True Fandom

So first off, I think I need to clear up some things from Peyton Manning Part 1.

I am not a Peyton Manning fan.

What does that even mean though? As far as being a "Fan" goes, I think there are levels of fandom. For now, let's just boil it down to, (assuming you are a fan at all), True Fan, or Casual Fan. Sure there's also Fair Weather Fans, Bandwagon Fans, etc, but I just want to focus on these two for a second.

I can easily use myself as an example for both.

The Casual Fan:
This is me when it comes to baseball and my favorite baseball team, the Red Sox. Yeah, I'm from the Boston area. The Sox are definitely my team, no question about it. That being said, most of the year, I just don't really care. I mean, I pay attention. I listen to sports talk radio and, while I admit, I'm twice as likely to change the station when they're talking about the Sox, I still do listen to a fair amount of the over abundance of Sox-talk here in New England. I can usually tell you our starting lineup. I usually know where we are in the standings, even during the doldrums of the 160-whatever game season. I at least usually know where we stand in the AL East. I even instinctively root against the Yankees! I tune in when October rolls around, especially if we've got a real shot at winning it all. Or, of course, if we're playing the Yankees. However, for the most part, I just don't really care. The idea of watching any of the first 150, or so, games of the season is my idea of nothing.

2004 against the Yankees was one of the coolest things in my life as a sports fan. I tuned in for every game of that series and almost every game of the playoffs. I loved that "Idiot" team. I loved Cowboy Up! I loved Papi and Manny's handshakes, Johnny Damon's hair and valley girl I.Q., Kevin Millar's sanity, Pokey Reese's defense (and name), everything that came out of the mouth of Pedro Martinez, and everything about Orlando Cabrera. Cabrera was, in fact, probably my favorite player from that team. His energy, his defense, how much he just loved being here, his clutch play, everything. Then we didn't re-sign him, and I'm still bitter. I feel like not keeping him as our short stop has haunted us ever since. And you know what...

I have no idea if I'm right about that!

That's the thing! I'm just a casual fan. I don't know why we couldn't keep him. I don't know if he was really any better than anyone we've gotten since. I don't even know who he plays for right now! I don't know what he's done since leaving, and you know, I'm not going to look it up. See, I'm just a casual baseball fan. I don't really care to know those things. I would like to, but not enough to find out.

If it was October and we had a real shot at doing something, I would do some homework. Sure. Maybe I would even look up what Orlando has been up to since I last saw him. But we're not, and I won't. I enjoy the Sox, but I don't loooove the Sox. More to the point, I don't really like baseball.

The True Fan:
This is me when it comes to the New England Patriots (and Boston Celtics for that matter). This is me when it comes to the sport of football (and basketball, but focusing on football for the moment). I love football. I mean, I really looooove football. And I really love the Pats.

I grew up in Florida. Ever since was about 11 years old I have loved the Pats. I mean, loved the Pats. I took a tremendous amount of verbal abuse from Miami Dolphins fans, but not once did I ever think of thinking a kind thought towards the Dolphins. Even then, I realized they were in our division and their successes and failures had a direct correlation to ours.

Obviously, my ability to follow the Pats and know what was going on has grown over the years. Around age 15 I probably would've described myself as a True Fan. Since then my opinion of what that really means has changed a bit.

Being a True Fan goes deeper than love of the jersey. It goes deeper than wanting your team to win every week. It's more than knowing all the players and their stats. It's not all about hating our opponents and rivals.

It's about grasping the big picture. It's about having a sense of history. It's about appreciating the game being played the right way. If you're a fan of a team, that doesn't mean you're a fan of that team. That's what I was to the Sox in '04. I was a fan of that team. The "Idiots". It wasn't about the 86 years or any of that for me. It was just about that team, and the Yankees. Sure all that history played into it and added to the experience, but those things didn't hit me on an emotional level. Those things weren't the reason I was tuning in. For the True Fans, however, it was about something more. It meant a lot more to them and I knew it. And I appreciated it. For them it was about the years of suffering. It was about being able to chant "Yankees suck", and have it finally be true. It was about the Red Sox being legitimately better than New York and everyone else. Even if it was for just one year, we were legitimate. For the first time in most of their lives, we were making progress in the championship count with the Yankees. 1 down, 25 to go. That was the big picture. We gained ground. And for at least one year, we were everything we feel like we should always be.

