OT: Patriots

[intlzncster]

Pats lose, blame the refs or the NFL for conspiring against them.

It is what they do, they are a miserable bunch.

UCONN fans blames NCAA conspiracies for a lot of it's faults too. Anti UCONN bias in the press (of which the same can be said about the Pats). And referees favoring P5 times. etc etc.

 

[superjohn]

Hahha, Bill's apparently a good and funny guy off the field. But OK, you can like JC more. That's fine, I certainly have no problem with that. I'd prefer to have a beer with JC myself.

How do you think other fans of other teams feel about JC personally? Because I know the answer to that.

Neither of those two made ANY friends in the media and opposing fanbases.

Everyone thinks Calhoun has a personality, they may not like it but he's always been an open book. Belichick has shown nothing, he's the antithesis of Calhoun.

 

[Jerry1714]

UCONN fans blames NCAA conspiracies for a lot of it's faults too. Anti UCONN bias in the press (of which the same can be said about the Pats). And referees favoring P5 times. etc etc.

No, idiot UConn fans do, and sadly there is a lot of them on this board an the majority of them are probably Pats fans.

That is probably where they learned to act like idiots.

 

[intlzncster]

And yes, I fully understand and accept people not liking the Pats in any capacity. I wouldn't expect them to. Totally cool with that. Again, I just want the facts to be clear, unclouded by bias. In the same way I want fans to be clear that the APR thing was completely bogus on so many levels, whereas most opposing fans think UCONN brings in guys chews them up and wins championships as a result. There is very important context ignored by the opposition in both cases.

That's where I stand. And I get that opposing fans will STILL say otherwise. So it goes.

NB: I like most of you guys as posters, but think you become totally delusional on anything related to the Patriots. I consider myself one of the more rational guys on this forum, able to separated my fandom from what I consider the reality of a situation. Sometimes that's in favor of my teams, sometimes not. And yes, I think you can still be a homer, and be able to step back and analyze a situation from a far. They are not mutually exclusive.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Please just stop, comparing the Patriots to the Yankess and Belichick to Calhoun is gross. There is always a bit of a backlash with very successful teams but the cheating is what really pisses the rest of the country off. As for all the nice guys the Patriots employ it's the same as all the other teams except for the serial killer star player they employed.

I generally like your posts but you sound breathtakingly idiotic when it comes to the Patriots. Every team in the NFL is trying to win. If you wanted to be more than a whiny keyboard warrior you could confirm for yourself that your favorite NFL team has likely been sanctioned by the league before. Hell, the freaking Jets got caught taping at Gillette before they blew the whistle on the Pats. The reason no one gives a ____ when it happens to most teams is that they don't win.

If the Pats were the Tampa Bay Bucs do you honestly think that "deflategate" would have seen the light of day? Of course not. Other teams have actually been caught manipulating the balls. No one cares. No one calls them "cheaters." New England wins. Brady's record is insane. When you win, and you win, and you win, a lot of people don't like you. End of story. The easiest way to confirm that someone's opinion on sports isn't worth a damn is when they start throwing around "cheater" in the context of pro sports. John Elway's two super bowl rings are a direct result of "cheating" by the Broncos. I've never heard you cry about that. Probably because you were nine when it happened.

This Peyton thing won't go anywhere because Peyton doesn't win. When you're known as the "greatest regular season" anything - and people mean it as a compliment - you don't win anything that matters. And he's spend 15 years cultivating goodwill with the media that Belichick and Brady never had. That's pretty much it.

 

[intlzncster]

Why? Not sure I understand. Would it be different if I was a Cowboy fan in WesMass? I think not upstater. But again, a Giant fan has little incentive to dislike the Pats, they beat them when they have to

This is one thing you post often, which I totally disagree with, mau. You are a New York fan first and foremost, and the Boston vs New York thing is very real to this day. Also, you live in Patriots country, and I know that sticks in your craw immensely so. You definitely do not like the Patriots. Which is cool. And yes, I realize you were taking the opportunity to needle a Pats fan there.

 

[Matt (Chicago)]

Pats lose, blame the refs or the NFL for conspiring against them.

It is what they do, they are a miserable bunch.

Where do you see anyone blaming the refs or the NFL? The coach and the players both said that the plan had been to kick off.

