Tom Brady sent New England Patriots fans into a collective frenzy on Tuesday when he did not mention them or their team upon announcing his retirement from the NFL. Hopefully they all believe in the “better late than never” concept.
Brady announced his retirement with a nearly 1,000-word statement on Instagram. He thanked the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, his coaches, teammates, agents, family and many others, but there wasn’t a single word about the Patriots. A lot of people felt the omission was intentional and showed that Brady holds ill will toward his former team.
That didn’t stop the Patriots from honoring the player who helped bring them six Super Bowl titles. The team and owner Robert Kraft issued statements praising Brady, and Brady acknowledged the love both on Twitter and his Instagram story.
Some have speculated that Brady could have something bigger planned for the Patriots, like perhaps signing a one-day contract to retire as a member of the team. It’s also possible that he wanted to give all the attention to the Bucs, as they signed him two years ago when the Patriots chose to let him walk.
It’s no secret that the Brady-Patriots divorce was sticky, but we doubt he will alienate the franchise in retirement. Still, the fact that he thanked the team he spent 20 years with as an afterthought was at least noteworthy.
Photo: Sep 20, 2020; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) in the second quarter against the Carolina Panthers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs both had big games against the New England Patriots on Sunday, and the Buffalo Bills stars let the home fans hear about it.
Diggs caught a touchdown to put the Bills up 17-7 late in the second quarter. He celebrated by pointing at several different Patriots fans and telling one to “shut the f— up.” TV cameras picked up on the audio. You can see the clip below, but beware that it contains inappropriate language:
It initially looked like Diggs was telling all of the fans he pointed at to “shut the f— up.” However, that particular comment may have been directed at a fan in the front row who said something to him.
When the Bills put the Patriots away with a touchdown late in the fourth quarter, Allen appeared to give fans the “bye bye” wave.
The Bills lost to the Patriots three weeks ago in Buffalo. That was one of the most unconventional wins of Bill Belichick’s career, and you know it motivated the Bills heading into Sunday. Diggs had seven catches for 85 yards and the score. Allen finished 30/47 for 314 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. He also rushed for 64 yards. Both Buffalo stars earned the right to boast.
Jonnu Smith was one of the New England Patriots’ biggest offseason acquisitions, and the veteran tight end got his first taste of playing in front of Boston-area fans on Sunday. He says the Foxboro faithful lived up to their reputation.
Smith had high praise for Patriots fans while speaking with the media on Monday. Though, he did use a word to describe them that is typically not a term of endearment.
“This atmosphere is everything that it was built to be. It’s a wonderful stadium,” Smith said, via Mass Live’s Chris Mason. “These fans up here, they call them the Massholes, they were definitely lighting the place up yesterday.”
There are certainly some Massholes who are proud Massholes. But there are others who are called Massholes by, for example, New York Yankees fans. Since Smith is one of their own, we’re guessing Patriots supporters won’t mind.
The Patriots lost a tough game to the Miami Dolphins, but there was plenty to be optimistic about. Rookie quarterback Mac Jones played extremely well and probably would have come away with his first NFL victory if not for a Damien Harris fumble deep in the red zone. If Smith was impressed with the atmosphere in a losing effort, he’s in for a real treat when he’s part of his first Patriots victory.
Tom Brady has expressed excitement for the next chapter of his career in a number of different ways since he announced he is signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the six-time Super Bowl champion wants fans in New England to know they will always have a special place in his heart.
Brady penned a piece for The Players’ Tribune in which he wrote at length about how New England became his home but how excited he is to lead a new team. Not long after the piece was published on Monday, he thanked Patriots fans on social media and shared an emotional video.
There’s no reason Brady would ever hold any ill will toward Patriots fans. He will always be a legend in the New England area, and fans treated him like royalty for the better part of two decades. It’s possible Brady’s relationship with Bill Belichick got to a point where a divorce was necessary, but that has nothing to do with Pats fans.
