#nfl-upset

#nfl-upset

The 1969 Mets opened the season with 100-to-1 odds to win it all, trailing the Chicago Cubs by 10 games in mid-August before their remarkable turnaround.

Cheering on your favorite team can cause severe mood swings, violent outbursts, and even, at times, tightness in your chest. It's why I'm a fair-weather fan. There's a backstory: I used to have a team. As a Baltimore native, when the Ravens came to our city in 1996, I was all in. After buying tons of black and purple, winning two Super Bowls, and then white knuckling through the lackluster seasons that followed, I decided to set a boundary for my own sanity.

No, ESPN does not hate the Patriots. Wait, check that for a second. Rex Ryan definitely hates the Patriots. Give him some grace on that. The man coached the Jets for six years. You have no idea what that does to the soul. Some might also add Cam Newton to the Patriot Haters Club, since he seems to have a terrible take on something going on in Foxborough every time he appears on "First Take" or its ilk.

The Patriots benefited from one of the softest schedules in recent memory. They have caught more than their fair share of breaks, from injured opponents, to generous calls from the officials, and boneheaded decisions by opposing coaches. Yes, we're looking right at you, Sean Payton. Bet you wish you had those three points you passed up on in the first quarter now, huh?

He was selected by the Patriots in the fourth round of the 2019 draft and started a grand total of zero games for them. There were some mitigating factors such as backing up Tom Brady in his first season in the NFL. But when Cam Newton came to town in 2020, he was the backup Brian Hoyer's backup so New England clearly didn't think too highly of him.

The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks faced off in Super Bowl XLIX in 2015, a memorable matchup the Patriots won 28-24. With a second-and-goal at New England's 1-yard-line late in the fourth quarter, Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson was intercepted by Malcolm Butler in one of the more shocking Super Bowl moments. The Seahawks did not reach the Super Bowl since that matchup until this season.

With the Kansas City Chiefs failing to qualify, this year marks the first postseason without Patrick Mahomes, Tom Brady or Peyton Manning since the 1998 campaign. Manning reached the playoffs in 1999, while Brady joined the ranks two years later. Mahomes had been in the playoffs each season since 2018, but he tore his ACL in a Week 15 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. The defeat eliminated Kansas City from postseason contention, and the Chiefs finished 6-11.