Saw this from a message board...

which was likely thiefed from another message board/vice versa/ etc..

I figured it was apropos with all this dynasty talk:

cue thiefed material:

...just how ominous the whole fall of the "evil empire" is, and the implications that surround it?

Think about it: the whole "dynasty" crap started with a lousy call by the officials forever etched in history as the "tuck rule"...

The tuck rule resulted in a controversial finish to an NFL playoff game on January 19, 2002, between the New England Patriots and the Oakland Raiders.

In the closing moments of the game in a snowy Foxboro Stadium, with New England trailing by three points, New England quarterback Tom Brady dropped the ball after making a passing motion, his fellow University of Michigan alumnus Charles Woodson tackled Brady, and the Raiders' Greg Biekert fell on the loose football. The officials initially called the play a recovered fumble, which would have sealed the victory for the Raiders. But after instant replay, referee Walt Coleman reversed this call, declared the play an incomplete forward pass, and gave possession back to New England. In explaining the reversal to the stadium crowd and the television audience, the referee stated that the ball was moving forward at the time it was dropped. In later interviews, the referee stated that it was his explanation, not the reversal, that was in error; the ball was moving backwards when it was lost, but the tuck rule applied.

In any case, Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri later tied the game with a dramatic 45-yard field goal, and the Patriots took advantage of the momentum they had seized, defeating the deflated Raiders in overtime on another field goal and eliminating them from the playoffs. Three weeks later, the Patriots won Super Bowl XXXVI.

While the NFL has defended the call, not everybody has agreed. Bruce Allen, who ran the front office for the Raiders at the time of the game, still believes it was a fumble. "The rule itself doesn't bother me," he said. "But the way the rule is written, it was a fumble." - Tuck Rule - Wikipedia

That ridiculous controversy paved the way to their first Lombardi.

Fast forward to 2/3/2008, three SB titles behind them, and the fourth, complete with the only 19-0 perfect record, within reach. Tom Brady, the touted MVP and leader of that unstoppable force known as the New England Offense was on the very brink of perfection and perpetual icon status. However, he couldn't do jack shit against the Giants' defense primarily because he was harassed all day by that defensive line. And, who led that defensive line in the rampage that destroyed the empire? Remember, the player with 6 tackles, 2 sacks (the second with under 1/2 a minute to play that basically sealed the game), and the forced fumble? You guessed it - some unknown named Justin Tuck.

In other words, the empire crumbled and crumbled hard, because this time it was the victim of the "Tuck rule"!

Coincidence? I think not! It's Karma at it's finest, baby!

Now, this team will never be the same, and we haven't yet begun to see how far the "mighty", that asshole "mastermind" coach, and their whole smug prick fanbase will fall!


Spookular.