Rob Ninkovich and Chris Long hit the sauce early and often Tuesday as the New England Patriots celebrated their fifth Super Bowl title with a parade through the streets of Boston.
Ninkovich, who has spent his last eight seasons in New England, got the championship party rocking by chugging vodka straight from the bottle while riding one of the Patriots’ duck boats. Long, who’s coming off his first season with the Pats, opted to crush some beers instead.
Rob Ninkovich is playing the role of Gronk this year pic.twitter.com/1GueThIrK1
— SI Media (@SISportsMedia) February 7, 2017
https://twitter.com/Christian2T/status/829018953569751040
Chris Long just crushing beers on parade route @JOEL9ONE channeling Stone Cold Steve Austin. #patriotsparade pic.twitter.com/chKvHj8qtg
— Yianni Kourakis (@WPBF_Yianni) February 7, 2017
CHRIS LONG SLAMS A NATTY LIGHT pic.twitter.com/5qggFc20Xf
— SB Nation GIF (@SBNationGIF) February 7, 2017
#PatsOn7 Ninkovich and Long staying hydrated #Patriots #victoryparade pic.twitter.com/SFqkMf7uto
— BobHebeisen (@bobhebeisen) February 7, 2017
It looks like Mr. Ninkovich is a Grey Goose guy, while Mr. Long went all high school and pulled a Natural Light out of the cooler.
Ninkovich now is a two-time champion, as he also was part of the Patriots team that defeated the Seattle Seahawks two years ago in Super Bowl XLIX. But given the circumstances of Super Bowl LI — a 25-point comeback on the heels of all the Deflategate drama — it’s no wonder he’s looking to let his hair down after defeating the Atlanta Falcons in one of the craziest games in NFL history.
Long, on the other hand, is coming off his first career playoff run, as he spent his first eight seasons with the St. Louis Rams after being drafted second overall in 2008. Not a bad way to debut on the big stage.
Ninkovich, Long and the rest of the Patriots probably will catch up on their sleep at some point. But for now, the boys deserve to party.
