A person has to be a bit masochistic to be a fan of sports. The yo-yo effect of wins and losses, the intense frustration when players mess up and cost our favorite team a win; yet we continue to watch, week after week, season after season. Dedication runs deep, and there is a love-hate cycle that ensues almost the moment we're hooked.
I'm a devout fan of the Patriots. Since the mid-80s I have subjected myself to more bad seasons than good, yet those successful seasons have spoiled me greatly. It isn't that I've forgotten what losing seasons are like; emotional rollercoasters of near misses, heartbroken moments and heartburn. Awful season after awful season, I lamented the lack of drive and talent along with every other Patriot fan. And then it happened. Brady took the field for the first time after Drew Bledsoe's season ending injury in the 2nd game of the 2001 season. That game was lost, but the season ended with a trip to the Super Bowl and a subsequent win. Since that season Patriot Nation has gotten quite comfortable with top notch seasons, not to mention several trips to the big game.
On days like today, we get a painful reminder of the disappointment once suffered year after year. We are passionate about the wins, critical of the losses and all the fuck-ups we witnessed from our arm chairs and sofas, and we love it all. When we lose a game that keeps us from that pinnacle of the entire season, particularly when the season leading up to it was incredible it is heartbreaking. Even more so when we seem to be unable to break free of the trend for losing in Denver.
Despite the agony of defeat, we will return to those arm chairs, sofas and barstools, donning our team jerseys, practicing our guaranteed, foolproof rituals and yell and cheer at the TV screen again come August. I'll be counting the days until preseason begins. It's marginally easier to swallow losing when it was by two points and not the 34 point defecit the Arizona Cardinals suffered to the Carolina Panthers. Until next season, the jersey is put away, but I'll still be sporting every other piece of Patriots clothing I own between now and then. New England pride...even when our guys disappoint us, we never really give up.
And, for now, I've got the X-Files.
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