There are still hours to go before another Patriots loss in this dreariest of seasons, but the tailgating scene in Lot 54A at Gillette Stadium on an unseasonably warm and sunny fall Sunday is good vibes only.
​
Cornhole bags are flying and cans of adult beverages are being crushed, grills are sizzling and stereos are blaring, with the volume on 38 Special’s “Hold on Loosely” dialed up to 11.
​
More than half of the throng are wearing a red, blue, or white Patriots jersey.
​
What’s impossible to miss — in an emphatically unscientific survey — is that roughly eight of every 10 of those jerseys bear the number of a former Patriot.
Tom Brady’s 12 dominates, which hardly counts as a surprise for the GOAT.
​
But Rob Gronkowski’s 87, Julian Edelman’s 11, Tedy Bruschi and Dont’a Hightower’s 54, Vince Wilfork’s 75 … they’re everywhere, too.
​
Current Patriots?
That appears to be an uncomfortable fit.
​
Patriots fans clearly prefer the retro look these days.
​
“It’s going to take time for fans to move on,” said Jake Whitcomb of South Boston. “Growing up, we got spoiled.”
Whitcomb is wearing the No. 23 of current defensive back Kyle Dugger, which he said is more of a nod to his shared North Carolina roots with Dugger than anything else.
“Today I went Dugger, but I almost went Brady,” said Whitcomb. “As a longtime Brady fan, I have always loved him. But you have to move on and do what’s best for New England. You could always rely on him, he was the greatest of all time. But you have to figure out what’s next.”
​
When it comes to figuring out what’s next, the follow-up question of “What about Mac Jones?” elicits simultaneous guffaws from Whitcomb and his pal, Eric O’Brien from Allston, who’s on hamburger-flipping duty.
“Well, Mac Jones is the next quarterback, but he’s not the next Brady — and he may not be the quarterback next year,” said Whitcomb, unaware that later that afternoon Jones would throw an interception to kill a potential game-winning drive against the Commanders and then get yanked from the next two games against the Colts and Giants.
​
Little wonder then that Patriots fans prefer the view from the rear-view mirror.
​
“People wear throwback jerseys because those memories are better,” said O’Brien, wearing a No. 39 Laurence Maroney (2006-09) he found in a thrift store. “I thought about getting a Brady jersey three years ago. That’s the only other Patriots jersey I’d wear. It would be perfect on a day like this.”
​
Jones’s No. 10 is the top-selling Patriots jersey this season, according to a spokesperson for sportswear retailer Fanatics, followed by out-for-the-season Pro Bowl linebacker Matthew Judon’s No. 9. The No. 6 jersey of promising rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez, who also is done for the season, is fourth.
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Coming in at No. 3 is Brady.
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Edelman rounds out the top five.
I mean, it also hurts that we’re in an involuntary rebuild, and we don’t want to buy jerseys for active players who won’t be here.
They are expensive and the team sucks.
There’s usually a good chunk of Judon jerseys though.
I have a Slater Jersey I got years ago. Great purchase. Still a current player
Other than Slater and Judon, whose jersey would anyone actually want on the current team?
This is the stuff that will get to Kraft if simple pride and competitiveness don’t. Flexing national TV games, declining merchandise sales, the secondary ticket mart. He’s a businessman at his core.
Fans had 20 years of epic moments involving different players to fall in love with. While the current team blows and there’s very few “jersey worthy” guys, the threshold to even be “jersey worthy” has gone up. Like if a guy wasn’t winning *multiple* superbowls around here he wasn’t even in the pro shop. People aren’t pulling the trigger on a Stevenson jersey or Judon as much when they’ve got Edelman and Gronkowski’s in the closet
For me i hate buying a jersey and the player leaves the team soon after (Gilmore) and none of these guys outside or Gonzo seem like long term (4-5 years) kind of players, so ill just wear my throwback Rodney Harrison for now
It would take a lot for me to buy a jersey now considering the price. I’m fine with my two Brady and two Edelman jerseys. Those will never go out of style.
I just don’t like the new jerseys.
