Tag: New England Patriots

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NFL General

Super Bowl tickets are expensive; don’t forget you’re gonna have to watch Eli too


We know that the chance to see a perfect 19-0 season doesn’t come around very often, but this is starting to get just a little out of hand. Don’t you people have kids you want to send to college?

Asking prices for the Feb. 3 game range from $2,450 to $19,446 at StubHub, a unit of eBay Inc. and the biggest of the online resellers. Officials there say the average price so far is $4,300 for tickets that the National Football League originally priced at either $700 or $900.

“You gotta mortgage your home to get into the game,” said Michael Hershfield, a former lawyer who recently started the ticketing Web site LiveStub.com. “There’s this recipe that’s been spiced up for a very exciting, very hot event. With all the changes in the industry, this combination has created this current wave of supply and demand.”

RazorGator Chief Executive Jeff Lapin, who is predicting total sales will set a record, is amazed what buyers are willing to pay. Tickets on his Web site are listed between $2,700 and $7,200. “I’m telling my friends to buy now because it looks like it’s going to be tight,” he said.

StubHub figures show the march higher of scalped tickets in recent years. Tickets it handled for last year’s game between the Bears and the Colts averaged $4,004. That was sharply higher than the Steelers-Seahawks in 2006 at $3,009, the Eagles-Patriots in 2005 at $2,659, the Patriots-Panthers in 2004 at $2,290, and the Raiders-Buccaneers in 2003 at $2,767.

Considering the University of Phoenix Stadium will seat around 75,000 on game day, we’re talking about a whole lotta the greenbacks. Even with an expensive divorce settlement ahead, we know Shaq Daddy can foot the bill, but what about us regular Joe Six Packs? We’re going to have to sell our organs to get through the gates? Aww, screw it; if we’re dropping a load of cash, it’s going to be at the Lingerie Bowl and it’s going to be all in one dollar bills!

Links:

[CBS2.com]: Super Bowl LXII Tix Fetch Record Prices

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Indianapolis Colts

The karma police were on hand in Indianapolis last week


Maybe it was karma that caused Indianapolis to choke away an AFC title game opportunity on Sunday. After all, the Colts were up 10-7 at halftime of their contest against San Diego last week before the botch. Now, Indy fans are scuttling to find explanations for how they let another epic showdown with New England slip through their fingers, but we say look no further than the halftime entertainment. You basically begged fate to kick you in the balls by booing a little girl.

Fourteen-year-old Anny Grant was the Patriots’ representative in the annual Punt, Pass and Kick competition. And when she was introduced along with the other winners before the fourth quarter of San Diego’s playoff win over the Colts, she was the only one booed by the crowd.

Booing a 14-year-old; shame, shame. You know what they say, karma is a bitch and apparently she works double time to get revenge when a stadium of 56,950 gang up against one little girl. Of course, the New England Patriots were quick to reward Grant for sporting their colors in a hostile environment.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft says she’ll be honored on the field this week before the AFC championship game against the Chargers.

Grant also returned from school and heard a phone message from Andre Tippett, the Patriots’ executive director of community affairs and a former star linebacker. She called back and was ecstatic when Tippett extended the invitation to the game – plus tickets for her, her parents and two brothers.

Links:

[WishTV.com]: Patriots to honor young fan booed in Indianapolis

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New York Giants

Yet another reason to take the stairs

There were plenty of shrieks of agony coming from New York Giants fans on Saturday as the Patriots made history inside the Meadowlands, beating the G-Men 38-35 and becoming the first team to ever run the table during a 16-game regular season. While there was plenty of pain in the stands, the real suffering and anguish occurred under the bleachers.

The escalator at Gate A apparently failed at the bottom steps, state police Lt. Jim Crann said. The escalator runs from the stadium’s upper tier to the ground level, and Crann said it appeared some bottom steps became bent, causing some fans foot and leg injuries.

James Minish, executive vice president of facilities for the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority, which operates the stadium, said one of the injured fans appeared to have a fractured leg, while others had scrapes and bruises.

Two fans apparently suffered more serious leg injuries, Minish said, but he did not have further details.

