By Ray Cardello for January 14, 2024, Season 24 / Post 15

To us dinosaurs, life used to be a system of meritocracy. You worked and studied hard to get ahead at school, work, and life. You planned well and surrounded yourself with positive mentors. You were proud of your accomplishments, but not to the point of being brash. The action that disrupted the equilibrium was nepotism. Because of this system, we continued to build a country on the excellence of its people. A few decades ago, things changed, and the system was turned upside down. Meritocracy was replaced with parity. It became the social norm to replace winners and losers with participants. Everyone played the game, and leaders in all facets of life were now chosen based on their grades on the DEI scale and not on the ABCs. Competency and excellence that once were colorblind are directly measured on one’s shade of the rainbow. This new scale does not improve society.

The sports and news worlds focused on Foxboro this week as the end of an era in New England Patriots history was marked by the leaving of Coach Bill Belichick. The book is closed on a quarter century of excellence that was the envy of most and the target of hate and jealousy by some. There will always be questions about whether Brady or Belichick deserved the credit for the dynasty that brought six Lombardi trophies to Gillette Stadium and New England. I will yield to the sports folk to debate coach versus quarterback. I will tackle Kraft.

If not for Robert Kraft, pundits would not be debating the person responsible for the dynasty, for there would not be one. Like the rest of us, Kraft was a frustrated fan who cheered for a team that suffered from mediocrity for forty years. Everything changed with the team, town, and even New England when Kraft stepped up and bought the Patriots in 1994, preventing the team from moving to St. Louis and setting the stage for the most successful twenty years in a football franchise. Kraft established a level of excellence that should be a model to learn from and emulate, but instead, some want to tear it down or watch it crumble. Excellence is no longer something to strive for but to avoid. Parity is the new norm. The demise of the Patriots since the departure of Tom Brady is not Bill Belichick’s or Robert Kraft’s fault. The Patriots are doing exactly what the league is designed to do: return to the pack. Free agency, the salary cap, and even the requirements for staff hiring are intended to prevent dynasties. Kraft is a dinosaur, like us, and will fight the norm, and my money is on him to succeed.

Many of us still remember the hapless Patriots. I saw my first game in 1964 at Fenway Park, one of the many homes of the Pats until Kraft built them a permanent residence. Knowing the past made us appreciate what Kraft, Belichick, and Brady gave us for twenty years. Fortunately for YouTube, we can relive those thrills with the click of a remote. But for our younger fans who know nothing but championships and duckboat parades, this period of rebuilding for the Patriots is a new and uncomfortable experience. It is made more difficult because we were blessed with too much success, and damn, it was a great run. In this WOKE era, we should ensure our kids understand the how and why of the Patriots story. Maybe they will focus on propping up merit and success and reject those who want to suppress them with Woke. If this happens, this week will end an era, but WOKE and DEI, not excellence, will end.