When Brady left, I’m sure the number of people wearing the jerseys of a current player on the team dropped in half lmao
The current players mostly all suck, barely any champions
Who the fuck buys a Mac jersey lol
I got the throwback Cam jersey though folks. Elite
Judon is probably the only one I’d consider at this point
Team is in flux. Nobody want to pay that kind of money for players who could be gone next season. Also this team has no elite players worth buying a jersey for. Maybe Judon and possibly Stevenson.
I mean even if you go to a Red Sox game, Devers and Sale will probably be the only current players you really see. I saw way more Ortiz, Betts, and Martinez jerseys than I did active players
Why would anyone spend ~$100 on a jersey of a player who won’t be there next season?
if you cycle through 20 draft picks a year, why buy the jersey?
I have a $400 Rebock Field quality jersey. I’ve worn it to 15 years of games. Why? – 1. It’s fucking $400 I’m getting my moneys worth out of it.
– 2. It’s field game quality, that thing has been through thick and thin and is nowhere near showing its age.
– 3. It’s a Rebok jersey. Those things actually fit well. These new Nike Jerseys SUCK BALLS as to the fit. The shoulders are so uncomfortable.
Edit: like 5 times, this Reddit app sucks for formatting on mobile. This is what you’re getting I tried my best.
I still wear my 55 McGinest jersey.
“They didn’t block me Again!”
I still wear my Wes Welker jersey the most
It would help if the Pats’ current jersey designs weren’t complete dog crap. Also, $200 for said piece of crap doesn’t help either.
Outside of a truly franchise-cornerstone QB it’s hard to expect any player in today’s NFL to be around for more than a couple seasons with a team.
Personally I’m not spending $100+ on a jersey for a guy that probably won’t be here in 18 months.
Now do the 2023 Red Sox, Globe writers.
Slater is Christian.
Rock his jersey to show your love for Jesus.
Slater works for me.
You’re paying $100+ for a jersey, you wanna get more than one season out of it. No one’s paying that for a jersey of a player that’s getting benched every game or won’t be starting here next year.
I’m a firm believer in you’re not allowed to wear a jersey of a person younger than you.
31 comments
From [Globe.com](http://globe.com)
By Michael Silverman
There are still hours to go before another Patriots loss in this dreariest of seasons, but the tailgating scene in Lot 54A at Gillette Stadium on an unseasonably warm and sunny fall Sunday is good vibes only.
​
Cornhole bags are flying and cans of adult beverages are being crushed, grills are sizzling and stereos are blaring, with the volume on 38 Special’s “Hold on Loosely” dialed up to 11.
​
More than half of the throng are wearing a red, blue, or white Patriots jersey.
​
What’s impossible to miss — in an emphatically unscientific survey — is that roughly eight of every 10 of those jerseys bear the number of a former Patriot.
Tom Brady’s 12 dominates, which hardly counts as a surprise for the GOAT.
​
But Rob Gronkowski’s 87, Julian Edelman’s 11, Tedy Bruschi and Dont’a Hightower’s 54, Vince Wilfork’s 75 … they’re everywhere, too.
​
Current Patriots?
That appears to be an uncomfortable fit.
​
Patriots fans clearly prefer the retro look these days.
​
“It’s going to take time for fans to move on,” said Jake Whitcomb of South Boston. “Growing up, we got spoiled.”
Whitcomb is wearing the No. 23 of current defensive back Kyle Dugger, which he said is more of a nod to his shared North Carolina roots with Dugger than anything else.
“Today I went Dugger, but I almost went Brady,” said Whitcomb. “As a longtime Brady fan, I have always loved him. But you have to move on and do what’s best for New England. You could always rely on him, he was the greatest of all time. But you have to figure out what’s next.”
​
When it comes to figuring out what’s next, the follow-up question of “What about Mac Jones?” elicits simultaneous guffaws from Whitcomb and his pal, Eric O’Brien from Allston, who’s on hamburger-flipping duty.
“Well, Mac Jones is the next quarterback, but he’s not the next Brady — and he may not be the quarterback next year,” said Whitcomb, unaware that later that afternoon Jones would throw an interception to kill a potential game-winning drive against the Commanders and then get yanked from the next two games against the Colts and Giants.
​
Little wonder then that Patriots fans prefer the view from the rear-view mirror.