Of course, escalator accidents aren’t always a result of mechanical failures. In fact, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 75 percent of the 6,000 escalator injuries per year are due to falls. Like this one:

Or this one:

Links:

[WashingtonPost.com]: 7 Injured on Escalator at Meadowlands
[NorthJersey.com]: Stadium escalator had failed before

Categories
New England Patriots

Bill Belichick does his best Santa Scrooge impression


The Patriots are on the verge of immortality. With a win over the Giants on Saturday night, they can brush aside those annoying, geriatric Dolphins from yesteryear, becoming the only team to go a perfect 16-0 in the regular season. Sounds like a pretty good Christmas gift to us. Bill Belichick, on the other hand, is still gonna be a “bah humbug” until that Super Bowl trophy is in his hands again. So, leave it to Sports Illustrated to have a little fun with the NFL’s grumpiest guru, digitally putting Belichick into a Santa suit for the cover of the year-end special of SI.

We gotta give it to the guys at SI, other than seeing a bikini clad babe sprawled across the magazine’s face, this was the year’s best cover. Heck, even Belichick seemed to enjoy it.

Being associated with Santa Claus, there’s a lot worse associations to have,” he said yesterday. “I’ll take it. When you’re a kid, sometimes you dream about being on the cover of Sports Illustrated. That’s not actually the one I pictured, but it’s pretty funny. Whatever sells.

“…not actually the one I pictured”??? You didn’t want to grace the swimsuit edition cover, did you?

Links:

[TheStar.com]: `Santa’ Belichick latest coverboy

Categories
New England Patriots

No one compares to the Pats for Pat Noone, not even Mrs. Noone


We all love to say that we’re our favorite team’s No. 1 fan. Some of us could even make a legitimate case to receive such an award. But in the end, we all pale in comparison to the one, the only, the undeniable king of extreme, New England Patriots superfan Pat Noone.

Consider this: For more than 30 years, Noone has been driving to games at Foxborough from his home in – wait for it – Pennsylvania. The trip from the Poconos typically takes 5 1/2 hours, but in bad weather, Noone, an executive at the DG Yuengling & Son Brewery, can be on the road for up to 10 hours – and that’s one way. But, wait, there’s more. Noone’s wedding ring has a Patriots logo on it, and he’s installed a 1,200-pound wooden bear wearing a Pats jersey in his front yard. The house he shares with his long-suffering wife has a replica of the Pats locker room, and it even includes a urinal.

Okay, so maybe it’s a bit overboard, but Mr. Noone is still the coolest guy on the planet. C’mon, how many of you guys out there would love to have the balls to say something like this to your potential wife.

Q. Being recognized like this must be a treat

A. I’m ecstatic and grateful. It’s one of the highlights of my life.

Q. Don’t let your wife hear you say that.

A. Oh, she’ll understand. When we got married, I put a stipulation on it. I told her, ‘The Pats are No. 1 and you’ll be No. 2.’ I told her if she can accept those terms, great, and if not, I’ll understand and we can go along just being friends.

…

I told her about training camp and the draft. . . I told her she could be No. 1 for the month of May.

And she still said yes?! We stand in awe Mr. Noone, we stand in awe.

Links:

[Boston.com]: How big a fan? Patriots are No. 1 in his life, his wife No. 2.

Categories
New England Patriots

50 Cent ain’t got jack on Mercury Morris

You might not like the Patriots; hell, you might hate the Patriots. Hell, we hate the Patriots (that damn Tom Brady and his stunning good looks). But you have to be rooting for an undefeated season and clean sweep of the playoffs; even if it’s for no other reason than to simply shut Mercury Morris the heck up.

Oh, this guy isn’t living in the past. His beats are even ancient. We’re surprised his rap didn’t start off “I’m Mercury Morris and I’m here to say…“. Man we hope karma bites Morris right in the butt. Nothing would be sweeter than to see New England run the table AND Miami pull the ultimate 0-16 choke job. Hey, he’d always have ’72.

