An interesting fact about the New England Patriots is that George R. R. Martin wrote them into one of his award-winning Game of Thrones novels. He did not include them in support, however, taking a stab at them for their 2007 undefeated season and their subsequent loss in the Super Bowl to the New York Giants. The following passage from A Dance with Dragons obviously pokes fun at the Patriots and Bill Belichick: “The galley was also where the ship’s books were kept … the fourth and final volume of The Life of the Triarch Belicho, a famous Volantene patriot whose unbroken succession of conquests and triumphs ended rather abruptly when he was eaten by giants.”
The fact that George R.R. Martin included the Patriots is very interesting and shows how popular they are. The passage describes Bill Belichick as the famous patriot Belicho. When he writes about the unbroken succession of conquests and triumphs, he is describing the Patriots’ undefeated 2007 season. He finishes the passage with the rather abrupt and unexpected end to their success. He is describing the Patriots’ loss to the Giants in the Super Bowl. This game is regarded as one of the biggest upsets in sports history. The Giants won 17-14. With less than three minutes left to play, the Giants were down by four, the Patriots leading 14-10. The Giants made an 83-yard drive down field, in part due to David Tyree making an amazing one-handed catch by pinning the ball with his right hand to his helmet for a 32-yard gain. For the win, Plaxico Burress made a 13-yard reception, scoring the game-winning touchdown with only 35 seconds left. The Patriots were the favorite, and they probably thought they would win, but as Martin’s passage states, they were eaten by the Giants in the end.
The telecast of the game on Fox broke the record for the most watched Super Bowl in history with an average of 97.5 million viewers in the United States.
Article Written by: Erin Irish