 

[superjohn]

I generally like your posts but you sound breathtakingly idiotic when it comes to the Patriots. Every team in the NFL is trying to win. If you wanted to be more than a whiny keyboard warrior you could confirm for yourself that your favorite NFL team has likely been sanctioned by the league before. Hell, the freaking Jets got caught taping at Gillette before they blew the whistle on the Pats. The reason no one gives a ____ when it happens to most teams is that they don't win.

If the Pats were the Tampa Bay Bucs do you honestly think that "deflategate" would have seen the light of day? Of course not. Other teams have actually been caught manipulating the balls. No one cares. No one calls them "cheaters." New England wins. Brady's record is insane. When you win, and you win, and you win, a lot of people don't like you. End of story. The easiest way to confirm that someone's opinion on sports isn't worth a damn is when they start throwing around "cheater" in the context of pro sports. John Elway's two super bowl rings are a direct result of "cheating" by the Broncos. I've never heard you cry about that. Probably because you were nine when it happened.

This Peyton thing won't go anywhere because Peyton doesn't win. When you're known as the "greatest regular season" anything - and people mean it as a compliment - you don't win anything that matters. And he's spend 15 years cultivating goodwill with the media that Belichick and Brady never had. That's pretty much it.

I mainly just like messing with upstater in these threads because he seems like an incredible whiner when it comes to the Patriots and he seems borderline stalker when it comes to all things Brady. Patriots don't have anywhere near the history of the Yankess so had to chime in on that and I have no problem comparing Belichick and Calhoun as coaches, I just think any comparison of them as people/personalities is way off. Not even sure if the poster was trying to compare them as people but I've seen it done here before.

 

[intlzncster]

I mainly just like messing with upstater in these threads because he seems like an incredible whiner when it comes to the Patriots and he seems borderline stalker when it comes to all things Brady. Patriots don't have anywhere near the history of the Yankess so had to chime in on that and I have no problem comparing Belichick and Calhoun as coaches, I just think any comparison of them as people/personalities is way off. Not even sure if the poster was trying to compare them as people but I've seen it done here before.

That was me, and no, not as people. I barely know anything but snippets about Bill as a person. It was purely from a coaching and media/fan(opposing) relations context.

 

[StoweD210]

Hahha, Bill's apparently a good and funny guy off the field. But OK, you can like JC more. That's fine, I certainly have no problem with that. I'd prefer to have a beer with JC myself.

How do you think other fans of other teams feel about JC personally? Because I know the answer to that.

Neither of those two made ANY friends in the media and opposing fanbases.

That's one of the biggest points. If Calhoun had defenders in the press like Calipari or Kryzewski, the APR issue would be viewed very differently. Instead, he got the "We finally got him" treatment and accompanying piling on. In the same way, many in the media dislike Belichick because he doesn't make their job easy, so he doesn't get the same kind of pass or "Let's wait and see" reactions that other media-friendly coaches and players do.

 

[superjohn]

That was me, and no, not as people. I barely know anything but snippets about Bill as a person. It was purely from a coaching and media/fan(opposing) relations context.

Gotcha. Belichick is the best coach I've seen in the NFL and the best ever in my opinion, JC is probably #3 in my opinion.

 

[Adios]

Even Miko Grimes is helping the Patriots!

 

[August_West]

The Pats filmed from the sideline instead of the endzone, where it is legal. Big whoop. Remember, it was NOT ILLEGAL during there first run of championships. What is that NFL films garb thing? Where did you get that?

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/13533995/split-nfl-new-england-patriots-apart

 

[Jerry1714]

Where do you see anyone blaming the refs or the NFL? The coach and the players both said that the plan had been to kick off.

Did you read the first part of the thread??

Or this: http://www.barstoolsports.com/bosto...ve-to-wait-till-next-week-to-clinch-playoffs/

I have no issues with the team, but I have lived in a lot of different places in the country, and hands down there is no one worse than Pats fan. I live in Boston now and its really crazy how many times I have been told "yea you beat us twice but at least we have 4 SBs while the Giants have only ever won 2"

 

[Robertelamin]

The Patriots schedule this year is so bad they don't even need to cheat. What is their best win? Houston on the road? Redskins at home?

 

[Husky25]

The Patriots schedule this year is so bad they don't even need to cheat. What is their best win? Houston on the road? Redskins at home?

