Surprise! Patriots (Fans) Going to Super Bowl LVII
The New England Patriots aren't going to Super Bowl LVII.
But, because of owner Robert Kraft, some of their fans are.
While working to repair his football team after a deep-dive meeting with coach Bill Belichick, Kraft is taking time to make use of his disappointingly extra tickets to the Super Bowl February 12 in Glendale, Arizona.
Kraft recently invited three season-ticket holder fans to Gillette Stadium under the false pretense of a Zoom call. Whether they anticipated a season-ticket holder event, community leadership luncheon, or an interview about wheelchair football, certainly none expected to be given two trips to the Super Bowl.
"It can't be for me," said long-time Patriots season-ticket holder Roger McDevitt. "I'm just a regular guy who goes to the games with my boys and friends. We've been coming for 50 years."
McDevitt has been a season ticket member since 1972, and was nominated by another, Bob Lord, a lifelong friend he's attended Patriots games with for years.
"When we bought the team we hadn't sold out in 34 years, and I was like you, in the stands, knowing the caliber of people we had and how much they wanted to win a championship," Kraft told McDevitt while showing him the six Lombardi Trophies. "The support that people like you gave us allowed us to build on what we knew was already there."
The franchise's success allowed the Kraft family and the Patriots to mirror it off the field and in the community, and host events like wheelchair football clinics this past November.
That's where the organization got to know Kellan Tilton, a 10-year-old cancer survivor from Detroit, Maine. A cancerous tumor on his spine left him paralyzed from the waist down.
With help from Tilton's principal, Kraft surprised the boy, his family, close friends and teachers by inviting him to the Super Bowl over Zoom.
"I want you to know, Kellan, that you're an inspiration to our team, the players and our whole fanbase because you've handled adversity with a big smile on your face." said Kraft. "You're a cool dude and we're really proud to have you as a fan."
Addario Miranda, a Project 351 student ambassador from Lowell, will also represent the Patriots fanbase well in Arizona.
The Patriots fans will have some good vibes in State Farm Stadium outside of Phoenix, as their team beat the Cardinals there on Monday Night Football Dec. 12.
Kraft regularly uses his big heart and bigger assets for acts of kindness, such as flying military soldiers home for Memorial Day or inviting an especially "calm" fan to his suite for a game in Foxboro.
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