The best thing about the Pats? They're not the Red Sox

Remember the good old days? You know, when the Red Sox were "cursed" but mostly competitive and all the rest? And the Patriots were just a laughingstock, non-competitive with bad owners and a crappy stadium and almost out of here?

How times have changed.

Sure, since 2001 the Patriots have three titles and the Red Sox two. The Pats, as you all know, have also played for two more titles and made the playoffs every year except 2002 and 2008. While the Red Sox have seen a slow, painful decline since 2007 that has culminated in what can only be described as a poop show of the highest magnitude in September of last year through today, Monday's win notwithstanding.

Now, it's the Red Sox with bumbling management and underachieving, overpaid players. And it's the Patriots that are the definition of stable.

So now 15,000 show up for a practice down in Foxboro. You know what the Sox call that nowadays? A sellout. Hey, gotta keep the streak going, right?

The Red Sox have taken a good thing and wasted it with bad signings, even worse PR and one misstep after another. Not to mention the record on the field. While the Pats have taken a bad thing, turned it into a good, sometimes great, thing and made it better, with good (for the most part) signings, little bad PR and continued success on the field.

Sure, ultimately it's about winning. If the Sox were in first place the other crap would be a nice distraction. But it's more than that. It's about how you relate to your fans and how you present yourself to the market. Don't treat us like idiots and don't give me Sweet Caroline down 10-0 in the 8th and all the other junk that has turned off a lot of people.

An example, if you'll allow. I'll admit I haven't watched a baseball game in two years. But I tuned in to the last game of the 2011 season. Everything to that point on the line. 3rd inning. And NESN is trying to sell me a flipping Fenway brick. Really? It's that important to sell the damn bricks during the biggest game of the season? The bottom line is more important than anything else in Red Sox Nation ($15 to join, by the way), and it's got to stop. It just has to. Enough already.

Barstool Sports' Jerry Thornton sums it up best:

Apparently Belichick called called up to the owner’s office because some player complained to Mr. Kraft that he’d said something sarcastic and condescending to one of the rookies that hurt the guy’s feelings so Mr. Kraft told him he couldn’t do that any more.  Wait. That didn’t happen; that was the Red Sox.  My bad.  They run a nice organization too.

That's about the extent of it, isn't it? What a turn of events. Baseball fans around here can only hope things change soon, otherwise it's going to get real, real ugly down at America's Most Beloved Ballpark.