I was browsing through Facebook today when I saw a pic from a friend taken from ESPN. It had a countdown timer from now until the end of our Wild card match up with the caption, “Countdown Until the End of the Patriots Dynasty.”

Clearly, Patriots Derangement Syndrome is at an all-time high. It has been for the last, shit, almost twenty years. So, how did we get here? How did we get to all of America hating such a fine team?

We’d have to go back, not to our first batch of Superbowls, but to the 2000 draft.

Once upon a time there were six young quarterbacks, five of which you haven’t heard of since and one who is now a legend. Those who know history will know that Brady was pick 199, looked over by many simply because he didn’t look the part of the many legends like Dan Marino, Joe Montana and others.

No one thought anything of Brady back then. Little did they know, the other thirty-one teams would live to regret their decision for the next nineteen years. The Brady/Patriots hate is one of jealousy and regret.

It’s kind of like that guy in the movie who passes on that geeky, or not obviously attractive girl. Someone else picks her up, and over time her beauty manifests itself. When you realized what you could have had with a bit of patience and faith, it’s too late.

The other thirty-one owners are those guys that passed up on that geeky girl. For nineteen years they’ve had to recap the consequences of letting an elite quarterback slip away. They’ve reaped those consequences in the form of heartbreaking losses, failed playoff runs, failure to control their divisions, failure to enter the playoffs, and failure to bring home Lombardi Trophies.

Brady to the others is more than just a reminder that they’re not winning. It’s also missed opportunities. He’s a painful reminder of the critical mistake they made nineteen years ago, the mistake of not believing in him and giving him a chance.

Every division title we take, every championship we win, every ring and trophy we get, the others will always be reminded, That could have been us! He could have been our QB! We could have been that dynasty! We could have been the greatest!

Nineteen years later, if there’s anything we’ve learnt from all of this, it’s that jealousy is an ugly thing.

It’s kind of like the catty girls in high school who hate a girl because she’s pretty and has it together. What do they do? They fabricate and spread false and ugly rumors about her in order to systematically smear public opinion of her.

No one can match the production, so all the media does is devote their time and money to making sure the entire country hates us.

Look, I don’t know how well we’ll play, but now y’all have to kick Tennessee’s ass.

 

Flemmings Beaubrun is an avid gamer and lover of music. When not working, Flemmings likes to spend his time whipping up dank beats for the masses. He also spends his weekends thrift shopping for rare video games and obscure electronics. Other times he’s in front of a TV with a giant bowl of cereal enjoying shows from the 90s.