Categories
Pittsburgh Steelers

Steelers Anthony Smith guarantees victory over Pats and then asks what the definition of `is’ is


The Patriots sure did lose a lot of credibility despite never having lost a game. Guess all it takes in this league is a couple of close contests to go from everybody thinking you’re gonna run the table to getting guarantees dropped on your head by opposing players. Sorta.

People keep asking me if we’re ready for the Patriots,” Steelers defensive back Anthony Smith said. “They should be asking if they’re ready for us.”

Is Smith so confident that he is willing to copy one of former Pittsburgh linebacker Joey Porter’s familiar motivational ploys by guaranteeing the Steelers will win?

“We’re going to win,” Smith said. “Yeah, I can guarantee a win. As long as we come out and do what we got to do. Both sides of the ball are rolling, and if our special teams come through for us, we’ve got a good chance to win.

We’ve got no qualms about guaranteeing victories. If a player or coach wants to open their fat mouths and inspire their opponents then so be it, but just make sure that you are actually going to nut-up and guarantee the victory flat out. Smith tried to guarantee victory, but still managed to leave himself an out by adding the clarifying clause of “As long as we come out and do what we got to do.”

Guess what, we guarantee that we will own an NFL franchise one day. As long as they lower the price to under $199.99 and we can pay our players in dirt and leaves.

Hopefully for Smith, like with crappy Christmas gifts, maybe it’s just the thought that counts.

Links:

[International Herald Tribune]: Steelers player “guarantees” win over Patriots

Categories
New England Patriots

Rumor has it Gordon Ramsey is looking to hire Bill Belichick

Did you know that Bill Belichick’s “culinary skills are legendary throughout the NFL”? We didn’t think so. In fact, the only person who seems to be blown away by Belichick’s recipes for BBPBJs is this loser Mike Veneman. What a friggin’ brown-noser.

Geez, a guy who loves to sport hoboesque looking sweatshirts has a fancy for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Go figure.

Links:

[PatsFans.com]: Cooking with Bill Belichick

Categories
New England Patriots

Even Roger Goodell bows down to the great Bill Belichick


Don’t worry, you’re not the only one who thinks that NFL commish Roger Goodell just got soft. After Bill Belichick intentionally broke the rules during the very first week of the season, Goodell decided to dish out measly fines of $500,000 to Belichick, $250,000 to the Patriots and took away the team’s first-round draft pick next year if they reach they playoffs and second and third rounders if they don’t.

Talk about a slap on the wrist! He says that the draft picks will hurt the team more than suspending Belichick. Okay, whatever, he’s got his reasoning and who are we to argue. After all, his tenure so far has been pretty spectacular with his gift of Pacman Jones to professional wrestling and his lengthy suspensions of other notorious bad boys. But what gets us are the puny fines. $750,000 combined just seems a bit weak. Just the other day on the other side of the pond, the World Motor Sports Council slapped Team McLaren with a $100 million fine and stripped them of all their points due to a spying scandal! Now, that’s a fine!

It’s blatantly obvious that this isn’t the first time this has happened, regardless of what Belichick says or doesn’t say. So, while it’ll never happen and we all know the comments are in jest, who knows, maybe the Philadelphia Eagles really do have an argument.

I think they should forfeit, man,” said punt returner Reno Mahe, smiling. “We won the Super Bowl. I think we should get it.

I’m going to go trade my NFC championship ring for a Super Bowl ring.

Links:

[KETV.com]: NFL Fines Pats Coach Belichick $500,000
[6ABC.com]: Did The Patriots Cheat in Super Bowl?

Categories
New England Patriots

Tom Brady is Tom Brady’s biggest fan

The NFL season is just about to get underway and for all the dudes out there that means Sundays full of beers and barbeque and Monday Night Football/poker night at your buddy’s pad. But for the ladies, the kickoff to the NFL season has a whole other significance: its Tom Brady time!

Rickey Henderson and Chad Johnson better watch out because Tom Brady refers to himself in the third person more than either of those two loudmouths. And who knew that Brady had a persona bigger than Bill Brasky’s? No wonder chicks like Gisele are throwing themselves at his feet.