The first time I noticed Patriots Hater Nation rear its head, I was in an out-of-town sports bar in October. New England, 6-0 at the time, was playing against Miami in Week 7.
The Dolphins were roadkill from the opening kickoff.
The Patriots scored the first five times they had the ball. I didn't notice any obviously partisan Patriots or Dolphins fans in the place, but there was a palpable sense that the crowd was hostile toward New England.
In my blog the next day, I wrote about this growing undercurrent of anti-Patriots sentiment - a neo-Damn Yankees mentality. And some folks wrote back to tell me I was nuts, that I was making it up.
Of course, by the time the Super Bowl rolled around, Patriots Hater Nation was pretty much a national movement. But whether the Patriots deserved the rancor they engendered, one of those guys elicited nothing but respect.
Thursday, linebacker Tedy Bruschi, who will turn 35 by the opening of training camp, agreed to more time in New England.
Under normal circumstances, a guy who has played 12 NFL seasons is pretty much on his way to the golf course. And Bruschi's medical history represents anything but normal circumstances.
He reportedly agreed to a multiyear contract, and anyone familiar with the NFL knows not to put too much stock in the notion of long-term deals. But it still has to make even the most cynical among Patriots detractors smile to see the gutsy Bruschi return.
This is a guy who had a stroke after the Super Bowl in 2005, had surgery to fix a hole in his heart and came back to play the last half of the 2005 season and make 62 tackles. He broke a wrist in training camp in 2006 and missed one game. This past season, he led the Patriots in tackles and had a couple of sacks while helping form a geriatric linebacking corps that contributed to one of the greatest seasons in NFL history.
A couple of recent personnel developments might have facilitated Bruschi and the Patriots coming together for this contract that kept him off the free-agent market. New England missed out on free-agent linebacker Zach Thomas, who was cut by Miami and signed with the Dallas Cowboys. And the Patriots waived linebacker Rosevelt Colvin, whose season ended with a foot injury in November.
Since New England lost in the Super Bowl, some of the edge may be off Patriots Hater Nation next season. That type of rooting interest based on raw emotion ebbs and flows.
But for Bruschi, the respect will endure because of the way he has earned it.
bill.ordine@baltsun.com
