Are Philly Fans Bipolar?

coneheads
bi·po·lar dis·or·der
noun
noun: bipolar disorder; plural noun: bipolar disorders; noun: bipolar affective disorder; plural noun: bipolar affective disorders
  1. a mental disorder marked by alternating periods of elation and depression.

I recently spoke with a psychology type at a random bar in town. The topic of Philadelphia sports fans in Philadelphia came up. He suggested that Philadelphia may be the largest collective bipolar disorder sufferer on the planet. He might be on to something.

We, as a group, have no real understanding of what it’s like to go through life just feeling alright, alright, alright! Our world is either amazing or it sucks. The world between those two opposites has no residence in the psyche of Philadelphia, especially in our sports.

Ask Andy Reid. He gave us a great run that was followed by years of middling seasons. He may end up being one of the ten winningest NFL coaches of all-time, but years of existing in the middle of the pack went against the grain of Philadelphia’s mental makeup. Fans demanded change. The fans in Kansas City seem quite content winning ten games with no real shot at a Super Bowl. Screw that. That’s not how Philadelphians rolls.

Ask Ed Wade. He was another guy who got a Philadelphia team to a competitive level, but that was it. Competitive doesn’t work here, unless you’re the Flyers for whatever reason. In 2005, Ed Wade’s Phillies missed the playoffs by one game. The one game might as well have been 27. Fans signed petitions for Wade’s ouster and flooded sportstalk radio airwaves calling for his dismissal.

Ask the Sixers. They were middle of the pack and had falling attendance and TV ratings. Sam Hinkie arrived. Hinkie gets Philly. Maybe he’s got a history of bipolar disorder in his family. Whatever it is, he gets it. He gave us extreme lows with promises of manic highs and Philadelphians are alright with that.

We feed off those lows and embrace those highs. The Eagles trading of McCoy had us in a huff a few months back. Just a couple of weeks ago fans were in a huff with Bradford not playing. Fans raged out with “We need to see Bradford” and “He’s got to play Bradford.” Fans were still debating the trade of Foles for Bradford. That is, until Bradford played.

Chip Kelly is now driving the lead car in this Philadelphia Eagles Fan mania-train. This ride may have highs not felt in forever. Super Bowl highs! Everyone is on board. Of course we are! We’re Philadelphians. 12-4 seems to be the expected outcome of this NFL season. Some are even thinking 13-3. Super Bowl contenders, no doubt! Will that train come crashing down if Bradford gets injured and Foles has a solid year? Absolutely.

A few stragglers attempt to quell the Philadelphia state of mind with calls for “waiting to see what the season brings.” That mentality is for places like Buffalo or St. Louis. This is Philly, bro.

Get on the train. Embrace your disorder. You can still hate Ruben and love the Eagles simultaneously to get the full rollercoaster range of emotions that we feed off of.

We don’t need no meditation, no yoga, no giant prozac tablet large enough to dose 1.5 million people. Nope. This is who we are. While we may collectively exhibit classic symptoms of bipolar disorder, I think passionate is more fitting. There’s no middle-of-the-road with people full of passion. And, that’s what Philadelphians are…a loud, tough-but-fair, passionate bunch.

E-A-G-L-E-S!

Thanks for reading and sharing!

 

*bipolar disorder is a serious condition and this article is not meant to poke fun at the condition in any way, shape, or form.