The fifth Patriots Super Bowl victory parade had it all.
“Brady!, Brady!, Brady!” chants began erupting well before the 11 a.m. start to the near three hour long celebration throughout the streets of downtown Boston. A work scaffold with a sign that read “Falcon Construction” had fans – lined 8-10 rows deep by Boston Common – chanting, “tear it down!” The streets reeked of marijuana.
Snow turned to rain, and then the rain disappeared right as confetti began to fall on the heads of Patriots players and fans.
Julian Edelman, who was the star of the show in the parade two years ago by taking his shirt off and standing on top of a duck boat, kept it relatively tame this year. Pats players were clearly told to not risk life and limb this year, though Chris Long did climb on top of one duck boat and began swimming like a fish to the front of the boat. Not surprisingly, Rob Gronkowski was highly active throughout the parade. “He was chugging beer in front of everybody and then would spike the cans,” said Jeff, 24, from Providence. “Even though he’s wasn’t on the field much this year, he’s still the man.”
The inclement weather did work out to the benefit of some, as many schools cancelled classes for the day.
“A 5:30 this morning we woke up to our superintendent saying it was a snow day, so I put my Pats gear on, bundled up and came to this for the Patriots,” said Lisa, 25, a teacher from Andover.
The parade, which began at Hynes Convention Center, did not roll past the Tremont Street portion of Boston Common until around 12:20 p.m., but fans were not disappointed when their Super Bowl LI heros finally arrived. “We got here at 9:30 a.m. and waited in the rain for three hours … totally f***ing worth it,” said Jessica, 25, from Methuen. “They worked as hard as we worked to watch them in the parade. So worth it.” Were you nervous when the Pats were down 28-3 Sunday night?
“Nervous, yes. But you never doubted the team. They’ve got the best QB, the best coach of all-time. They’re always capable of a 25-point comeback. – Jeff, 24, Providence
“I was s****ing my pants at halftime. I literally could not watch Lady Gaga because … well, it was a weird f***ing situation. Everyone was freaking out, but I kept saying, “It’s not over ‘till it’s over. Do your job.” – Jessica, 25, Methuen “I started cleaning the kitchen I was so nervous,” – Lisa, 25, Andover
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