Patriots pay respects to Hill
NEW ORLEANS – Less than two years ago, this neighborhood was underwater.
Outside the Jacob Schoen and Son Funeral Home, almost hidden in the heart of this still-recovering New Orleans community on Canal Street at North Scott, obvious remnants of the physical devastation of Hurricane Katrina remain.
Inside, however, emotional devastation is what’s evident.
When the New England Patriots heard the tragic news – that their gregarious, fun-loving teammate, defensive lineman Marquise Hill, had drowned in Lake Pontchartrain following a jet-ski accident – they knew what they had to do.
So on Friday, the entire team, from rookie free agent to seasoned Super Bowl veteran, flew down to New Orleans to say goodbye.
One after another, each player filed past Hill’s casket. And that’s when reality overtook them, as suddenly and with as much force as Katrina’s flood waters had swallowed the Crescent City.
It’s never easy to watch a grown man cry.
Which may explain why, in the softly lit interior of the Schoen Funeral Home, many Patriots, including Hill’s fellow d-lineman Vince Wilfork, decided not to remove their sunglasses.
Others, like kicker Stephen Gostkowski, required more than one tissue and a trip to the restroom to compose themselves. Most shared hugs and pats on the back that lasted just a few seconds longer than normal – a tacit acknowledgement that they knew how the other was feeling.
Then there were those who showed their emotion by not showing emotion. They were simply too numb with shock to react, their blank stares belying the pages upon pages of grief that were no doubt written on their heavy hearts.
Seeing a 24-year-old friend lying lifeless, when just a week ago he was practicing, lifting weights, and laughing alongside you in the locker room, will elicit all the above reactions.
Even the usually talkative Ellis Hobbs, the cornerback who rarely shies away from a camera or microphone, was unable to give voice to his feelings.
After the players exited the funeral home and boarded the buses for the return trip to New England, Patriots owner Robert Kraft did his best to put into words how his team is coping with the loss.
“Marquise has a pretty special family here,” Kraft began. “His mom…his uncles…They’re helping us in our grieving process be stronger and try to make some sense out of this. It’s very hard to fathom.”
Kraft emphasized that his team’s concept of family means being there for each other in both good times and bad, which, he said, is why the Patriots organization went to great lengths to help Hill’s relatives make the arrangements for his burial.
During the wake, several people stood up to address the gathering in what Kraft described as an impromptu service.
“It helped us start to bring closure,” the owner observed. “It’s still a difficult thing to understand.”
Don Davis, the former Pats linebacker turned strength coach, agreed.
“It’s not real until you see him,” remarked Davis.
“You hear about it and it seems strange, but when you see him, it puts it in perspective.”
Aside from the fact that so many members of the Patriots organization were present, it was hard to distinguish between New England and New Orleans on June 1, 2007. The weather was as hot and humid when the Patriots’ charter flight left the northeast as it was when the plane landed in the bayou.
As the team’s five-bus caravan methodically marched back to the airport, off to the left, about a mile or two away, the city skyline painted a stunning portrait, with the New Orleans Superdome in the foreground. There, on February 3, 2002, the football world first witnessed the Patriots choosing to be recognized as a team, prior to kickoff of Super Bowl XXXVI.
The handful of current players who were on that championship-winning squad will forever remember this city fondly because of the memories of that great game.
But their emotions will now be mixed when they think about New Orleans. Because, from now on, they’ll also remember the beautiful life and sad death of young Marquise Hill.
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