A Few Quick Words About a Sack Machine

So I'm a little late on commenting, but I couldn't let this go by without saying a few words. This past weekend, my sister got married. Beautiful ceremony, great guy, drunken renditions of Livin On a Prayer all night long. It was truly a great day.... and I almost missed it. The reason? My father threatened to skip the event to drive to Canton, Ohio and see Andre Tippett get inducted to the NFL Hall of Fame in person. And there's no way I would have let him go without me. I'd like to think we'd still wear our tuxes, since they'd been paid for and all... but alas, we missed the induction and attended the wedding. Considering the potential wrath of the women in our lives, it was probably a smart decision.

This is how much #56 means to diehard, long-term Patriots fan... the kind that grew up wearing big red Starter jackets with a dude squatting over a football on it. Tippett's jersey was the first I remember seeing in my house*. His biggest years came in '84 and '85, where he amassed 35 sacks and was the leader of a defense that helped the surprising Patriots to the Super Bowl. Of course, I was too young to enjoy that time, so my memories come from a darker era.

Over the 5 year span from 1989 to 1993, New England won a total of 19 games. I remember this very clearly, since my family bought season tickets just before the 1991 season. Tipp was one of the few holdovers from the superbowl team, and while at the end of his career still picked up 27.5 sacks in the 4 seasons he played (he missed 1989 with an injury). That brought his career total to an even 100, which I like because I'm lazy and even numbers are easier to remember.

Some people will try to tell you that Tippett was "the LT of the AFC." And I'm talking about the REAL LT here, not the crybaby Tomlinson. But that's really a discredit to Andre, because while Lawrence Taylor was an insane coke-head with a mean streak and always seemed to try to hurt people... Tipp was as professional as they come. He wasn't trying to break your bones, he was simply trying to DOMINATE the other team in the most efficient way possible. He worked hard and kept to himself, and it's great to see the Hall recognize a player who wasn't always just trying to get recognized.

Now if we can just get Bruce Armstrong (6 Pro Bowls) and Ben Coates (499 catches, 50 TDs) to the hall, my childhood heroes will be properly represented**.



*Other jerseys we have: Ben Coates, Drew Bledsoe, Curtis Martin, Chris Slade, Willie McGinnest, Andy Katzenmoyer (oof), Tedy Bruschi (dad), Richard Seymour (mine for the past 7 years), Adam Vinatieri (mom), Troy Brown (sister), Stephen Gostkowski (mom... I shit you not)

**Note: I accept at this point that Drew Bledsoe will probably not be getting the call to the Hall despite being 5th in completions and attempts, 7th in yards, and 13th in TD's all time... but that dude was my idol growing up. Also, C-Mart is getting to the Hall, but he played way longer for the Jets than the Pats, so I can't take claim to him. Ask Billy about him some time.