Would I have loved coming back from 0-3, even if we went on to lose to the St. Louis Cardinals? Yeah, I probably would have. Would a True Fan look back on that fondly? No way. It would've been looked at as a tragedy. I mean, don't get me wrong. Everyone would certainly always love that the only time someone came back from 0-3 was us against the Yankees. Any fondness related to that memory however, would quickly be replaced by feelings of regret and loss in the hearts of all True Fans, conjuring up thoughts of Buckner, Bucky Dent, Aaron Boone and everything else. Because in the big picture, it would still be 26-0, Yanks. And that's the only score that really matters.

When you're a true fan, you're either a fan of the franchise, a fan of the player, or some combination of the two. You're rooting interest is tied to the history of the game. It's about your team, your guys, and how history will look back on them. In sports, it's all about one thing... competition. And, by extension, legacy.

What is competition? Competition determines legacy. It's winning and losing. It's being the best, or being everyone else. Well, when you root for a team, a franchise, a jersey, being the best can't be about one year. It's got to be about the big picture. Even when you root for an individual, eventually it will come down to their place in history.

For some players (Steve Young, Ray Lewis, Peyton Manning, Moses Malone, Kevin Garnett) just winning a championship legitimizes their career. Whether it sets them solidly at the top of their tier, or just officially puts their name into that "Greatest" discussion, getting that ring has a huge effect on legacy. For some players (Brad Johnson, Trent Dilfer, Corey Dillon, Chauncy Billups, Rasheed Wallace,) they're just thrilled to be there. It sets them apart from the rest of the players in their tier, albeit, a lower tier. Not in the discussion of "Greatest". For some players (Dan Marino, Charles Barkley, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash) it is the unavoidable, glaring omission separating them from others on that highest level.

Franchises are no different. For some (Yankees, Red Sox, Patriots, Cowboys, Steelers, Canadiens, Red Wings, Bruins, Celtics, Lakers) it is the standard. For these franchises every season is like a new game. Maybe even just another play in one big, ongoing game. You hoist a banner at the end, you scored one more point. Simple as that.

For others, (Bengals, Bills, Clippers, Islanders, Mariners, every Cleveland team), just winning a championship is all their fans ask for.

"Just get us on the board. Please, for the love, please don't let us get shut out. Don't let all my rooting be for nothing."

Just one championship would make it all worth it for these fans.

Or so they think.

Until they get one.

Once you're on the board everything changes. You realize it's not about getting on the board. It's about winning the game. This is competition. Like Herm Edwards said, "you playyy, to winnnn, the gaaaammmmee".

And I think as fans-- as True Fans-- that's what we root for. We grasp the big picture. We want our guys to win. Whether it's our team, our guys, whoever, we want them to win. And it's an ongoing thing. It doesn't end after one season.

Ask me how I know? Because I lived it.

Before 2001-02 with the Pats, I thought all we could ever ask for was just to get one. To get on the board. One sheared major blood vessel in the chest of Drew Bledsoe later, and that was no longer enough. The playoffs weren't enough. This is now about a dynasty. This is now about the Steelers 4 Super Bowls in 6 years. This is about Tom Brady's legacy. It's about securing our place in history.

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So when I say I'm not a Peyton Manning fan, it doesn't mean I don't respect him. It doesn't even mean I don't like him. To me, it means I don't want to see his legacy enhanced. It means I feel like his legacy is already overrated and I don't want to see him placed above more deserving players in the eyes of the history of the game. That's what it's all about in the end. Legacy.

So do I like Peyton Manning? Sort of. It does annoy me the way he seems to suck up to the adoring public, the way the league and the media fall all over themselves for the First Family of the NFL, his penchant for throwing teammates under the bus instead of taking the blame for his own collapses. However, even with that short list of things that annoy me, I wouldn't say I dislike him. I don't think he sucks. I don't hope he dies. None of those things represent how I feel. And none of those things, to me, have anything to do with True Fandom.

True Fandom, to me, is what enables me to appreciate a player like Peyton. To see what he's been to the game. To embrace that he's approached the game the right way, the passion he has for it, and the way he's played it at the highest level.

So do I like him?

Eh... I'm apathetic.

But, I sure do respect him.

I think it's important to grasp these things in their proper light. Yes, I can write a post about how awesome one of our biggest rivals has been. And yes, I'm hoping someone else knocks him out of the playoffs before we have to. And-- most importantly-- no... I am not a Peyton Manning fan.

Did I mention I kinda love this guy? --->

He's just so awesome.

I know, I know, I'm not a real fan. What can I say?


Now that we've got all that cleared up, Peyton Manning (Part 2) should be done early next week.