opponent. There’s simply nothing evil about the Patriots, unless you automatically equate high levels of success with corruption and foul play. Sure, there was the matter of some improper filming of the opposition earlier this season, but film and technology are so much a part of the game these days that whatever advantage was gained had to have been negligible.
I’ve long admired the Patriot organization’s ability to navigate free agency and salary caps without falling into disarray, as happens to most franchises over time. I also like how players are drawn to the Patriots because of their team-first attitude and how the staff seems to get every last bit of ability out of its players, especially those in the twilight of their careers.
I won’t crow if the Patriots are victorious on Sunday and I won’t bleed if they fall to defeat, but I will enjoy watching them and expect that I’ll be toasting them by game’s end.
If you’d like, feel free to express your own feelings towards the Patriots or offer a prediction on Sunday’s game.
*To this day, my college friends chide me about going to high school football games, which to them is very a small town thing to do. I try to explain to them that I don’t go because of unwavering school spirit or because it’s the center of my social life; I go because I like watching football and, most years, SHG plays it very well. If they weren’t good, I’d still be a fan, but wouldn’t attend as many games because bad football is not entertaining.
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Since I don’t really care about either team, I’ll be rooting for the team that, at any given time, offers the greatest hope of me winning some money in the office football pool. It’s one of those deals where you pick random squares and the last number of the score is assigned randomly (or so they say!). Payoffs are each quarter so I suspect I’ll be switching allegiances frequently.
Dave | Jan 28, 2008 | Reply
I hate the Patriots (cheaters).
I really hate Tom Brady (talks like a mealy-mouthed geek, and all that dating supermodel stuff is just his agent keeping his homosexuality under wraps - not that there is anything wrong with that unless you are trying to hide it).
I absolutely, unequivocally hate Bill Bellicheck (is he a real person or a robot programmed to act like an asshole?).
Any guess who I am rooting for on Sunday?
Foster Brooks | Jan 28, 2008 | Reply
Wow - I’m so disappointed in you. I can’t stand the Patriots (yeah, maybe I am just sick of them winning all the time but I don’t apologize for that.) And I’ve disliked Tom Brady ever since his days at Michigan. Plus, I’m really rooting for Eli Manning to escape his brother’s shadow and enjoy a little of his own success. But in the end, I, too, can be bought and it will come down to my Super Bowl squares as well. I’ll be rooting either for myself to win, or, if I draw 8 and 2 again, then I’ll be rooting for this guy Jeff, who wins EVERY damn year, not to win again.
Laura | Jan 28, 2008 | Reply
To all,
First off, gambling is a sin and has no place in the world of sports. Repent and renounce your squares.
Second, Tom Coughlin isn’t an ass? No advantage there.
Third, if being a closeted gay man means dating the likes of Gisele Bundchen and Bridget Moynahan, I may have to rethink my sexuality, or at least hire Brady’s agent.
I’ll grant you that the Brady/Michigan connection bothers me and I would like to see Eli do well, but in the end, there’s just too much to admire about the Patriots.
Thanks for commenting,
Dan
Dan | Jan 28, 2008 | Reply
I have an extreme dislike for the Patriots. To me, they are similar to Major League Baseball’s ‘Evil Empire’ the Yankees. What they’ve done is admirable, but that doesn’t lessen my desire to see them go down on the biggest stage the NFL has to offer. The Giants are on a roll, Eli is ready to step out of his older bro’s shadow and come into his own. Dare I say the Giants are poised for something similar to the Cardinals in 2006 when they won the World Series? I dare say it! I’ll take New York 34-24. Brady can go to his supermodel girlfriend and/or mother of his child for comfort afterwards. And Bellicheck can take his nappy grey hoodies home with him for the winter.
Brian | Jan 28, 2008 | Reply
Brian,
I must take issue with your Yankees comparison, although your nappy hoody comment goes unchallenged.
Unlike the Yankees who can spend freely on players and can dominate smaller market teams with their unlimited payroll, the Patriots operate under the same salary cap that every other NFL team does. That they continue to field winning teams, even as the players filter in and out, is a testament to their greatness.
Thanks for commenting,
Dan
Dan | Jan 28, 2008 | Reply
Dan,
I agree with the differences on the two teams as far as spending goes. And thank you for your recognition of the nappy hoody comment.
Aside from spending, however, I dislike both teams due to the fact that they win most every year, have personalities on their teams that I do not care for, and Steinbrenner the GM and Bellicheck the coach. Brady and ARod seem cut from the same mold as well. Both are great players, but the problem for me is that they both seem to know they’re great and also seem to want everyone else to know it.
That being said, I cannot dispute the Patriots’ greatness. But that doesn’t mean I have to like it! ;o)
My true allegiance is to the Cowboys, and the Giants beat them in the NFC Championship. So I am torn between my hatred for the Patriots, and my disgust that the Giants are in the game at all instead of Dallas. For the Pats to go undefeated would be a great accomplishment. But I want to see the Giants prevent that from happening.
Also, as previously mentioned, I can’t stand Bellicheck’s hoodies. I think at the beginning of the season, he was the only one wearing them. But somewhere along the line I started noticing the entire New England coaching staff wearing them, too. Hoodies unite! Looks like he rolls out of bed and comes to the game. And perhaps he does.
Go Giants!
Brian
Brian | Jan 29, 2008 | Reply
I noticed several of the commentators here using the word “hoodie” rather liberally. I have no proof, but I believe that term to have been coined by the “hip-hop” or “gangsta” set to describe their hooded sweatshirts.
I call on all intelligent humans to resist using the term “hoodie” as it supports the further denigration of society by accepting, rather than rejecting, a culture that is based on immoral and anti-social behavior.
It seems as though regular citizens have no problem using the word “hoodie” yet would not call their home a “crib,” or a gun a “gat.” I suspect it is because it ends in “ie” and sounds soft and cuddly.
Not only that, but the fact that Bellicheck wears one is enough reason to reject everything about a HOODED SWEATSHIRT.
America | Jan 29, 2008 | Reply
Brian,
I was going to cede you the higher moral ground, Steinbrenner and Bellicheck are certainly not paragons of virtue, but then you confessed your Cowboy allegiance. If Steinbrenner and Bellicheck are the devil’s spawn, then Jerry Jones is his old man.
America,
I believe that you correct that the word hoodie was derived in inner city culture, but it’s since entered the common lexicon as a term describing urban and team fashion. I wanted to research the origins of the hoodie more thoroughly, but I’m afraid I must go pick up my shorties at their baby-mama’s place. Perhaps another time.
Thanks for commenting,
Dan
Dan | Jan 29, 2008 | Reply
GO PATS! I am fond of Bostonians, having dated a very fine one for a few years, and thus I root for the BoSox and the Pats (after the Cubs and the Bears, of course).
Kath | Feb 3, 2008 | Reply
If I can date Matthew McConaughey, then you can date Gisele and/or Bridget. But I’m willing to bet they are bitchier than me because they are so freakin’ hungry!!
Mrs. Blogfree Springfield | Feb 4, 2008 | Reply
Giants win! Giants win!
It was a very enjoyable game, regardless of the outcome. But Eli scrambling and avoiding that sack and then completing that pass that Tyree made the great catch on - wow. This could be one of the biggest upsets ever.
But the commercials were fairly disappointing. Some were good, but not many.
Brian | Feb 5, 2008 | Reply