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Listen up Tom Brady.
I’m a New England Patriots fan. I’m not one of those bandwagoners that joined and became fans *after *you won the super bowl for us. I’ve been there since the days of Drew Bledsoe.
I remember watching Pats games as a kid, and watching the Pats lose game after game, season after season, consistently get their asses handed to them by better teams. **Nobody **took us seriously. That one year we got to the super bowl, finally, Super Bowl 31. Nobody expected us to win. And we lost as expected.
It didn’t matter to me. Back then, every touchdown was precious. Every single play that put us back in the game, every single win was a gift. Because we would lose more than we would win, often times.
Didn’t matter. We were the runts that nobody expected to win. The underdogs that couldn’t win a championship to save our lives. But the Pats were MY team.
Since Tom Brady came along, I’ve been treated to over a decade of seasons where we were not the underdogs. We were the team to beat, even on years where we lost the super bowl the year before. Because we would crush almost every other team we came across. And if we didn’t win the first time we faced em, we’d beat em the second time.
We were the monsters everyone else had to slay to win. And every game was a treat, because there was a good chance I was going to watch my team win. And I’d always see the big plays, the big Tom Brady pass plays, the big long passes, the consistently well done short passes, and a quarterback that didn’t flinch under pressure.
I’ve gotten to watch something I never thought possible those years ago, a team everyone needed to beat, and usually couldn’t beat. And I’ve experienced so many fantastic games.
I’ve gotten to watch my team win the big game not just once, but three times, and I’ve gotten to see them create record breaking seasons, with 50 touchdowns, and a winning streak unparalleled.
I actually predicted you guys would lose the super bowl that year you had your nearly perfect season. I wanted you to win, but I remember you only just barely beat the Giants during the season. They didn’t have our record but they nearly beat us before, and we had some close calls. Our winning streak involved some one-sided victories but we were definitely vulnerable. I thought you guys would put on a good show but ultimately lose to the team everyone expected would lose, because the confidence going in was unwarranted. Sure you guys kept winning but all good things must come to an end. I did not care. I still wanted to see my team play a game.
When it happened that you lost that game, I didn’t care. I’ve seen you win the big game three fricking times.
I was used to watching my Pats team not even make the playoffs, or lose early. Now I was used to seeing my Pats team go to the super bowl or get damned close every year. I was used to seeing my Pats team get their butts kicked, or come close to winning. Now I was used to seeing my Pats team kick everyone’s ass, or only come close to losing.
You can’t win them all.** You nearly did,** and that’s better than anyone else can say, except for one team that had a shorter season than you did.
Some folks have a team that went winless for an entire season. Some folks have teams that haven’t seen a playoff game in a long while. Some folks have had losing seasons for many, many years. I haven’t had to be one of those fans for a long, long time.
But I used to be.
Thank you for giving a loyal fan something to watch, something to root for, not just out of loyalty to the team, but because there was always a chance when Tom Brady was on the field, that the other team would be utterly destroyed.
That is more important to me than a Bowl win. And you’ve got three of them.
You can’t expect to win them all. Really, some very good quarterbacks have been some of the best of all time, and failed to win a single Bowl game, because they didn’t have the team to back them up like you have.
I know you want to win again, but you do win. You have winning seasons all the time. Many teams do not. You’re one of the best of all time, indisputably. How many seasons of your opponents have you personally ended? How many dreams of championships have you personally crushed?
Sometimes you get the bear, sometimes the Bears get you. But usually it’s the Giants. 
Don’t make yourself too sick over not having a Championship for seven years.
Any real Patriots fan does not care. They come to see you play. They’re here to see you, because you deliver. Every season has been watchable, every season has been inspiring, and every season has been fun. You’re rarely off your game, and you always come back.
I remember the quarterback that would have an inspiring game, and then throw four interceptions and get sacked a truckload of times. I remember the guy who flinched under pressure. Who would get shaken and I’d know the game was over.
You may lose games, but you don’t lose your cool. You still fire into coverage and make the pass complete. You still confidently wait until the last moment and still throw the perfect pass. You still rally the team from behind… you inspire them like you inspire us Pats fans. We know that with Tom Brady, the Patriots can win. Under any circumstance.
The game is never over.
Some teams can’t say that. Some teams know their season is over by the third or fourth game. Some teams know the game is over by the end of the first quarter.
I’ve never had to say that as a Pats fan since Tom Brady came around.
Keep that chin up. As long as you’re on the field, another Super Bowl win is possible. I believe it. But I will also come to see you play, and see you lose, because I’ve only ever wanted to see a team I could be proud to call “my” team.
It’s not about the wins for me. Even your opponents know you’re unique, you’re one of the best of all time. It’s a privilege to get to play against you and your team because in the game of football, you’re not going to find a more daunting or consistently skillful opponent. You and your team have been able to tear apart most of the NFL and have a winning record against almost every opponent.
If you’re a chess player, you want to play against Bobby Fischer at least once, because you know even if you lose, you’re not going to test yourself against a tougher opponent. If you’re a football player, you want to be able to say you stood toe-to-toe with one of the greats of all time, and had a chance, even a chance, of winning.
Every single win every other team has had over Tom Brady is one of the highlights of their season. They got to say they beat you. Some will get to say they came close, which gives them hope that they can win the whole smash.
All I ever ask as a fan is that you come to play, you come to try to win, and you give it your all. I want to be able to keep cheering and rooting for you into the final minutes of every game, not turn the channel when you’ve visibly given up. I’ve never had to see that for over a decade now.
You and the Pats *have *won. I have been and will always be a Pats fan. Just give them all a run for their money, and I’ll keep watching. Just keep putting out that same effort, and I’ll keep tuning in. Even if you start losing more than you win. Because I know Tom Brady is never down and out unless he’s not playing at all. I might be used to the Pats winning but I’ve not become spoiled. I know how precious and rare each of those wins really is in the scheme of things. I haven’t forgotten what it’s like to be a fan of a mediocre team. But I haven’t had to be one for a long, long time.
Thanks, from a true fan.