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He is now a man without a team.
He won a SB ring with the Pats, but no one here in NE considers Long a Patriot.
He ingratiated himself in with the Eagles this year, and tried to shove it into the Rams faces in their place with his grandstand freak out display. But the Eagles will probably dump him next year and no one in Philly will think of him as an Eagle.
And I doubt he wants to be considered a Ram anymore, which is just as well, cause I have no use for him.
So Long is a man without a team. And honestly, I think thats what he always was. He's just a different cat.
Now that may not be a sad thing for Long, actually, I doubt he even cares. But it is a sad thing for those Rams fans who always liked him and considered him one of our own.
Chris Long's career trajectory is pretty similar to Steven Jackson's.
Over 12 years, SJ spent 9 years as a Ram, two with ATL, and one with the Cheatriots.
Over 10 years, CL spent 8 years as a Ram, one with Cheats, and now one with Philly.
Point being: CL has spent 8 long years of his career as a Ram, and I actually think many Rams fans will appreciate that and remember him for that.
And waterfield, I agree with your point-- football is still just a game, and our over-identification with colored jerseys is a bit over-the-top. After all, 'fan' is short for 'fanatic."
For CL... it's also complicated in that he tried his heart out for the city of St. Louis, and never spent a year in LA. Just a hypothetical, but had CL spent 8 long years as a Ram playing in the Coliseum, I don't think he ever would have been so rude and dumb as to jump into the stands of the Coliseum as a player for an opposing team. (And again, for the record, I personally believe that CL is overall an admirable guy who did something dumb on Sunday.)
But yeah, it will be interesting to see how CL identifies his team allegiance after he retires. I suspect he will think of himself as a Ram since he will have spent the great majority of his career as a Ram. But who knows. If anyone has heard CL's thoughts about this, feel free to share.