These are the unfiltered thoughts that I had while experiencing the worst sports-watching time of my life. That is not an exaggeration. I wrote everything at the time indicated, and it is unedited and un-proofread. Enjoy my suffering.
4:00pm – I can't believe I let them do this to me again. They look great at the end of the regular season and for two playoff games, and then they turn into the EXACT SAME TEAM that lost three NFC Championships and the Super Bowl. All the telltale signs are here. They're giving up big plays, they can't get into the end zone, McNabb is inaccurate, they can't stop the run, and the blitz isn't doing them any good because Warner has the timing down. I'm close to having already given up, and if the Cardinals score again here, I'm out. I don't even want to watch the rest of the game. I will, because I'm a glutton for punishment. But I won't want to. I've already yelled all I can, and the first half's not even over. So I'm done investing any emotion into this team if they give up another score.
4:10pm – Yeah, the Cardinals are driving to the end zone again, and they're going to score. So I'm going to record this and watch the Foo Fighters on Austin City limits so that I can come back and fast forward through the rest of this half. It's making me sick.
4:20pm – Watched two Foo Fighters songs and fast forwarded through the AZ touchdown and up to the point where McNabb was flagged for intentional grounding. This is the kind of thing that would be surprising if it didn't happen literally every time they get as far as they're going. The thing that's maddening is that they never play well and lose. Every time they play well, they win. But they simply cannot win the big game. Can't. Never will. Not with Reid and McNabb at the helm. They've shown time and time again that they fold under pressure. Want proof? After this game, their record in NFC Championship games will be 1-4. Yes, they've gotten to the game five times in eight years, and it's been great to watch up until that point. But I've followed bad teams and good teams, and there is nothing worse than watching a good team get so close to winning the whole thing only to forget how to play. It's one thing if it happens the first time they get there. But to have it happen four times, and once after they actually got to the Super Bowl, is unbearable. I'd rather they never made the playoffs this year. The last two weeks were not worth this week. Not even close. If they were ever going to win the whole thing, it was going to be this year. In fact, if they had won this year, I'd give them a shot to win it again under McReid. But after this, it's never happening. You can't come back from this. You just can't.
4:32pm – I haven't looked back yet. I'll probably wait till after halftime so that I don't have to see the analysts' grinning faces as they rave about the destruction of my team. After that, I'm watching the first drive of the 3rd quarter and seeing how the defense plays on the first drive. If things don't change, I'm done. I can't take it anymore. I'm gonna watch some fights to calm me down.
5:13pm – The fight is over, and I feel a little better. I've switched from my McNabb jersey to a Chase Utley jersey to see if there's any mojo at all at work today, but I have my doubts.
5:15pm – And it's a fumble on the first drive. Might as well forget about this one.
5:23pm – Don't ask me why, but I'm still watching. And McNabb just laid a beautiful pass in to Kevin Curtis on 3rd and 19. Now is the part where they'll suck you back in if you let them. They'll get the score to like 24-20 before sputtering out with two minutes left. You watch. (Or they'll just continue getting blown out.)
5:25pm – Touchdown to Brent Celek. I'm not giving in. You cannot have me back today. Understand? You've lost me. (Although on a side note, I hope LJ Smith is out of town next year and they just go with Celek as the first string TE. Dinnertime for the boys, so I'm taking a break from watching this.
5:50pm – Back from dinner, and the defense has begun to play. Too bad it's too late.
5:51pm – Celek scores from about 30 yards out. Wow. I'm not believing yet, because it's too dangerous. But I'm intrigued. No emotion right now. And Akers just missed an extra point. Which means we're losing by one. But man, Hank Baskett made the block of the year on that play. Two guys at once. Awesome.
5:53pm – Why is Troy Aikman killing the Eagles for not trying for two? You never go for two in the 3rd quarter. Had they known Akers was going to shank the PAT, that's one thing. But why would you go for two when you just scored two touchdowns in five minutes?
5:57pm – Another series where the defense dominates. They're clamping down.
6:00pm – DEASEAN JACKSON! 70 YARDS! DEASEAN JACKSON! DESEAN JACKSON! I JUST LOST MY MIND!
6:01pm – Now is when you go for two. No regrets after they didn't get it. It was the right move there. Turns out it was 62 yards, but whatever. Still awesome.
6:04pm – They're saying it depends on the spot from 3rd and 2, but no way they got that.
6:06pm – Good call by the Cards to go for it, and they got it. Time to put an end to this drive, posthaste.
6:08pm – Touchdown Cardinals. Unbelievable.
6:11pm – I'm almost up to realtime now after watching on DVR time, and I'm shaking in my boots.
6:12pm – And it's back to business as usual with incomplete on 1st, 2nd and 3rd down with the game on the line. All we need is 4th down for the soul-crushing defeat, and there it is. I'm speechless. Completely speechless. I'm back at realtime so that I can't fast forward past my shame. If you'll look back at earlier comments, you'll see that I was almost exactly right about the ending here. Except instead of getting within four, they took the lead and then gave it away on the very next possession. Welcome to Eaglesville.
6:17pm – They get the stop on 3rd down, but it doesn't matter. They'll have the ball back with like 10 seconds, and they'll just throw an interception. This game is over. I wish they had never made the playoffs, I wish they had never come back from being blown out in this game. Over and over again I get my hopes up, and over and over again they're crushed. The cycle keeps going, and it will never end. I have no hope that this team will ever win a title, but I'll keep on riding with them. I'll be here next year once again, following them like a sucker, just to get thisclose and lose again. Such is my life.
I'm in no state of mind to do anything right now, but I've got so much to do before work tomorrow it's ridiculous. So I'll take the next hour to mourn the Eagles until my wife gets home and can take care of Luke, then we'll see what I'm capable of. This is far and away the worst loss out of any of the championship games. And it's not close. The Super Bowl was bad, but this was worse.
3 years ago
2 comments:
I can't laugh at your pain (this is very much my exact experience watching Penn State play, except for the part about them taking the lead), but that was a funny read.
I caught that two-man block. It was indeed awesome.
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