It took me nearly a decade to get over the Patriots beating the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI. That Rams team will undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest to never win a Super Bowl, a sentence that causes me physical pain to type.
However, a combination of the Giants ruining the Patriots’ perfect season and the emergence of the greatest person on the planet, Rob Gronkowski, helped me finally recover from the emotional damage Brady, Belichick, and the boys caused me in 2002.
As I’ve written in the past, my initial hatred for Brady has since blossomed into admiration and appreciation for the man who is now unquestionably the greatest quarterback of all time. So on Sunday I had no problem cheering for Tom as he threw three touchdowns (including a beautiful rainbow to Rob) to help the Patriots to beat the only team that might be as universally-hated as the Patriots.
That said, I was so convinced that the Seahawks were going to win after Jermaine Kearse’s ridiculous catch that when Russell Wilson threw his inexplicable interception on second-and-goal from the one-yard line, I almost started crying with joy.
So there I was, watching the post-game festivities surrounded by good friends and several pounds of buffalo dip when it became time for the trophy presentation.
When I saw the man who was carrying the Vince Lombardi Trophy to the podium, with the entire Patriots roster gawking and rubbing it as he walked it past them, though, I became nauseous.
A man who was exiled to New York, who found redemption in the Arizona desert, and who ultimately is the savior of football in St. Louis, was about to deliver the greatest team trophy in sports to the team that was responsible for ending his dynasty before it even started.
Kurt Warner was about to hand off the the Lombardi Trophy to the team that cheated him out of his own Lombardi Trophy 13 years prior. Kurt Warner, with a smile on his face, was moments away from committing an act even more unforgivable than the Seahawks’ final play call.
I understand that Kurt is a man of God and scripture, and I know that the good book teaches to forgive your enemies. But Kurt, the good book also teaches compassion, and I know I speak for Rams everywhere when I say that watching Kurt give the trophy to Roger Goodell who in turn, gave it to Belichick, was emotionally traumatizing.
It felt as though someone had ripped off a massive scar and was dumping pounds of salt into the open wound. So many of his teammates from that 2002 team (Marshall Faulk among them) have gone on record as saying SpyGate cost them that Super Bowl. For Warner to play _any_ role in helping present the Lombardi Trophy to the Patriots is to turn his back on them and all die-hard Rams fans. The legacy of the Greatest Show on Turf is completely different if the Rams win two Super Bowls in three years.
I can respect Kurt for forgiving the Patriots. But to forgive _and_ forget? God help me.