I can remember when Drew Bledsoe and Terry Glenn were fresh looking rookies, ready to make their mark on the NFL. I remember when Ben Coates was virtually unstoppable and Bruce Armstrong was a brick wall along an otherwise porous offensive line.
I remember these older Patriots teams because I have been a “rooter” of New England Patriots football since I was young. “Rooter” probably isn’t even a word, much less a term that resonates with the average sports fan.
But to me, as child, being a “rooter” meant waking up every Sunday at 12:30 p.m. (hey, I was a growing boy who needed his sleep!) and anxiously awaiting the 1:00 p.m. kickoff. It meant throwing the pig-skin at halftime and having several fellow rooters over to my family room to watch the games. It meant getting seriously bent out of the shape when those horrible Patriots teams of old would find ways to fumble away leads and miss last second chip shots. It meant letting football dictate your Sunday, so much so that the inevitable Sunday night date with the homework I had put off all weekend was an upbeat conquering of academic assignments if the Pats had won, but a depressing, fruitless battle with concepts I couldn’t understand if the Pats had lost.
No one remembers these old Patriots teams. No one remembers the 4-12 seasons, the countless Bledsoe interceptions, the wasted 1st Round draft picks, and the realization that this year- whatever year it was in the 1990s- probably wasn’t the year of Pat the Patriot.
Being a Patriots fan now is completely different. We all know about Mo Lewis’ hit, Tom Brady’s rise to super-stardom, the 3 Super Bowls in 4 years, and the regular season dominance that has come to define the boys in Foxbrough. Complain about anything as a 2008 Pats fan, and people will say, “What the hell you got to whine ‘bout, eh?”.
They are right in many ways. Watching #12 is a joy. Knowing you will make the playoffs is an absolute luxury. Owning the Jets- a team that used to torment me annually, especially when The Tuna came back to New England wearing green and white- is a point of pride.
But most assume that Patriots fans weren’t there for the bad days too. They think we all jumped on the band-wagon when Brady’s Bunch upset the Rams and their plethora of offensive weapons and pizzazz. That just isn’t true.
And I have to say, the last two seasons of Patriots football have left me with a sour taste of morning breath in my mouth. They have been inexplicably painful.
Losing to the rival Colts and the Manning-that-could-never-win-the-big-one in the AFC title game- a game which the good guys led 21-3 at one point- was painful and sobering. Going 18-0….no, let me put that another way: not suffering defeat until the last minute of the season
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8 months ago
Wheatley stood out plenty in college, 14 picks (4 sophmore year and 5 each of the next 2 years) in 3 years against decent big 12 competition is not bad at all by my reckoning, i agree he was a reach and I was absolutely shocked by the O'Connel pick but Wheatley has a better shot at contributing quickly then you'd think, at least in the nickel for now with a combo of Hobbs, Meriwether, Bryant, and Sanders/Webster holding the other 2 spots, not great by any stretch at all but if the LBs can get to the QB enough, it won't be quite so noticeable a liability.
What really gets me about O'Connell is that he wasn't even the best QB available, if they wanted a backup at least wait a few rounds for Booty or Brennan or take Woodson, I'm not even sure if O'Connell was on most teams draft boards.
Ruud is a tad undersized and needs to bulk up and develop more of a mean streak, if he does he could be a good backup, maybe even a decent starter.
I think you should have mentioned Gary Guyton, UDFA out of GA tech, he may not have the fanfare of Mayo or Crable but I'm tellin you the guy is a stud, 6-2 245 with a 4.47 40, 78 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and 13.5 TFL last year playing with Phillip Wheeler and the Yellow Jackets, he was a 3rd round pick at one point but he just fell, I dunno why but he did (not character concerns), and the pats were smart to give the kid a chance.
All in all, I liked this article, very well written. It was nice to see from the perspective of an older fan, I wasn't old enough to really appreciate football until around '97-'98 so I didn't see much of Coates, Armstrong etc. in their primes.
Peace,
Max
8 months ago
I'm glad to finally see a true Patriots fan; thank you for not being a typical Bostonian who rarely knew of this teams existence prior to the 2001 season. One who actually can remeber such players as Ben Coates, Steve Grogan, and Craig James.
Also very good analysis of your picks; Bo Rudd is a classic Bill Bellicheck guy and will be an immediate contributer on special teams. I also think you nailed it with Shawn Crable; he's got a ton of talent and was marred by a poor senior season; he reminds me of a poor man's Willie Mcginist but could develop into alot more.
"In both playoff loses, the Patriots have been unable to get the other team off the field in the most important drive of the game. Defense- something that used to be the hallmark of Patriots football- has failed the boys in red, white, and blue. Slow, aging, and unable to keep up, the lovable but clearly vulnerable core of New England’s defense has let us down against both the Manning brothers."
Great point. Sadly the acquisition of Randy Moss played right into this. Although it was amazing to watch their record breaking offense it changed the way the Patriots played football; the type of play that had won them 3 superbowls. More and more they began to look like the Colts of 2001-2005, relying on their offense to create big leads and alter the other teams style of play.
Note: No team in the history of superbowls has won the same year they lead he league in passing.
"And I have to say, the last two seasons of Patriots football have left me with a sour taste of morning breath in my mouth. They have been inexplicably painful."
Tis the pain of having higher expectations haha. I hope that one day my Texans can get to the point where an 8-8 season isn't celebrated as sucess.
8 months ago
Geeze that was more of a rant than a breakdown of the draft. By the time I got through the first 14 paragraphs I was looking around to see where the draft info was. Next time break it up into two articles. That said, I did enjoy the first 14 paragraphs.
8 months ago
i think you weren't really watching the bledsoe years--there were several great winning seasons and many exciting games--including a super bowl and many play off seasons-
but i do agree with you--Brady has become the teflon quarterback--two really bad games--superbowl this year and the indie playoff game last year--and no one says a word about it--if it had been bledsoe you wouldn't hear the end of it
8 months ago
Max- thanks for the comments! I hadnt' heard of Guyton when I wrote the article....not sure who he is really. Musta been off my radar, good catch though!
Trish- I was watching plenty of the Bledsoe years, trust me. I know they made the playoffs and the SB one year, but those teams, in general, were limited and undisciplined. Do you remember the terrible drafts, the off-field issues, and the # of penalties those teams used to make? They weren't catastrophic years by any means, I was just trying to make the point that I am not one of these HOMER pats fans who came out of the woodwork in 2001. I was living and dying pats football back when they sucked and struggled, that's all.
And I wouldn't say Brady's latest SB performance was a bad game at all. Over 300 yards passing with guys in his face all game and the most knockdowns I can remember in a SB since maybe our beating of the Rams. He played so-so against Indy in the Conf. title game and was legitimately bad @ Denver in 2006. Other than those two games, he's been great.
Spenser- Hightened expectations indeed. We're spoiled, I know.
Jason, sorry for the length. I get carried away at times.
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