New England Patriots male cheerleader refuses to take responsibility for team’s decline
Former New England Patriots male cheerleader Steven Sonntag claims in an exclusive interview he had nothing to do with Tom Brady's exit. The post New England Patriots male cheerleader refuses to take responsibility for team’s decline appeared first on Outsports.
Mark
The New England Patriots have had male cheerleaders for years. Now, with the team in the throes of seasons of despair, suddenly some fans are following this week’s insane meltdown over male cheerleaders in the NFL.
The Patriots first had male cheerleaders for the 2019 season, when not one but two male cheerleaders were added to the team’s cheer roster: Steven Sonntag and Driss Dallahi.
Now some Patriots fans and other NFL followers are upset.
It’s easy to see why.
The Patriots last won the Super Bowl in February of 2019.
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It was just months later that the team decided to add male cheerleaders — Sonntag and Dallahi — to the squad. And it’s been downhill for the team from there.
The 2019 season ended with a Wild Card loss to the (gulp) Tennessee Titans and (double gulp) current Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel.
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Tom Brady left the team after that season, winning (gulp) the next Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Patriots haven’t won an NFL playoff game since, losing an embarrassing 47-17 Wild Card loss to the (gulp) Buffalo Bills in their lone non-Brady Playoff appearance.
Patriots male cheerleader claims he never dropped a pass
Outsports recently caught up with Sonntag to demand answers about his involvement in the decline of the New England Patriots, from “Greatest Dynasty Ever” to… the “Snow Plow Patriots.”
He pointed out that the recent hubbub about male cheerleaders must be from NFL “fans” (in heavy quotes) with their heads in the sand, as the league has had male cheerleaders since 2018.
“It will be the eighth season with male cheerleaders,” Sonntag said. “We’ve moved past the hate. There have been multiple male cheerleaders at Super Bowls. You have to have your head in the ground to not know this.
“If you suddenly have an opinion about he Vikings adding male cheerleaders, it’s clear you don’t know what’s going on in the NFL.”
It’s convenient that Sonntag focus on the regular-season and Super Bowl success of teams with male cheerleaders — the Los Angeles Rams, Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers — as his own team, the Patriots, has declined.
Most alarming, Sonntag denied any culpability in the team’s decline. When Sonntag was hired by the team, many fans were concerned about the dearth of stand-out receivers playing on Sundays.
Sonntag flat-out denied his responsibility in this.
“I didn’t drop any passes in my career as a cheerleader,” he claimed. Outsports could not find any record of Sonntag dropping any passes from Mac Jones or Cam Newton during his time with the team.
Outsports could also not find any record of the longtime cheerleader catching any passes either, so we persisted.
“How many interceptions did you throw while you were with the team?” We asked.
Sonntag was quick with his answer.
“Zero.”
Undeterred, Outsports pressed on.
“How many times did you fumble the ball during a game?”
Sonntag laughed, seemingly taking the question unseriously. As fans on X lined up to cancel season tickets, we wanted answers, and Sonntag seemed interested in only laughs.
“Zero times,” he claimed.
Sonntag then claimed the cheerleaders (gulp) have nothing to do with roster decisions or whether any of the receivers catch passes.
“I don’t get where people are confused people to think the male cheerleaders have anything to do with how the team is doing,” he claimed to Outsports, “or how a male cheerleader would lead someone to cancel a season ticket.
“If you do that, you’re not a NFL fan.”
This story is developing, and Outsports will continue to follow the role male cheerleaders have in their team’s on-field drops, interceptions and fumbles.
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The post New England Patriots male cheerleader refuses to take responsibility for team’s decline appeared first on Outsports.
