Cheering for the Overdogs

Call me crazy, but I'm not usually a fan of the "underdog," particularly in the NFL. (Sure, upsets when the underdog was misjudged are kinda cool, but not when the infereior team is merely lucky or the favorite just plays poorly.) I prefer teams building to greatness as opposed to "instant" greatness. I don't like to see a losing team from last year make it to the Super Bowl.

I don't like to see teams improve their win total by more than five games in a season. New Orleans may be a slight exception. Circumstances, not talent, led to their 3-13 season last year. New coach, acquiring a Pro Bowl quarterback, drafting the Heisman Trophy winner, and a determination to rebuild a city's morale have created a honeymoon for them, and they improved by seven games in the regular season. Still, I'm uncomfortable with going from 3-13 to the Super Bowl. It indicates that the NFL has too little depth. A couple injuries to starters can knock out a team; staying healthy or particularly strong performances from just one or two players can make a loser into a winner.

This isn't to say I want all good teams to stay good and bad teams to stay bad. I love comebacks and cinderella stories - but only to a point. I don't want to see "flash in the pan" Super Bowl teams but rather perennial play-off teams making it to a Super Bowl. I want to see teams go through at least one or two seasons of play-off heartbreak before winning the big game.

More than cheering for the underdog, I like to see greatness be great. I feel under-achievement is more tragic than over-achievement is exhilerating.

All of this to say, I want the Bears to make it to the Super Bowl, and the Patriots, with the Patriots winning. This affirms their greatness. And if not the Patriots, I want the Colts to get there and win it to affirm the greatness of Manning, Harrison, Dungy, etc. If the Bears get back next year, I'd probably want them to win. But I don't think they're good enough yet.