We've cracked the seal on a brand new year, and yet, as a sports fan, I still find myself with a lot of unanswered questions heading into 2008. Here are just a few.
Why do people seem to hate the Patriots so much?
As we know by now, the Pats became the first team to go undefeated in 16 regular season games. They have clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs, set numerous personal and team records, and, barring a natural disaster, are a lock to win next month's Super Bowl.
It's been a season for the ages, yet all we keep hearing is people taking potshots at these guys. "They run up the score" is a common criticism, as is the complaint that they are the most arrogant team in sports right now. Well, if you were making the best players in the game look like Pop Warner reserves, you'd be feeling pretty good about yourself, too.
I think a lot of the bad blood surrounding the "Hate-riots" (as I've heard them called) stems from their coach's utter lack of personality. Bill Belichick is not a warm and fuzzy guy. He's doesn't go out for beers with reporters or give amusing off-the-cuff remarks at press conferences. He is what he is: the best coach in football today, and for that he has earned the wrath not only of pundits and commentators, but also of a good chunk of his own fan base.
It would seem that the Patriots' fans of today are getting a taste of what it's like to root for the Yankees. The Evil Empire is one of the most hated franchises in sports today, and one of the big reasons is because it is successful. And for some reason, certain sports fans get agitated when a team goes on a run like we're seeing from the boys in Foxboro right now—which says a whole lot more about today's fans than it does about the guys they come to watch every Sunday.
Why does Isaiah Thomas still have a job?
I'm no human resources expert, but it seems to me that if you sexually harass a female employee badly enough that you cost your employer over 11 million bucks, you probably ought to lose your job. But Isaiah Thomas still continues to patrol the sidelines as head coach of the New York Knicks, leading one to speculate whether he is harboring incriminating photos of Madison Square Garden President James Dolan cavorting with a farm animal.
Even if the Anucha Brown Sanders case hadn't ended badly for the Knicks, Thomas deserves to be canned for his ridiculous job performance. Through a combination of bad coaching and worse personnel moves, Thomas has turned a once-proud franchise into a cocktail party punch line.
Why can't Curt Schilling just shut up and pitch?
I know there are some athletes who are more erudite than others. Some hate the microphone, while others are quick to embrace it. I know in terms of pure volume, guys like Terrell Owens and Chad Johnson are much bigger pains in the ass. But no one seems more consistently willing to open his pie-hole than Schilling, who proved my point recently when he decided to "weigh in" on the Roger Clemens steroid controversy.
The ink was barely dry on the Mitchell Report before Schilling was calling for Clemens to be stripped of all of his awards, records and accomplishments. Forget the fact that nothing has been proven and all we have to go on are the allegations of a glorified clubhouse attendant.
I get that Schilling is ticked about the Clemens allegations, and I will also concede that Schilling's probably saying what a lot of baseball purists have been thinking since this whole sordid steroid mess began. I'm just sick of hearing about it from him.
So do us all a favor, Curt. Stop trying to be the world's foremost authority on everything. Get back into the gym, get in shape, and concentrate on throwing strikes and bringing us another World Series. Because, in the end, that's all anyone in Red Sox Nation and beyond really cares about.
