Which one of Sean McVay's weapons will Bill Belichick try to take away? Is the most important match up in SB53 Josh McDaniels vs. Wade Phillips? The Patriots O-Line vs. the Rams D-Line? Millennials vs. their dads? Is this finally the end of the New England Hegemony? (Sorry, but we're way past Dynasty at this point.) Will Tom Brady live forever?
My gridiron sensibilities have been assaulted by a double A-gap blitz of rumors, assumptions, numbers, graphs, Madden simulations, positional breakdowns, expert predictions, and failed attempts to humanize Ndamukong Suh. Despite the relentless efforts of pigskin pundits and bobbleheads to tell me everything about SB53, I now feel like I know nothing.
I really can't even pretend to be coherent about this so I'm not even going to try...
Will Super Bowl LIII be a Patriots Apotheosis or another difficult chapter in this modern day saga of New England's gridiron demigods, Tom Brady and Bill Belichick?
I've been hoping for a Patriots blowout win but even if they're winning by 25 points midway through the 3rd quarter, will I be able to relax? No, the answer is no. I mean, intellectually I know Belichick and Brady would not play that situation like Dan Quinn and Matt Ryan did but still, I wouldn't be able to exhale. I've seen the impossible happen and I believe the universe seeks balance. Maybe if they're up by 25 points halfway through the 4th quarter...
I've been reminded by the various rankings of the best Super Bowls of all time that the Patriots of Belichick and Brady are like a supervillain from a Batman movie if that supervillain didn't die and showed up in all four of the sequels.
There's some recency bias to these lists and ultimately they're just click bait. Did this pigskin pundit put SB51 at #1? You know the list is going to have SB42 in that Top 10 (and yes, it still hurts). Belichick usually gets an extra nod for SB25. I took a film criticism class in college where the professor started our first class by saying, "I can't tell you what the greatest movie of all time is, but I can tell you what my favorite movie is." Yeah, it's SB51 for me. I can only hope 53 makes me change my mind about that.
I used to think there would be a point where the haters would have to shut the fuck up but after SB51 I realized that would never happen. A 6th Lombardi Trophy won't make a difference, either. Our brains are built to defend our deeply held beliefs as vigorously as we would defend our homes and families from all those terrorists flowing across the southern border, regardless of any facts to the contrary. Football fans west of the Connecticut River, bitter and exhausted from the Patriots beating their team, with Spygate as subtext, were more than willing to buy the innuendo, mishandled "evidence," and the flawed "science" of the Wells Report and brand Tom Brady a cheater. It fit their victimhood narrative, Ideal Gas Law and that blinking tire pressure indicator that starts flashing after the first cold snap of winter be damned!
Roger Goodell stole 4 Tom Brady games from me. (And yes, from other Patriots fans but this is all about me, isn't it?) I will never forgive him for that. That clown-face t-shirt doesn't go nearly far enough for me. That red nose should be replaced by tiny red horns erupting from just behind his hairline, a pair of Roger Stone glasses, and an evil goatee scribbled on his face with a black Sharpie. Fuck you, Roger Goodell. Fuck you.
It's been said (again) the Patriots should forget about that nobody-believed-in-us underdog thing and embrace the role of pigskin villain but isn't that just a matter of the position of the observer? Aren't we all the heroes of our own movies? More importantly, do we really want to demonize the organization that celebrates teamwork over talent, hard work over star power, accountability, responsibility, and work ethic? The team that won SB49 because of scouting, coaching, execution, and in-game recognition of their opponents tendencies? The team that won SB51 (and the AFCCG in Kansas City) at least in part because they were better conditioned? If the Patriots are the bad guys, who, exactly, are the good guys?
I have seen at least one post encouraging fans to appreciate the Patriots of Belichick and Brady, even if they don't or can't bring themselves to like them, and a number of pigskin pundits and bobbleheads have called out the unprecedented and likely unassailable accomplishments of Belichick, Brady, and these 21st century New England Patriots. These same posts, though, rarely miss the opportunity to mention the Patriots complicated and controversial history. For my part, I have no interest in proselytizing; I will not be sliding over so you can find a seat on the Patriots Bandwagon.
This is my team, not yours.
They are heroes, not villains.
They have earned their place in NFL history.
Ride or die.
Let's gooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
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