Making the Playoffs does not a good team make. As primarily a Redskins fan, I am happy they are in the tournament, but I have no illusions that they will win in two weeks, regardless if they play Seattle, Green Bay, or Minnesota.

The best wins for the Pats this year at the time they played the game were probably 1) Pittsburgh, 2) Jets at home, and 3) New York Giants.

 

[Rico444]

I generally like your posts but you sound breathtakingly idiotic when it comes to the Patriots. Every team in the NFL is trying to win. If you wanted to be more than a whiny keyboard warrior you could confirm for yourself that your favorite NFL team has likely been sanctioned by the league before. Hell, the freaking Jets got caught taping at Gillette before they blew the whistle on the Pats. The reason no one gives a ____ when it happens to most teams is that they don't win.

If the Pats were the Tampa Bay Bucs do you honestly think that "deflategate" would have seen the light of day? Of course not. Other teams have actually been caught manipulating the balls. No one cares. No one calls them "cheaters." New England wins. Brady's record is insane. When you win, and you win, and you win, a lot of people don't like you. End of story. The easiest way to confirm that someone's opinion on sports isn't worth a damn is when they start throwing around "cheater" in the context of pro sports. John Elway's two super bowl rings are a direct result of "cheating" by the Broncos. I've never heard you cry about that. Probably because you were nine when it happened.

This Peyton thing won't go anywhere because Peyton doesn't win. When you're known as the "greatest regular season" anything - and people mean it as a compliment - you don't win anything that matters. And he's spend 15 years cultivating goodwill with the media that Belichick and Brady never had. That's pretty much it.

The Patriots are a dynasty, and Brady is one of the best QBs ever, and I agree there's some people that hate winners and that's why some jump on every negative story about the Pats, but it's pretty clear they're always looking to get an advantage. You really think the cheaters thing is complete BS? John Calipari has never been directly implicated, do you think it's unfair that people call him a cheater?

 

[DarthGrumpy]

I was gutted for that kid. Loved him on the Pats. Great redemptive story. Was psyched when Oakland cut him, and the Pats scooped him up again. He'd still be on the Pats if they didn't have so many injuries and needed to sign guys at positions of need. Pissed he went to the Jets. Happy he was finding success. Bill loved that kid, as you could see by the mid field hand shake/condolence yesterday.

Vollmer's injury, to this fan, looked like a pretty severe ankle injury. Hopefully just a sprain, and not a break. Guy that size though, it might be tough. No word yet.

Sadly, from what I saw and how the Pats CB reacted after the play, its a ACL/MCL injury. He planted his leg and his knee just buckled. I saw a lot of the Pats players shake hands with Thompkins, who was having a good game for the Jets, go up to him. I am no Pats fan and I think Coach B's ego is a tad on the large size; but, that was a classy move by the Pats. Did not look good for Vollmer either as that was one of the fastest calls to the cart that I have ever seen. Took about 2 minutes from the end of the play to when he disappeared down the tunnel. Again, best wishes to both players on a speedy recovery.

 

[mauconnfan]

If anyone has a right to be aggrieved, after all the nonsense this offseason, it's Pats fans. I would also compare the Pats to UCONN in this way. You don't think the NCAA bullsh_t UCONN went through gave fans a reason to be salty post championships (2011/2014)? The commentary on this board would suggest that was the case; people STILL post about it all the time. Additionally, and there's a very good comparison between coaches than Calhoun and Belichick. Both cantankerous bullheaded masterminds who are at the very, very top of their professions historically.

Without likeable players? You are out of your mind. THAT shows your bias. The Pats roster is filled with likeable players. They have very few, if any, UNlikeable players. Multiple winners of the annual community service award; barely anyone getting arrested, and when they are, cut immediately. Yes AH, blah blah blah...that was clearly a one off.

And not one Red Sox fan liked Jeter, just as it is with New York fans and Brady. But the rest of the country loves Brady: he often leads in Jersey sales, week in week out, and this is after a 15 year career. Usually the leader in Jersey sales is a young gun. He is the face of the NFL right now.

Note, I enjoy being the Evil Empire, as I'm sure Yankees fans did in the late 90s. It means you are the best. Everything you do is front page news. Just part of the territory. But I'm not going to sit quiet if I think other fans are being untruthful and spreading talking point lies. Nor do I think I should be.

