“The Fine Print”, by M.H. Schrader
(Published 29 January 1997 in the Neighborhood
Journal. Posted in toto 1 October
2002.)
The
“biggest event of the year” is officially over. What’s that you say? You thought that we already had the “event
of the year”? The “event of the year”
is yet to come?
How
can this be? How can there be more than
one “event of the year”? After all,
the Sugar Bowl was hyped as the “event of the year.” The Super Bowl was hyped as the “event of the year.” The NCAA Men Basketball Final Four is hyped
as the “event of the year.” The NBA
Championship is also the “event of the year.”
And let’s not forget the Stanley Cup Finals and the World Series.
Okay,
how about this--how about we call the Super Bowl “This week’s event of the
year.” Sound more truthful? Good.
Anyway,
“This week’s event of the year” is now over, much to the relief of 50 million
American women who will now get their significant others back until March and
the next “event of the year.”
In
years past, I really could have cared less about the Super Bowl, or as I have
lovingly referred to it, the Stupor Bowl.
After all, it is just a football game; no more, no less. And frankly, even if I wanted to, Mrs.
Schrader always put the kibosh on the idea, as she is not a big football
fan. So, it’s probably a good thing,
then, that I wasn’t interested, because in the end, it really wouldn’t have
made one iota of a difference--I would have been overruled by the highest court
in the Schrader household: Mrs.
Schrader.
This
year, however, was different. I found
myself actually interested in watching the game. Even worse, I found myself interested in the playoffs. Why?
Because, for the first time in a long time, the football postseason was
actually interesting. The teams that
have dominated the sport the last decade or so, San Francisco, Denver, Dallas,
Buffalo--all lost. There was fresh
blood; I like fresh blood.
Who
would have expected both expansion teams to make it to the conference
finals? It completely surprised (and
alarmed) the networks and other coaches.
The networks, because a Carolina-Jacksonville Super Bowl would have been
a ratings dud, as neither team has been around long enough to build a national
following. The other teams, because if
the expansion teams can build winners in just two years, why can’t the
established teams? Thanks to the
success of the expansion teams, fan expectations have jumped.
In
all honesty, who would have thought that Green Bay and New England would be the
conference champions? Most people had
assumed that it would be Denver and either the Cowboys or the 49ers. Hasn’t it, then, been a pleasant surprise?
Green
Bay has been down so long that many find it hard to believe that they were ever
good. It’s been just about 30 years
since Green Bay has last had a champion.
And those 30 years have been, well, pretty awful. There have been numerous seasons where
Green Bay has battled it out with Tampa Bay to determine the worst team in the
league. Those three decades were so
bad that a 6-10 season was a good one.
The
Patriots haven’t fared much better.
With the exception of the 1985 season, the Pats have also been
also-rans. And their only other Super
Bowl appearance was a humiliating 46-10 blowout in 1986 at the hands of the
Chicago Bears. Give the Pats credit
this year--a two-touchdown loss is NOT a blowout. In fact, they looked like they would win until Desmond Howard’s
fabulous kickoff return in the second half took the wind out of the Patriots’
sails.
After
the 1986 loss, the Patriots almost moved out of Massachusetts, and suffered
under the worst owner that any professional sport has ever known--Victor
Kiam. Yes, the fellow who bought the
company. The low point for the
franchise came when a Patriot exposed himself to a female sportscaster. Not only were the players losers on the
field--they were losers off the field as well.
It
is the past adversity faced by these two teams that piqued my interest in a
football game. It really didn’t matter
who won; both teams are winners, as they showed the character to overcome
adversity and the negativity that comes with losing. Becoming winners did not happen overnight; it took several
years. I must admit, even I was moved
when the Packers won the NFC championship.
I think it was the sight of 75,000 fans sitting in subzero weather
applauding the hometown team. Being
cold was a small price to pay for a conference championship. One of the players said that the team won the
championship for the fans, who never abandoned the team, even during the awful
seasons. The win was the team’s way of
saying “Thank You.”
I
sincerely doubt you would see this kind of behavior from Dallas fans; after
all, Super Bowl championships are expected.
Anything less is a disappointment.
I’m certain you would never see one of the Cowboys thanking the
fans. After all, what person wouldn’t
want to come and see the Cowboys play?
The
stories of the Cowboys and Packers are a metaphor for life. When we are not faced with adversity, we
begin to take things for granted, begin to expect things. A new house, a new car, a boat, a
vacation. However, when we go through
some bad times, the good times seem that much better. We value life and everything that it has to offer that much more.
Adversity
builds character. It takes the bad
times to appreciate the good. It can
help us to change from the Dallas Cowboys, spoiled and unappreciative, into the
Green Bay Packers, humble. I know which
one I’d rather be.
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