The New England Patriots are set to face off against the Atlanta Falcons on February 6 at the NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, and while all eyes will be on Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, it's going to be a special day for former NFL player Howie Long. His son Chris Long, who plays as a defensive end for the New England Patriots, will be on the field looking to win his first Super Bowl.
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Howie Long, who won a Super Bowl with the Los Angeles Raiders way back in 1984 and is currently an NFL analyst with FOX, said that he is ready for this extraordinary moment, but is not quite sure as to how he'll react when he sees his son play.
"If you've followed my history with my boys, I try to be in the background. Now, at the Super Bowl, it certainly ends up being about a dad covering his son playing in the Super Bowl, which is an extraordinary moment for us. And I'm not quite sure how I'll react to it," Fox Sports quoted Howie Long as saying.
"As a player, you're nervous, you're anxious, you're excited, and then you get hit and its football. Unfortunately, as a broadcaster and just a dad on the sideline, I don't get hit so the nerves don't go away.
"It's like being in a fight," he continued. "You're nervous before you get in the fight, and then you get in the fight and it's just a fight. Been there, done that. With this it's different, it's unique, and I think it's going to be really special."
Meanwhile Chris Long, who moved to the New England Patriots last year after spending eight years with the Los Angeles Rams before being released by them, said he had one major objective while choosing a new team and that was finding a team that he could win the Super Bowl with and that decision is certainly paying off now.
"I kind of bet on the fact that this is the place that would give me the best opportunity to be here in this situation. There's a reason for that. I've learned that through the year and why these guys are in so many positions like this. They treat them as opportunities. We treat them as opportunities. You can't take them for granted and I think that's why we're here. We've earned that" Chris Long was quoted as saying.
