Dave Portnoy & JJ Watt Are Locked In An Analysis Battle About Whether The Houston Texans Are Cursed FOREVER Because They Wore Those Damn Letterman Jackets Into Foxboro 13 Years Ago
Ah yes, December 10th 2012. A night which will forever live in infamy for the city of Houston, and the souls of Arian Foster & JJ Watt. The (11-1) Texans came into Foxboro highly confident, borderline cocky, and for whatever reason decided to debut some custom letterman jackets for the whole squad.
Needless to say, The Hoodie & TB12 didn't take too kindly to those vibes. Now keep in mind that game was ten percent luck. Twenty percent skill. Fifteen percent concentrated power of will. Five percent pleasure.
Fifty percent pain.
And a hundred percent reason to remember the name. Uhhhh hey JJ did I get that right?
(Houston Chronicle) - The Texans have suffered their share of misfortune at the hands of the Patriots over the years, going 1-7 all-time at Gillette Stadium, including a pair of playoff losses. However, no defeat stands out more than Dec. 10, 2012.
The Texans were riding high, rolling into New England for a Monday night game with an NFL-best 11-1 record. Then, Texans nose tackle Shaun Cody came up with an idea that still resides near top the list of the franchise’s most embarrassing moments: What if we all ordered custom-made letterman jackets and wore them on our trip to face the mighty Patriots? It’s easy to look back now and say that was a terrible thought with very little upside, but their hearts were in the right place.
The navy blue jackets had the Texans logo on the chest, and the player’s number and position on the right sleeve. No one had their name on the jacket, and it was meant to represent how tight they were as a unit — like a group of high school players in their traditional letterman’s jackets — with no one player above anybody else. Just like in high school, each player even paid for their own jacket, chipping in $270 apiece as director of equipment services Jay Brunetti, who now works for the San Francisco 49ers, helped make Cody’s idea come to life with help from outside linebacker Connor Barwin, who fully embraced Cody’s vision.
“I used to say before the season it feels like we’re on a college team,” Barwin said at the time. “Everybody gets along, we have so much fun. And (with) this jacket, you feel like you’re on a high school team where it’s all about winning, it’s all about being around a group of guys. This jacket is just another symbol of that.” Of course, by now, you know how it all ended. The Texans got blown out on national TV, losing 42-14 in a game that was never close with the Patriots jumping out to a 28-0 lead. Houston lost three of its final four regular season games and had to return to Foxborough for the divisional round of the playoffs where its season ended.
Seriously though, how the FUCK did professional athletes think that was gonna end well for them, even if they won the game? Maybe social media wasn't active enough then I guess? No offense to JJ but there's a reason bullying WORKS.
“That was not my decision. The whole team wore it. It was not my idea. I posted a picture of it …,” Watt said in a 2017 appearance on Barstool Sports' “Pardon My Take” podcast. “Part of you is like, 'This is actually cool,' but then afterwards, you’re like, 'That’s pretty dumb.' Not a lot of upside there, just a whole lot of downside.”
Watt often is asked if he still has the jacket and his standard answer is that he doesn’t think so and that he hopes not.
“Those were some bad memories,” he said in 2015.
Now don't get it twisted, this isn't meant to be an anti-JJ blog. He seems like a swell guy! And I'm sure he's heard plenty about those damn jackets since wearing them on that fateful 2012 night. But before we all completely move on, what's one more question about it right?
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Take it away, 7x Super Bowl CHAMPION & the most honest man I know: Dave Portnoy!
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I do not. It was a bad loss 13 years ago. Those who have been in the arena know, sometimes it doesn’t go your way and you live with that. My most recent memory in that stadium is much more positive. When I walked in for the Bills-Patriots game in December, the lovely older woman working the beer stand on the 1st level concourse just outside the press box gave me a Christmas gift with a very kind note. That was a first, quite unexpected and a delightful gesture.
Giphy Images.Admittedly I'm no phonology expert but that doesn't sound like a very confident response!
Wonder if JJ is already hedging his bets against the Texans chances in Foxboro this Sunday. Can't feel good going into that game with your WR1 sitting out on the sideline. You hate to see it. Old Balls & Dave Portnoy certainly do.
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It's a good thing we don't have any Houston fans in the office because letterman jackets or not, it already looks like Sunday is gonna be a LONG day for that crew.
Of course best of luck to all teams out there, I'm just rooting for chaos really. But I wouldn't hate seeing my fearless leader smirking up a storm. Dave deserves a win. Ann Michael deserves a win. NUFF SAID.
After all, it's been almost 6.9 years since he got to hold the Lombardi trophy in his giant hands!
Have respect idiots, Patriot Dave is legend. As they say down in Miami, "Boom."
Giphy Images.PS: random shout out to Scott Zolak, I 'member back in those Milton days him & Dave didn't always get along too well. Great to see how far they've come. VIVA Zo, you were a great bathroom guardian.