I was listening to my TribLive “Beyond the Bylines” colleague Joe Starkey on his 93.7 The Fan radio show Friday. He mentioned that some callers to the station stated that they were actually rooting for the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl on Sunday.
Their theory was that if the Patriots won, they’d claim their seventh Vince Lombardi Trophy, surpassing the Steelers for the most Super Bowl victories in NFL history.
I see that as a terrible thing. But these callers were suggesting that such a slap in the face may wake up Steelers owner Art Rooney II and force him to take more drastic action when it comes to running his team.
That’s … an interesting perspective.
To me, that’s sorta like being happy that Darth Vader killed Obi-Wan so Luke Skywalker could learn the ways of The Force.
Sure. But, Obi-Wan is still — um — dead.
Although now that I say that, keep in mind that by the end of the original trilogy ….
Nevermind. You get my point. Both examples are a sad and circuitous means to an end.
You don’t want the Patriots attaining the throne as the new Galactic Empire in the empty hope that it’ll be some sort of inspirational catalyst for Rooney to start managing his business in a more aggressive manner. That feels shortsighted to me.
Keep it simple. Root for the Patriots to lose to Seattle on Sunday, and for the “somnambulant” Rooney II to wake up on his own.
Unfortunately, though, I think there is a far greater chance of that first thing happening than the second.
If anything, a Patriots win should snap Rooney into reality from a much more tangible angle than the Super Bowl trophy count. It should be the realization that more good can be had from sinking to the bottom of the standings and bouncing back than from constantly striving to be in the upper middle.
I’m not saying that New England tried to go 12-22 the two seasons prior to drafting Drake Maye at quarterback, but they did. As a result, they were in a position to select Maye.
The Steelers are back in a position of playing “spin the bottle” with a slew of less-than-attractive quarterback options yet again this spring, coming off their latest 10-win, nonplayoff victory campaign.
More to the point, wouldn’t the inspiration for change with Rooney have occurred when a coach of 19 years stepped down? Just a month ago, Rooney seemed resigned to the logical end of the one-year Aaron Rodgers era in Pittsburgh.
Now it feels more likely than not that Rodgers will be back because the new coach that Rooney hired from “up ‘ere in Greenfield n’at” won a Super Bowl with him.
Fifteen years ago.
No, if this vast opportunity to change the coach, quarterback and coordinators hasn’t motivated Rooney II to investigate going down a different path toward success, some ethereal awakening caused by what the Patriots might do in the Super Bowl won’t either.
Rooney always wants his team to maintain a certain level of competitiveness. That level is nine or 10 wins and contending for a playoff spot. Anything more than that is gravy. Mike McCarthy’s resume since winning Super Bowl XLV largely fits that description as readily as the last nine years of Mike Tomlin’s tenure did.
Rooney sees this hire as a dream. If the Patriots provide a wake-up call, Art is just going to hit the snooze button.
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Watch: Tim Benz and Joe Starkey host “Beyond the Bylines” in advance of Super Bowl Sunday.