Patriots have third most 'unstable' fan base

Boston sports fans are undoubtedly spoiled. Over the past decade, the teams for all the major sports have contributed to multiple championships, starting with the Patriots in 2001. Well, a study by Emory University confirmed what should not surprise too many people; the Patriots have the third most unstable fan base in the NFL, trailing only the Pittsburgh Steelers and Oakland Raiders.

The study was devised using a complex algorithm that tracked the tweets of fans and labeled them as 'positive' or 'negative' feedback. The results showed that fans of the Patriots, Steelers and Raiders had the biggest gap between positive reactions after a win and negative reactions after a loss; this is what gives them the label of 'unstable'. NESN.com gave a quick example if this is still a little blurry:

Tweets from Steelers fans were 79.6 percent positive following wins in 2012, but just 33.1 percent of tweets were positive following a loss. That 46.5 percent gap made the Steelers the second most unstable fan base, following the Raiders’ 47 percent margin.

On the contrast, the most stable fan bases belonged to (in order) the Cowboys, Colts, Eagles, Texans and Falcons. As pointed out in the NESN article, this could be because the fans may have lowered their expectations for the team as result of poor play this season. As for the Patriots, their fans also ranked third in the 'saddest after a loss' category while failing to make the top list for 'happiest fan base'.

Anthony Aidonidis
@aidonidis18