Dear Haters,

Year after year, season after season, sports lovers of all types go through their own share of heartbreaks. For some, this heartbreak is simply watching a team go through a losing season. Some fans have never seen their team in the playoffs. Even worse is to watch your team get close, to watch your team choke when victory is within reach. But the worst of all is to win. That is the real struggle. And for those born into the Boston fandom cult, this ache is never-ending, the knife digging deeper and deeper every year in a town engrossed by playoffs games and championships.

See, in New England, there is a certain expectation to win a championship every year. Being good is pretty strenuous.

It has come with a price over the years. The fans of Titletown have gone through years of athletic distress. We have had to endure decade-long droughts to be where we are today. Our honorable ancestors have paid their dues. They lived through Billy Buckner in 1986, the “Boston Massacre” in 1978 (Bucky "Bleeping" Dent) and the dead space of the 1990s. We have finally reached the pinnacle. Nine championships in 13 years. Not too shabby, I know. But not good enough. This is our yearly struggle.

We have fostered an environment that expects championship parades. It’s an addiction, really. No matter how good the season is, our city will not be satisfied unless our team is riding a duck boat into the Charles River. And this is where the true pain lies. We expect to win. But when we don’t, the heartbreak is even worse. Boston teams have this knack of getting close then somehow faltering (can you say 2008 NBA Finals? 2010 NBA Finals? Both still open wounds).

Each year, we hold our teams to such a high standard, it’s torture, really. A toxic relationship. Not only do we as fans beat ourselves up when we don’t reach our goal of perfection, but the entire world jumps on the anti-Boston bandwagon. Sure, we’re a little obnoxious, and we know how to trash talk, but stop hating us because we’re good. We have a right to act like we do. Hop off our backs. These championships are difficult. Think of our stress level, our anxiety. You haters are simply just one more battlefront to deal with. And stop trying to make excuses for yourselves as to why you hate us. Stop hiding behind "Deflategate."

Listen, it’s pretty tough to be us. Being a New England sports fan is actually the ultimate struggle. Winning all the time isn’t always easy.

We deserve your sympathy, not your hate.

Sincerely,
Titletown