They hate us because they ain’t us…

Villens United by Chris Haskell

Nobody throws a victory parade like Boston. Many ‘Villens, Bostonians, and fans from all over New England braved the bitter cold to join the victory celebration after witnessing Tom Brady solidify his legacy as the greatest of all time with his record setting fifth NFL Championship.

Fans have become accustomed to seeing the Duckboats roll out time after time again after a big win. This was the tenth victory parade for Boston sports teams in the last 12 years and the tradition will likely continue for years to come. The city has been crowned “Title Town” by many sports enthusiasts around the country and is a sports fan’s dream come true.

Like many born in the area, I had gotten my first Red Sox hat as a toddler and thus began my love affair with Boston sports teams. As young as I was during the 80’s I can still remember the fervor around the Celtics Championship teams and the tales my uncles would tell of Bobby Orr and the greatness of the 70’s Bruins. I myself had to wait until Tom Brady came along to fully experience the Championship pride of Boston. Since then my entire adult life has become a seemingly never-ending victory parade and has provided me with cherished memories and tales that I’ll tell for the rest of my life.

When the Red Sox reversed the curse in 2004 I was hanging out with friends in a tavern in the city. I’ll never forget how the bar erupted after the final out was called in the ALCS game 7 vs. The Yankees. Random strangers were jumping around for joy, hugging and kissing each other. It was electric. I thought that I would never experience the same kind of energy of energy in the room that day; but years later Malcolm Butler would have me jumping around like a madman again after a game saving play at the goal line to win another championship. Yet as magical as those moments were, those joys may have been eclipsed when Brady won his fifth in the greatest comeback of all time and stuck it to Roger Goodell.

After the Patriots won their third championship, I optimistically predicted Brady would have 7 rings before he retired, and as ridiculous as that sounded at the time it’s now a realistic possibility. Over the last 20 years The Patriots have become the most dominant franchise in sports history. Five NFL championships, 7 Conference championships, 14 Division titles, and a 16-0 season. There will never again be another period of dominance like this for this length of time in professional sports. Many of the records Brady and Belichick now hold will never be broken and the duo still seem to have enough gas in the tank for at least a few more seasons.

Regardless of how successful our sports teams are they are never lacking a colorful cast of lovable characters that keep the fans passionate and engaged. A decade ago, fan favorite Johnny Damon inspired fans to parody his Christ-like appearance by wearing Jesus costumes to games to become “Damon’s disciples.” This decade’s lovable Boston sports star is unquestionably Rob Gronkowski, aka Gronk. His goofy, fun loving, party boy charm has endeared Gronk to New England fans and when he’s not partying he’s giving back to the fans and the community.

Sports bring people together. Nowhere is that more prevalent than here in Boston. People come to the Boston area from all over the world and many embrace and mirror our passion for our sports teams.

We Boston sports fans are one of the strongest brotherhoods in our country, consisting of all genders, races, and cultures. There is an instant bond with a stranger wearing a Red Sox cap when we’re out of state. Boston sports teams have more Boston team bars in other states around the country than anyone else. We proudly wear our fandom like a badge of honor. Proud to be part of the greatest sports dynasty of all time. Proud to have reversed the curse. Proud to be from Title Town. Roger that?

Later ‘Villens … See you at next year’s Patriots victory parade! We want #6!