It will all be okay. But not this year. This year was painful.

I still stand by what I said after the Saints game: it was not our year. We had too many weaknesses (I listed a few two posts ago, such as pass rush). That being said, I'm actually not so upset about it. Yesterday basically took all of the flaws that we had seen all season and magnified them. That was painful. I wish that the team hadn't had such weaknesses. But we did and the Ravens exploited them, and that's how you win football games.

I'm a fan. Not a bandwagon fan, not a fair-weather fan, but a fan. The team will go through good and bad. Extremely smart decisions will be made (such as the acquisition of Moss/Welker or re-signing TBC). Extremely stupid decisions will be made (dear Lord, may I never have to see 3rd & 20 with a hand-off to Faulk again...that is an extremely stupid decision and I saw it more than once this season, making it even stupider since people might expect it). This year, I do feel that there were some very bad coaching calls and I would like that to be fixed for next season. Yet at the same time, you have to take risks and change or you could become stagnant (a la Giants this season). We sought change. It may have been too much and some bad decisions may have resulted. But the point is that they tried, they failed (somewhat), and now's the time to regroup.

I see at heart here the whole question of why we watch sports: part of the thrill is seeing a group being challenged, struggling, and overcoming. Pats fans are used to this narrative. Yesterday, we saw a group that failed to cohere and could not get together from start to finish. I hope that we can return to the struggle-overcome mode. I think that this has to do with that elusive mental toughness that was a problem for much of the season. Perseverance is what we like to see. Staying around after they fail, that's what a fan needs to do.