jmccollum@latour.DEC (01/14/86)
Gee, I thought for a while I get away with my Raiders comments without reply. I was beginning to wonder what happened to the Raiders fans. Would they let all this go by without comment? > >up to their reputation. They couldn't beat the Patriots on their own field > >so Matt Millen decided to beat up on New England GM Pat Sullivan. Howie > >Long (quickly losing his popularity in his home state of Massachusetts) had > >called Sullivan a "wimp", "spineless", and a "classless slob". But it was > > Please read the comments below. I believe that Long's comments were > justified. This "gentleman" stands on the sidelines where he faces no > consequences for his actions. It got so bad during the game, that his > own players moved him from the end of the bench to the middle in order to > calm him down and keep him from being killed. It really takes a lot of > class and courage to taunt opposing players from the safety of your own > sideline when you don't have to take the field against them. By the way, > to finish out Howie's statements we should not forget the following: > "He's 32 or 33 going on 12" "Classless", "going on 12", maybe. But I don't think any "spinless" "wimp" I know would grab Howie Long after his team had lost a playoff game at home and try to pick a fight with him. Having had a chance to further reflect on this incident, I will retract some of my previous statements. Pat Sullivan is somewhat of a jerk. Actually, he always has been. But his tirade against Long was brought on by Howie himself. Before the game he had made some comments that were extremely degrading to not only Sullivan but the Patriots as well. I still maintain that the Raiders are original classless act in the NFL. It is too bad that Sullivan couldn't show himself to be above the kind of antics that Al Davis' teams have made standard practice. It did taint the victory. > 5. Matt Millen saw someone, not in uniform obviously, grabbing at one > of his fellow players. He took exception to this and hit him. Does Howie Long need Millan's help to defend himself against someone like Sullivan? Despite Sullivan's stupidity, Millan's actions were not called for. > >"classless", it is now and always has been the Oakland/LA Radiers. Great > >win! The Patriots and their fans deserve it. > > See above for another definition of classless. I'll agree now after seeing film and reading stories that Sullivan qualifies as classless. Fortunately this does not extend to the rest of the organization. I don't think this can be said for Al Davis. Maybe I just see the bad in the Raiders. Then again, maybe Pats owner Billy Sullivan is right when he says that the attitude of the team reflects the character of the man on top. > I am rooting for the Pats on Sunday and in the Super Bowl. You are right > that they are a very talented team who certainly deserve a shot. The way > they played on Sunday they certainly deserve it. And the way they played against Miami. I felt that the Patriots would win this game and they didn't let me down. Miami is one of the best coached teams in the league, but their shortcomings are obvious. No running game and no running defense is not the way to get to the Super Bowl. So how did they manage it last year? > Looking forward to the Pats winning their first Super Bowl, it sure would be > sweet if they could beat the Rams doing it :). Granted it would be easier for the Pats to take on LA, and I'm not crazy about the Bears, but I'd feel something was wrong if this year's Chicago team wasn't in New Orleans. I see a tough defensive game with a final score of about 17-14 with the Bears on top. But on any given Sunday..... > P.S. You want to talk about "classless"? How about Schaeffer Stadium fans? > I'll bet the league is glad none of the Pats' playoff games are in > Foxboro... I'll bet the Town Of Foxboro is glad, too! I guess reputations do follow you around. Despite the disgusting events of past years in now SULLIVAN stadium (how's that for modesty) things are not that bad anymore. I was at a few home games this year and I did not see a single problem. Only after the Pats clinched a playoff spot against the Bengals did all hell break loose. But that is understandable after 26 years of letdowns for the fans. Well, I've had my chance to spew my Raiders venom. It's been building up for years. I'm looking forward to seeing a Super Bowl between two teams that have never been there before and both deserve a shot at it. > Bill Dewey > > New England transplant and Raider fan. Jim McCollum New England resident and Cowboy fan decvax!decwrl!dec-rhea!dec-latour!jmccollum E-Net: latour::jmccollum Internet: mccollum at TOPS20.DEC.COM