Nobody expected them to get this far.
The Patriots exceeded any and all expectations from New Englanders and football fans across the country Sunday by defeating the heavily favored Pittsburgh Steelers.
But it won’t mean a thing without a Super Bowl win.
“This is a business trip for us,” said Patriots defensive back Lawyer Milloy yesterday at the team’s sendoff rally in front of the State House. “The only way to get respect is by winning the whole damn thing. You never heard of a lucky Super Bowl champion.”
Milloy said the team is getting back to business as the team heads to New Orleans, where they’ll prepare to face the St. Louis Rams Sunday in Super Bowl XXXVI. Before boarding the team’s afternoon flight to New Orleans, Milloy said the Patriots’ goal was to shake its underdog status and “team of destiny” label by destroying the Rams in Sunday’s game.
Milloy soaked up the fans’ accolades and cheers as he and six other Patriots’ players — quarterbacks Tom Brady and Drew Bledsoe, wide receiver Troy Brown, center back Ty Law, right back Antowain Smith and center Damien Woody — made a 10-minute stop in Boston on their trip from Foxboro Stadium to the airport.
Acting Gov. Jane Swift led the players to a red-carpeted stage set up at the foot of the State House, where she introduced them along with team owner Bob Kraft and head coach Bill Belichick.
“Yesterday, they melted the Steelers in Pittsburgh, and next week they’ll gore the Rams in New Orleans,” Swift said.
Kraft thanked the crowd for its support, especially at the Jan. 19 game against the Oakland Raiders played in the snow. He then held up the AFC Championship trophy, calling it “the first step” toward Super Bowl victory, inciting a fresh round of hollering and applause.
Michael Testa, director of special events for the Metropolitan District Commission, said the event came together no earlier than 9 a.m. yesterday.
“We’re glad people came out, because [the team] is going on the plane at noon, and unless you’re going to New Orleans, this was it,” he said.
Testa fired up the fans for the players’ appearance by shouting, “It’s jambalaya time,” and spelling out the word “Patriots.”
Police estimated a crowd of approximately 800, some donning such Patriots paraphernalia as jerseys, sweatshirts and hats.
John Dargan, 36, of Boston, wore linebacker Ted Johnson’s #52 jersey, which he said he got yesterday and plans to wear all week.
Beverly Monaco, 55, of Methuen, works at the State House for the American Legion Auxiliary and said she watched the Patriots win on television. Monaco said she had one motivation for coming down to see the players:
“I want to see Mr. Brady and the Brady bunch,” she said.
One man expressed surprise that neither Brady nor Bledsoe addressed the crowd, considering both quarterbacks’ star appeal and the talk circulating over which player will start Sunday’s game. Aside from Milloy, team MVP Troy Brown was the only other player who spoke.
Some fans held signs from WEEI 850 AM sports radio that read “Go Pats” on one side and “Back to the Bayou” on the other. The team was last in New Orleans in 1997, when New England lost Super Bowl XXXI against the Green Bay Packers.
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