​
“People wear throwback jerseys because those memories are better,” said O’Brien, wearing a No. 39 Laurence Maroney (2006-09) he found in a thrift store. “I thought about getting a Brady jersey three years ago. That’s the only other Patriots jersey I’d wear. It would be perfect on a day like this.”
​
Jones’s No. 10 is the top-selling Patriots jersey this season, according to a spokesperson for sportswear retailer Fanatics, followed by out-for-the-season Pro Bowl linebacker Matthew Judon’s No. 9. The No. 6 jersey of promising rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez, who also is done for the season, is fourth.
​
Coming in at No. 3 is Brady.
​
Edelman rounds out the top five.
I mean, it also hurts that we’re in an involuntary rebuild, and we don’t want to buy jerseys for active players who won’t be here.
They are expensive and the team sucks.
There’s usually a good chunk of Judon jerseys though.
I have a Slater Jersey I got years ago. Great purchase. Still a current player
Other than Slater and Judon, whose jersey would anyone actually want on the current team?
This is the stuff that will get to Kraft if simple pride and competitiveness don’t. Flexing national TV games, declining merchandise sales, the secondary ticket mart. He’s a businessman at his core.
Fans had 20 years of epic moments involving different players to fall in love with. While the current team blows and there’s very few “jersey worthy” guys, the threshold to even be “jersey worthy” has gone up. Like if a guy wasn’t winning *multiple* superbowls around here he wasn’t even in the pro shop. People aren’t pulling the trigger on a Stevenson jersey or Judon as much when they’ve got Edelman and Gronkowski’s in the closet
For me i hate buying a jersey and the player leaves the team soon after (Gilmore) and none of these guys outside or Gonzo seem like long term (4-5 years) kind of players, so ill just wear my throwback Rodney Harrison for now
It would take a lot for me to buy a jersey now considering the price. I’m fine with my two Brady and two Edelman jerseys. Those will never go out of style.
I just don’t like the new jerseys.
When Brady left, I’m sure the number of people wearing the jerseys of a current player on the team dropped in half lmao
The current players mostly all suck, barely any champions
Who the fuck buys a Mac jersey lol
I got the throwback Cam jersey though folks. Elite
Judon is probably the only one I’d consider at this point
Team is in flux. Nobody want to pay that kind of money for players who could be gone next season. Also this team has no elite players worth buying a jersey for. Maybe Judon and possibly Stevenson.
I mean even if you go to a Red Sox game, Devers and Sale will probably be the only current players you really see. I saw way more Ortiz, Betts, and Martinez jerseys than I did active players
Why would anyone spend ~$100 on a jersey of a player who won’t be there next season?
if you cycle through 20 draft picks a year, why buy the jersey?
I have a $400 Rebock Field quality jersey. I’ve worn it to 15 years of games. Why?
– 1. It’s fucking $400 I’m getting my moneys worth out of it.
– 2. It’s field game quality, that thing has been through thick and thin and is nowhere near showing its age.
– 3. It’s a Rebok jersey. Those things actually fit well. These new Nike Jerseys SUCK BALLS as to the fit. The shoulders are so uncomfortable.
Edit: like 5 times, this Reddit app sucks for formatting on mobile. This is what you’re getting I tried my best.
I still wear my 55 McGinest jersey.
“They didn’t block me Again!”
I still wear my Wes Welker jersey the most
It would help if the Pats’ current jersey designs weren’t complete dog crap. Also, $200 for said piece of crap doesn’t help either.
Outside of a truly franchise-cornerstone QB it’s hard to expect any player in today’s NFL to be around for more than a couple seasons with a team.
Personally I’m not spending $100+ on a jersey for a guy that probably won’t be here in 18 months.
Now do the 2023 Red Sox, Globe writers.
Slater is Christian.
Rock his jersey to show your love for Jesus.
Slater works for me.
You’re paying $100+ for a jersey, you wanna get more than one season out of it. No one’s paying that for a jersey of a player that’s getting benched every game or won’t be starting here next year.
I’m a firm believer in you’re not allowed to wear a jersey of a person younger than you.
And the team stinks. So there’s that too