C'mon really? You were doing okay but then the the rest of the country "loves' Brady is hilarious and "if any" unlikeable players? OMG you guys are whacked with your thoughts of who they are outside of New England.

 

[mauconnfan]

This is one thing you post often, which I totally disagree with, mau. You are a New York fan first and foremost, and the Boston vs New York thing is very real to this day. Also, you live in Patriots country, and I know that sticks in your craw immensely so. You definitely do not like the Patriots. Which is cool. And yes, I realize you were taking the opportunity to needle a Pats fan there.

I'm a Celtic fan from Connecticut so I am a Yankee, Giants, Rangers and the C's. I didn't pick a town my family picked some teams and I followed. I like both cities in their own way and like Fenway a ton better than Yankee Stadium. I used to respect the Sox as much as the Yanks when I grew up in CT because we had the usual banter but all of my friends were split. It was the same throughout growing up and then I moved to WesMass in 1990 married to a Red Sox and Pats fan who really didn't care much because both weren't winning anything. Then came the early 2000's and the hit the fan and you went from people wearing whatever to everyone having a B or a Patriot on their hats, shirts, jackets, golf bags, head covers etc etc. Nothing much at all prior to then - you figure it out from there! It may not be you or upstater at all, but the bandwagon Nation grew in a crazy way and all of a sudden everyone knew it all about these teams. The dislike did not grow to these depths at all until about 11-12 years ago. I was honestly rooting for the Pats during the early years as they became what they are now. But with success came really obnoxious fans form the woodwork. I say it all the time because it's true and I lived and and live it. And you can see much of it here too!

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Please. Unlike UConn, nothing ever sticks to the Pats. They are without question the biggest martyrs in all of professional sports history. They cry so much over any suggestion of impropriety that you would think they actually got real penalties for the various and sundry misdeeds at which they have been caught red handed.

A million bucks and a first rounder for what all but the most delusional (read: you and the other Giants fans in this thread) recognize for what it was: an epic display of Goodell's incompetence. You sound silly.

Incidentally, if we're trading completely worthless anecdotal information, I work with a Jets fan who likes Brady, so there.

 

[intlzncster]

I'm a Celtic fan from Connecticut so I am a Yankee, Giants, Rangers and the C's. I didn't pick a town my family picked some teams and I followed. I like both cities in their own way and like Fenway a ton better than Yankee Stadium. I used to respect the Sox as much as the Yanks when I grew up in CT because we had the usual banter but all of my friends were split. It was the same throughout growing up and then I moved to WesMass in 1990 married to a Red Sox and Pats fan who really didn't care much because both weren't winning anything. Then came the early 2000's and the hit the fan and you went from people wearing whatever to everyone having a B or a Patriot on their hats, shirts, jackets, golf bags, head covers etc etc. Nothing much at all prior to then - you figure it out from there! It may not be you or upstater at all, but the bandwagon Nation grew in a crazy way and all of a sudden everyone knew it all about these teams. The dislike did not grow to these depths at all until about 11-12 years ago. I was honestly rooting for the Pats during the early years as they became what they are now. But with success came really obnoxious fans form the woodwork. I say it all the time because it's true and I lived and and live it. And you can see much of it here too!

Fair enough, but can you really fault fans for getting excited about a team for winning? I mean, that's how most fanbases are grown, one of the few tried and true ways to do it. Would UCONN MCBB have as many fans if it didn't win so much? I became a fan during and because of the dream season. If we hadn't won anything after that, I'm not sure I would still be a fan. Would UCONN WCBB be the most popular draw in the country if they weren't the most dominant program every? Would the Yankees have so many fans worldwide if they hadn't won a bunch of championships? They most assuredly would not. What do you think is going to happen to UCONN football if/when it becomes successful? Fandom city. And we are going to be happy and THANKFUL for it.

I think the most commendable fans in that particular respect are Red Sox fans; there is a large number of long suffering people who rooted for a team that at best finished second, more often than not getting their hearts ripped out every couple of years. People were born and died without seeing a championship. Of course there are pink hatters now, but so what? That's also why I think Browns fans are some of the best in the game. How you can remain so passionate about that dumpster fire of an organization is beyond me.

