Keeping the faith in New England

By Os Davis  |   Thursday, January 04, 2007  |  Comments( 2 )

New England Patriots
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Take a seat there, kiddies, and let the old guy tell you about the days when Boston was known as the heartbreak capital in all of sports. I know, I know, for you younger folks this is about as unbelievable as the Soviet Union or that TV stations once stopped broadcasting at midnight, but it's true.

Sure, winning wasn't completely alien to the folks up there in the six-state area: The Celtics lofted many a championship banner in the Garden even before Larry Bird arrived, and the Bobby Orr-led Bruins won a Stanley Cup or two in their day. But you may have heard something about a curse on the Bad News Bosox that was in place for a couple of geological eras.

And then there were the New England Patriots. While my peers and I marveled to those football machines in places like Pittsburgh (with Bradshaw, Harris, Rocky Bleier, Swann, Stallworth, Webster, Ham, Lambert ...) and Dallas (Staubach, Dorsett, Pearson, Too Tall Jones, Randy White, Harvey Martin...), the offerings in New Hampshire were the red-and-white clad Steve Grogan, Stanley Morgan and a bunch of other guys who often contended, but never had enough to truly threaten for the big prize.

(Yes, there was a fluke Super Bowl appearance in 1986, but mention of the event is still considered a second-degree felony in five of the six states of New England. And the large kitchen appliance that keeps food cold is an icebox, a cold closet, a thingee, but never a "refrigerator.")

The futility continued into the '90s. Bill Parcells earned temporary local legend status by coming into town and getting the Revolutionaries into the Big Dance with Drew Bledsoe at the helm. The Tuna soon went downstream, however, and Bledsoe became reviled in that special way only Boston fans can.

Today, those days seem far far away indeed. In 2006, the Patriots have three rings on the hand (and it could be four if not for the zebras in the Denver game last year, New Englanders'll be glad to inform you while steadfastly avoiding mention of Tuck Rules and such) and are perpetual contenders. Going into Week 17, RealFootball365 had the navy blue-and-silver at No. 4 in the NFL, with most power polls putting the Pats in a similar spot. Football's followers in all the markets are constantly reminded that "as long as they have Belichick and Brady, the Patriots cannot be counted out."

The Patriots started the season going 5-1 "under the radar." When they dropped back-to-back games against the Indianapolis Colts and New York Jets, my father, who still shudders at the words "Matt Cavanaugh" had this to say: "Go Celtics." Going into the Tennessee Titans game, he was firmly on the bandwagon again, marveling at how Brady had found TE David Thomas, a dude who had caught three passes in the first 13 games of the season, for five completions and a touchdown. When I called him out for complaining about the team at roughly the halfway point, he said, "Yeah, but that was when they were on that two-game losing streak."

A two-game losing streak. Such complacency, unimaginable in New England even, say, eight years ago. Back in the "we want Flutie!" days of Patriot football, the Boston Herald would pray in print for a two-game losing streak.

But that is the miracle of these Patriots, the football team of this decade at the halfway mark. Somehow, in direct contrast to the century-long modus operandi of non-Celtic Boston sports franchises, these Patriots actually find a way to win. Along the way, they've inspired a bandwagon that more resembles a church.

(From the playbook of Psalms: "As long as they have Belichick and Brady, the Patriots cannot be counted out...")

My friend Steve, in actuality a Chicago Bears fan, is among the most ardent believers in Patriot football that I know. While I cynically commented throughout the Broncos game in last year's playoffs (hey, old habits die hard, even with a 15-year vacation in Albuquerque) that the Pats looked thin of depth and listless of play, Steve repeated "This is the Patriots."

Says Steve, "No matter what, they always teach you something new."

Going into the playoffs, he won't hedge on the Patriots going far, but won't count them out. As for the Jets, well, Steve astutely points out that "this is the kind of game the Patriots have shown they win every year." He rhetorically asks: Remember how the Steelers were supposed to knock them out in the 2002 playoffs? How everyone said a few times, "This is the year the Colts knock them out"? About how the Jacksonville Jaguars were supposed to give them gave last year? "And the Patriots always win that game," he concludes.

My younger brother Rich (though well old enough to remember Mosi Tatupu) was a bit daunted by the prospect of the Beaneaters facing the thorn-in-the-side Broncos in January again, but saw little threat elsewhere. Of course, that was before the Rodney Harrison injury. Now, Rich is slightly more sober about a potential February champagne bath, but only slightly. "I like their chances, regardless," said he, of a potential match with the San Diego Chargers, figuring that Belichick and Brady trump Schottenheimer and Rivers.

While anyone can see that the Patriots are threadbare thin (Now no Harrison? Ouch) and not nearly as consistent as in years past, the amount of confidence these guys and their fans exude is absolutely remarkable. This team is to be reckoned with, them and their quiet swagger, a type which remains unique in Boston sports and in the whole of the NFL.

Now, my brethren, one again with the choir: "As long as they have Belichick and Brady..."

Believing in sweet New England Patriots football at RealFootball365.com.
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About Os Davis

Os Davis has taken a twisted route to get to RealFootball365.com in his nearly 17 years in professional writing, working in any number of capacities in the sportswriting, news reporting and film criticism worlds. In print media, Os has served as editor at a few publications, including Albuquerque's...
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