Patrick Mahomes’ girlfriend Brittany Matthews had a rough time dealing with New England Patriots fans during Sunday’s game.
Matthews, who attended the Kansas City Chiefs’ 23-16 win over the Patriots at Gillette Stadium, voiced complaints on Twitter about the treatment she and Mahomes’ younger brother received from Patriots fans.
“As soon as we sit down, drunk dude “hey everyone this is patrick mahomes girl and brother, let’s give them s–”
This shall be fun,” Matthews wrote on Sunday (edited for profanity).
Matthews’ complaints continued. She said “this place is horrible” and that people were yelling any time she stood up.
This place is horrible, people already yelling every time I stand up, am I not aloud to stand up for football game?
Even on Monday, she was still getting into it with Patriots fans.
All patriots fans “we still have 6 Super Bowls” Lololol Once patrick has been in the league as long as Brady, then chat to me about Super Bowls! Patrick is 24, brady is 42 you just wait
Last year, New England Patriots fans were outnumbered at the Super Bowl by Philadelphia Eagles fans. The Eagles had somewhat of a homefield advantage for the big game in Minneapolis, and they ended up winning things.
This time around, even though their team has been to three straight Super Bowls, Patriots fans have showed up big. An hour before the game in Atlanta, media reporters were saying that Patriots fans were outnumbering Rams fans by a huge margin.
This makes some sense. The Rams have only been back in Los Angeles for three years and haven’t established a huge fan base there yet. Plus, Atlanta is quite a distance for fans to travel. On the other hand, this could be the last Super Bowl for the Patriots in the Bill Belichick/Tom Brady era. Their fans may recognize that and want to be in attendance in the case of a final Super Bowl win to cap the dynasty.
Tyreek Hill did not exactly receive a warm greeting from New England Patriots fans after scoring a 75-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter of Sunday night’s game.
The Kansas City Chiefs playmaker scored a big TD to tie the game at 40 and ran all the way to the stands. He was quickly met with rowdiness from Patriots fans. He was met with a middle finger to his face and had beer thrown at him:
Boston sports fans have to be feeling pretty good about the future. The Patriots are now 3-2 and have looked good two games in a row. Kyrie Irving says he is committing to the Celtics long term. And the top-seeded Red Sox will host the New York Yankees in the ALDS.
Game 1 of the best-of-five series begins on Friday with Chris Sale matching up against JA Happ.
New England Patriots players took part in protesting the national anthem for the first time on Sunday, and the gesture was not well-received by some fans at Gillette Stadium.
According to Tom E. Curran of CSSNE.com, fans seated behind the Patriots bench could be heard booing and yelling “stand up!” at the players who took a knee during the anthem.
Boos and chants of "Stand up!" As the anthem begins with a few Patriots taking a knee in front of bench.
National anthem protests were more widespread than ever in the NFL Sunday after Donald Trump encouraged team owners to force players to stand. One team made a strong statement by remaining in the locker room and not taking the field during the anthem.
The New England Patriots were able to recover Tom Brady’s stolen Super Bowl jersey earlier this year with the help of a fan, and the team is thanking the young man in a big way for Thursday night’s NFL opener.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft personally met with 19-year-old Dylan Wagner and presented him with some front row seats to New England’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Kraft said the Patriots are honored to have Wagner in attendance for their “special celebration,” which of course is the unveiling of their fifth Super Bowl banner.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft met Dylan Wagner (guy who solved the mystery of Tom Brady's missing Super Bowl jerseys) for 1st time @cbsbostonpic.twitter.com/5yM65wsrQH
Brady’s jersey was infamously stolen by a former Mexican journalist after Super Bowl LI, and we later learned that his jersey from Super Bowl XLIX had been stolen by the same man. A tip from Wagner, who collects sports memorabilia, helped the Patriots recover both of Brady’s jerseys. Wagner deserves any gifts he has coming his way from the team.
