Note to Philly Fans: When in Doubt, Shut Up

Funny how this blog is coming from a Philadelphia fan himself, but I have to say this.

After scouring the Flyers message boards, or looking at numerous comments on news outlets and blogs, listening to Philly sports talk radio and talking to the personalities that back those stations up, it has come to my attention that reactionary opinion is the most outstanding trait that plagues this fanbase.

I’ll go on what today brought us.  The Eagles lost 21-16.  It was a game that was full of mistakes, and ones that they can’t go back and fix.  It’s done.  Game over.  The Packers are moving on.  But at the end of the game, cries of “fire Reid” and “fire McDermott” and “trade Celek” and “release Akers” come from everywhere, and it’s a shame.

I have one piece of advice.  Shut up.  If you have no good argument, then get over yourselves.  All too often on sports talk, the hosts need to put these callers in their places.  We may be a passionate fanbase, but we’re not always the brightest.  You can’t just say these things without backing yourself up.

Okay, fine, Reid isn’t the best at clock management.  McDermott doesn’t utilize his lacking defense well.  The trade Celek thing came out of nowhere.  Akers has been a reliable kicker for several years.  This team is successful, just not…all-the-way successful.

Would you like to be a team like the Carolina Panthers right now?  I thought so.

Get over yourselves.

One of the worst things I heard post-loss is that Pitchers and Catchers report in 35 days or so.  Yeah…while that’s exciting, did anyone remember there’s a team that is first place in the Eastern Conference, dominating some of the most powerful teams in the National Hockey League?  You know, the team that reached the Stanley Cup Finals last year?

Honestly, this blog post is a little hypocritical.  I mean there were times on my NHL Fans blog that during the Flyers’ long rut of losses that I thought they would never dig themselves out of their issues, and that it would be absolutely hilarious if they didn’t even make the playoffs.  And yet somehow I stuck with them, and each playoff victory was like a developing dream.  I have reserved myself to eating my words that I said.  It’s all about faith.

“There’s always next year.”

I will say this.  When we band together in victory, it is a wonderful experience.  But once defeat touches us, it’s like the world is crumbling, and everyone has done everything wrong.  Can we not reserve ourselves to say a better opponent defeated us?

We have gone through Ryan Howard striking out looking against Brian Wilson.  We lost to the eventual World Champions.  How about when the Phillies lost to the Yankees?  We lost to a better team.  The Flyers against the Blackhawks?  The Hawks were admittedly better.  The Eagles and Cowboys last year?  They were better.  Packers and Eagles were rather evenly matched this time around, they just made less mistakes.

It all happens.  So when in doubt, just get over yourselves, there’s always next year, and whatever happens will happen.

Thank you.