Shoulda Woulda Coulda

A couple of days after the Packers lost in the NFC Championship game, a local sportswriter listed 16-plays that could have decided the game in our favor. A penalty here, a drop there, fake punts, missed assignments, downed interceptions, onside muffs and kept the Packers out of the Arizona Super Bowl. If we coulda had one of those plays back...

Rather than admit that Seattle played an inspired 60+ minutes of football to Green Bay's 56, it's more soothing to the Packer fan's psyche to imagine what should have happened if the football gods could have been kinder. Where was Vince when we needed him? Of course we forget about the questionable Dez Bryant catch/no-catch  call a week before. Ask the Cowboy fans about that. Since most teams are evenly matched, I suspect every team needs a little luck to advance in the playoffs.

After tonight's Super Bowl game, the second guessing migrates west from the Frozen Tundra to overcast Seattle who saw their team turn down a sure Marshawn Lynch short yardage touchdown in favor of a short pass over the middle. It seemed like a good idea, right up to the time the pass was intercepted by Patriot cornerback Malcolm Butler. Game over. Welcome to the post-game second-guessing.

The Monday-morning call-in shows that follow a close defeat must be one of the early stages of sports fan grieving process. Even though our Packer flags have been hung up, cheeseheads shelved and autographed jerseys folded up until next year's training camp, NFC Championship plays run through our heads as we wonder, "What if." It's a predictable process beginning with anger and disbelief ending with acceptance and buying season tickets for next year.

That is part of the fan game. Thirty-one teams recap and argue key Shoulda Woulda Coulda plays after a season. Only one team tells the sideline reporter everything turned out just as they had foreseen. But success is fleeting. Those who lead the parade at Disney World have a cartoon character riding along side them whispering, "Not so high and mighty, Buckaroo..."

Sports has a way of turning the tables on even the most successful franchises and testing the mettle of its fan base. Just ask Cub fans. Long time fans know that the draft and training camp are not that far away. And then, just wait, just wait. Things will be a lot different next year.