Go Patriots. Two years ago, if someone heard me say that phrase, they would probably think I was fatally sick. For the first 13 years of my existence, I hated the Patriots more than the Yankees. More than Duke basketball. More than scrambled eggs. But now, I kinda like them. And it's all because of the new-look Jets. Prior to the Rex Ryan-Mark Sanchez era, I didn't mind the Jets. They had respected, classy veterans like Chad Pennington and Curtis Martin. They had Herm Edwards, who was at least good for some funny press conferences (Hello? You play. To win. The game.) And maybe it's just because I didn't listen to as much sports radio back then, but it seemed like Jets fans actually knew how to keep their mouths shut.
Insert the new Jets. The self-anointed Super Bowl favorites, and best team in the NFL. The team led by a 24-year-old hotshot quarterback who feels the need to fly around like a jet after every single touchdown he throws, despite the fact that he has thrown the same number of interceptions as touchdown passes over his career. And the team that now has the most outspoken fan base in the NFL, who celebrates a 3-point win against the Browns like it's the Super Bowl.
This team has every ingredient of a team to hate, and hate them I do. Due to the fact that the AFC is the strongest conference in years, and that the NFL referees really want to see the Steelers in the playoffs (see my post "What Keeps The NFL From Being Perfect?"), my Dolphins are pretty much out of the playoff race. Thus, I don't feel too bad rooting for the Patriots, the Dolphins' division rivals.
Especially this week. When the Jets head out to Gillette Stadium on Monday Night, I want them to get brutally destroyed in every facet of the game. And then I will happily listen to paranoid Jets fans call in to 660 AM the next morning.
Last time I had a post dedicated to the Jets losing (Come On, Ravens), it worked out pretty well for me. So as weird as it feels to say, GO PATRIOTS.
-Robby
-Robby