A lot of Patriots fans became so when Robert Kraft bought the team and turned the entire culture around. Got a new Stadium built, made the team part of NE and Boston culture (yes he dicked over Hartford, but that's business). There were tons of fans in the 90s with Parcells and Carroll, prior to Belichick barnstorming the NFL.

 

[intlzncster]

C'mon really? You were doing okay but then the the rest of the country "loves' Brady is hilarious and "if any" unlikeable players? OMG you guys are whacked with your thoughts of who they are outside of New England.

Which guys on the current Patriots are so unlikeable to you? Please, name them.

How do you measure overall popularity? One of the best ways is jersey sales(@NFLshop.com).

1. Brady
2. Beckham
3. Gronkowski
4. Rodgers
5. Newton
6. Kuechly
7. Bryant
8. R. Wilson
9. Watt
10. A. Brown

Another source (via NFLPA): Top 50 NFL Player Sales for March 1, 2015 - May 31, 2015
01Tom Brady
02Colin Kaepernick
03Russell Wilson
04Aaron Rodgers
05Peyton Manning
06J.J. Watt
07Richard Sherman
08Odell Beckham Jr.
09Marcus Mariota
10Jameis Winston

More insight on that list: http://www.forbes.com/sites/maurybr...-sees-new-england-patriots-qb-tom-brady-at-1/

Start of the Season? Brady again: http://www.cheatsheet.com/sports/nfl-the-5-top-selling-player-jerseys-through-week-2.html/?a=viewall

5. Jarryd Hayne, running back, San Francisco 49ers
4. Rob Gronkowski, tight end, New England Patriots
3. Odell Beckham Jr., wide receiver, New York Giants
2. Dez Bryant, wide receiver, Dallas Cowboys
1. Tom Brady, quarterback, New England Patriots

Dicks Sporting goods nationally? Tom again: http://www.dsg.com/jerseyreport/football?

So where are your metrics, outside of a few anecdotes and bunch of online nutjob commenters at ESPN? I'll be happy to check them out.

 

[Husky25]

I'm a Celtic fan from Connecticut so I am a Yankee, Giants, Rangers and the C's. I didn't pick a town my family picked some teams and I followed. I like both cities in their own way and like Fenway a ton better than Yankee Stadium. I used to respect the Sox as much as the Yanks when I grew up in CT because we had the usual banter but all of my friends were split. It was the same throughout growing up and then I moved to WesMass in 1990 married to a Red Sox and Pats fan who really didn't care much because both weren't winning anything. Then came the early 2000's and the hit the fan and you went from people wearing whatever to everyone having a B or a Patriot on their hats, shirts, jackets, golf bags, head covers etc etc. Nothing much at all prior to then - you figure it out from there! It may not be you or upstater at all, but the bandwagon Nation grew in a crazy way and all of a sudden everyone knew it all about these teams. The dislike did not grow to these depths at all until about 11-12 years ago. I was honestly rooting for the Pats during the early years as they became what they are now. But with success came really obnoxious fans form the woodwork. I say it all the time because it's true and I lived and and live it. And you can see much of it here too!

You are absolutely mis-remembering the start of the bandwagon for both teams, Mau. The Patriots bandwagon got rolling in the early 90s when Kraft bought the team and brought in Bill Parcells, who then drafted Drew Bledsoe. The modern Red Sox bandwagon started in the surprise 1995 season and really got rolling in 1997, Nomar's rookie year. It became a steamroller in 1998, with the arrival of Pedro, who then teamed up with Mo Vaughn and Nomar as the last Sox great hope (Vaughn signed with Anaheim before 1999).

As far as the merchandise boom? Both teams rise in popularity not only coincided with new ownership and marketing departments, but also the Internet. No longer was someone relegated to the local team. I got my first summer office job after my Sophomore at UConn (1997). That was the year Alvin Harper was rumored going to (and ultimately wound up in) Washington Burgundy and Gold. I asked someone on a very antiquated ESPNzone.com message board. I asked someone how they knew Harper was D.C. bound and the told me to go to the Washington Post's World Wide Web site. I've had it bookmarked for the passed 18 years for Redskins news.

That all said, it's hard to believe you missed the increase in obnoxious Yankee fans during the same time frame.

 

[zyron]

So where are your metrics, outside of a few anecdotes and bunch of online nutjob commenters at ESPN? I'll be happy to check them out.

Top 20 most hated NFL players 2015. Guess who is Number 1?