The Failed Bid To Bring The Patriots To Connecticut

The Connecticut Patriots

Comic books and sci-fi movies have made the idea of a multiverse part of everyday conversation — infinite realities, some just a few degrees different from our own. If that multiverse were real, then somewhere out there, the New England Patriots would be based in Connecticut instead of Massachusetts. For a brief moment in the late 1990s, that alternate reality almost became real.

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Connecticut’s political leaders, led by Governor John Rowland, crafted an ambitious plan to lure the Patriots to Hartford with a state-of-the-art stadium deal worth nearly a billion dollars. The deal promised to put Connecticut’s capital back on the pro sports map after the loss of the Hartford Whalers.

But the story took a twist. Despite public celebrations and bipartisan support, the deal fell apart, leaving Connecticut fans with a giant “what if.” Was the Hartford offer ever real, or was it a strategic move to keep the team in Boston? The answer is complex, and the legacy of the near-move still has Connecticut sports fans wondering what could have been.

Patriots in Connecticut? The Nearly-Deal That Shocked New England

The New England Patriots are one of the NFL’s biggest success stories — but in the late ’90s, they almost moved to Connecticut. This story breaks down how politics, an old power plant, and a tug-of-war with Massachusetts created one of Connecticut’s biggest sports “what ifs.”

Gallery Credit: Lou Milano

This comes up every now and again on the I-95 Morning Show. When we do discuss it, the topic quickly shifts from how crazy this story was to what if it happened? For instance, I'm a Raiders fan. The NFL is a bit of an outlier when it comes to fans versus the other major sports. Where baseball, hockey and basketball fans tend to be very regional in their fandom, that is not always the case with the NFL. You'll find Cowboys, Steelers, Raiders, Bears, Vikings fans in every state in our great nation.

But what if the New England Patriots were right in Hartford? It's 58 miles from Danbury to Hartford, that kind of proximity feels irresistible. Could you fight the urge to swap teams if we had a pro NFL team that close?

Some of the NFL’s All-Time Most Feared Tough Guys – Part 1

Gallery Credit: Lou Milano

Some of the NFL’s All-Time Most Feared Tough Guys – Part 2

In Part 1 of this series, I featured John Lynch, Bill Romanowski, James Harrison, Maxx Crosby and Troy Polamalu. For part 2 I felt the need to go back a bit further for some of these players, guys I was not old enough to see play but I grew up reading about.

Gallery Credit: Lou Milano

Some of the NFL’s All-Time Most Feared Tough Guys – Part 3

I’ve been watching the NFL my whole life and while the game has changed drastically in my 42+ years, but one thing remains the same, you must be a “tough guy” to make it to the league. On that level of athleticism, all the players are strong and physical but some clearly are better than others. In parts 1 + 2, I highlighted John Lynch, Bill Romanowski, Troy Polomalu, James Harrison, Maxx Crosby, Reggie White, Earl Campbell, Mean Joe Greene, Mike Singletary and Brett Favre. The following are some of the players who go beyond, passing the eye test and were flat out scary on a football field. These are “Some of the NFL’s All-Time Most Feared Tough Guys – Part 3”

Gallery Credit: Lou Milano

Some of the NFL’s All-Time Most Feared Tough Guys – Part 4

Gallery Credit: Lou Milano

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