NFL Postseason Megathread: Playoffs in the Post-Orton Era

[jimmy olsen]

Bizarre article. Any Patriots fan is aware that the Pats are much more hated than the Ravens.

[Neil]

Pretty funny to see a sportswriter that covers the Patriots calling the Ravens "the most hated team in America".  Didn't know Berkut blogged for them.

Clickbait trolls are trolls.  That's how modern journalism works, and most especially sports journalism.  The idea that any team that isn't the Dallas Cowboys could be as hated as the Patriots is laughable, and even the Cowboys are debatable and are at a temporary high tide due to the NFL's largesse in giving them a bye to the divisional round.

[dps]

I'd say that the Cowboys are still the most hated team in the NFL (though probably not on this forum).  A lot of the derision heaped on Romo the last few years is just the Cowboy haters coming out of the woodwork to gloat when things weren't going well for the team.

But yeah, no doubt that the Patriot are more hated than the Ravens.  What is there, really, to hate about the Ravens?  Outside of Cleveland, hatred of the Raven mostly just comes from people still upset because they think Ray Lewis got away with murder (and the fact that any team that wins a few titles will engender some hatred based on simple jealousy).  The Pats offer more reasons directly related to football issues to hate them.

[Admiral Yi]

A lot of Pats hate is based on them winning a lot and Brady banging trillion dollar pussy.

[Valmy]

I hate the Cowboys but I love Romo.  Anybody who is a Cowboys hater who does not love Romo is suspect in my book.  He is the second coming of that great Cowboys killer Danny White....only more so.

[frunk]

There's plenty of Ravens hate from Steelers fans, of which there are a lot.

[Ed Anger]

I hate the Cowboys but I love Romo.  Anybody who is a Cowboys hater who does not love Romo is suspect in my book.  He is the second coming of that great Cowboys killer Danny White....only more so.

Romo is a Homo.

[derspiess]

Dont know how fair it is to expect much more with dalton as the qb.

I think it's a little unfair for Dalton to play without his top two passing weapons, but you have to adjust for that.

Top three.  They had to split Rex friggin' Burkhead out wide on a few plays-- he's the #3 RB FFS.

All AJ & I could do was watch in agony

[Admiral Yi]

THE FOREHEAD!! 

[citizen k]

A lot of Pats hate is based on them winning a lot and Brady banging trillion dollar pussy.

I started to hate them after 9/11. And the Bellicheat thing.

[Sophie Scholl]

There's a lot of Steeler hatred out there as well.  Which is awesome.  Being giftwrapped two Super Bowls by the refs and having horribly annoying fans acorss the country will do that to a franchise.  Also having a repeat offender rapist as your qb doesn't endear people.

[derspiess]

There's a lot of Steeler hatred out there as well.  Which is awesome.  Being giftwrapped two Super Bowls by the refs and having horribly annoying fans acorss the country will do that to a franchise.  Also having a repeat offender rapist as your qb doesn't endear people.

Fans are by far the biggest of those reasons for me.

[CountDeMoney]

T-Sizzle trafficks in the truth.

You Mad, Bro? A Recap of Terrell Suggs' Beef with the Patriots
By Jack Andrade
Boston.com Correspondent | 01.06.15 | 1:02 PM

Baltimore Ravens pass rusher Terrell Suggs is the sparkplug of the Ravens/Patriots rivalry, and he's up to his old tricks again this week in advance of the AFC Divisional Round game this Saturday at Gillette Stadium.

"We all know the matchup the NFL wants to see. Something for the TV. Something for the sponsors," Suggs told NFL.com, hinting at a possible Brady/Manning AFC Championship Game matchup that would be a ratings machine. "But we have faith in ourselves and Ravens Nation, and we'll see if we can disrupt some people's plans."

It's not the first time Suggs has thrown shade at the Patriots or Tom Brady, and it's actually pretty mild in comparison to some of his previous remarks over the years.

Suggs infamously voted for then-Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick on his Pro Bowl ballot in 2010, excluding Brady (36 TDs, 4 INTs, and an MVP Award that season) altogether. When asked to justify omitting the best player in the league that season from his ballot, Suggs opined that "He [Brady] probably didn't vote for me either."

However childish and innocent the feud was at that point, Suggs took it to another level after the Ravens won the AFC Championship Game in Foxboro in January of 2013, spitting the type of competitive vitriol that would make Richard Sherman blush.

"Those are the most arrogant pricks in the world, starting with coach Belichick on down," Suggs said. "That's funny, ever since Spy Gate they haven't been able to win."

Spy Gate seems to be Suggs' ace in the hole when discussing the Patriots' three Super Bowl wins in the early 2000's. He's also on record with ESPN.com as saying Brady's three rings are "questionable" because of the Tuck Rule.

The "Suggs vs. Patriots" tour kept rolling in February of 2013, following the Ravens Super Bowl win over San Francisco. Suggs said he didn't think the Patriots "respected anybody" and guaranteed in the same ESPN article that "the other 31 teams hate the New England Patriots."

Suggs also criticized the NFL for enacting the "Brady Rule" forbidding defensive players from hitting quarterbacks below the knee. Brady tore his ACL and missed the 2008 season after being hit low (and legally, at the time) by Bernard Pollard of the Chiefs.

"Years before, I hit Drew Brees and accidentally tore his knee up," Suggs said in interview for an ESPN E:60 profile. "No rule was made. Of all the quarterbacks that got their knees blown out when they got hit—Carson Palmer blew his knee out—but then one guy got hit and changed the whole rule for the NFL?"

Suggs was not done with Brady in that E:60 interview. When asked to describe his feelings on Brady, Suggs stated, "I don't think that's appropriate for camera. I don't like him. He don't like me. I don't like his hair. I don't like his smug attitude."

Suggs didn't just call out Brady in the interview. He also took shots at the Patriots' organization and fans of the team. "Who pisses you off most in the NFL?" he is asked. "New England," Suggs replies. "It just seems like there's a lot of suspicious stuff going on over there." Suggs went on to argue that the "Spy Gate" scandal was a bigger infraction against the NFL than the bounty program in New Orleans.

When Patriots fans were mentioned, Suggs was quick to chirp, "Yeah they hate Suggs and I hate them."

So there you have it. The Patriots are cheaters, Tom Brady gets preferential treatment, and Terrell Suggs hates all the Patriots fans. At least according to Terrell Suggs.

[The Minsky Moment]

What a blow.  I always figured Suggs voted for Fitzpatrick out of respect for his Ivy League cred.

[CountDeMoney]

What a blow.  I always figured Suggs voted for Fitzpatrick out of respect for his Ivy League cred.

He respects Fitzpatrick and, as a Sun Devil, Wildcat football.  Apparently played against Fitzpatrick in Arizona high school ball.