New England Patriots Fan Who Kept His Cool During Gut-Wrenching Loss Rewarded by Robert Kraft
While New England Patriots players and coaches try to move on from last Sunday’s heartbreaking loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, it’s not so easy to do. The final seconds of the improbable Raiders’ 30-24 victory have lingered around as the Patriots prepare for Saturday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
The crushing loss was painful for many Patriots fans, and victory was sweet for loyal Raiders fans. A recent video of a Patriots fan showing incredible restraint as an annoying woman in a Raiders jersey taunted him after the game caught the eye of Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
New England Patriots fan was taunted by a Raiders fan after brutal loss Sunday
In a way, the Raiders win over the Pats was payback. The Raiders were on the wrong end of a tuck rule back in 2002 that potentially cost them a Super Bowl title. On Sunday, they were on the right end of one of the most foolish plays in NFL history.
As a refresher, the Patriots had the ball in their own territory with the game tied 24-24 in the final seconds Sunday. Instead of taking a knee and heading to overtime, running back Rhamondre Stevenson busted free and reached the Vegas 31-yard line before lateraling the ball to wide receiver Jakobi Meyers. Meyers then inexplicably heaved a backward pass nearly 20 yards in the direction of quarterback Mac Jones.
The pass was picked off by Vegas’ Chandler Jones, who scampered 48 yards for the game-winning touchdown. It was easily one of the most painful ways to lose a game.
While the Raiders and their fans celebrated the victory, a video that went viral captured a female Raiders fan in a Derek Carr jersey getting in the face of a Patriots fan and taunting him in the upper deck of the stadium. Dressed in a Tom Brady jersey, the Pats fan somehow managed to remain calm throughout the ordeal, staring straight ahead and ignoring the crazed woman.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft steps up to the plate
After the ugly video made its way around the social media circuit, the Patriots fan was identified as Jerry Edmund. Edmund took in his first NFL game and clearly didn’t have the greatest experience. Not only did his team lose in dramatic fashion, but the woman mocked him endlessly after the game-winning touchdown.
Fans did their best to identify the Patriots fan, and it finally worked. Edmunds responded via Twitter.
“I’d like to thank everyone for all the kind words,” he wrote, per Patriots.com. “I’m the Patriots fan in the video. My name is Jerry Edmond and that was my first ever NFL game. I didn’t want to ruin my experience by retaliating towards that woman so I kept my cool.”
Kraft wanted to thank Edmund personally for representing the team with class. According to the team, Kraft personally called Edmund on Wednesday, inviting him to Saturday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Edmund accepted the invite and will receive a customized jersey and pregame field passes.
According to Mick Akers of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Raiders also reached out to Edmund to offer him a return trip to the stadium for an event of his choice.
