Go All In!

It’s been 30 years since the Patriots had the top pick in the NFL draft. That year they drafted Drew Bledsoe and the team started their road to relevence. Within three years of drafting him the Patriots found themselves not only in the playoffs but also the Super Bowl.

After Bledsoe and Terry Glenn, the Patriots didn’t draft in the single digits again till 2001 when they drafted Richard Seymour out of Georgia. That along with the emergence of some guy named Tom Brady gave birth to a dynasty.

The highest the team drafted anyone since then was Jerod Mayo in 2008 and the team traded DOWN to aquire him (remember they held the #7 pick that year) at #10 overall.

I got the Bleacher Report update yesterday afternoon that the Chicago Bears who own the top overall pick in this year’s draft are looking to trade out of that spot. I know it’s a loaded draft class, but for once, I would love to see the Patriots just push all their chips in and move up 13 spots.

My want for the move isn’t even seeded in want for a new quarterback. I want the team to draft game changing players. Last year the top five were all defense and all game changers. If you’re able to have your pick of the litter at number one, you can take Jalen Carter or Will Anderson that will dramatically move the needle on your defense.

Personally I’m just not satisfied with the team dropping further into the draft and drafting a bunch of “B” prospects. Taking a chance on a second or third round receiver that will be “serviceable”. I want game changers.

So I’m resurecting the blog, pleading with the powers that be, and begging; go all in. Get a game CHANGER. Change the narrative on the Patriot Way. Be an agressive team that is willing to move up and make moves. A dumpy O-Lineman, trading down, and not giving the offense any weapons excites NO ONE.

Now we wait two more months to see how it all plays out. I still hate the Thursday night start of the draft and wish they’d return to an all weekend draft, but despite me being in the majority the league appears to ignore us.

Waving the White Flag

Flying high above Gillette, early indication is that they’re conceding next season.

I miss connecting with you guys on a daily basis. The 24/7 news cycles and podcasts have really made blogging an obsolete medium but here I am.

Rarely does something anger me so much that a simple post on Facebook isn’t enough rage that I need to reopen the blog and unload, but Friday’s Patriots news did exactly that.

It started with the alert that the Patriots were bringing back Cam Newton. My knee jerk reaction was to congratulate the Buffalo Bills on their second straight AFC East Championship before the season even started. Then additional news started coming out and my mind was blown.

First you’re bringing back a quarterback that can’t throw. I don’t care what the spin doctors tell us about the weapons he had to throw to, the lack of knowledge with the playbook in a COVID shortened off-season, or that Cam actually had COVID and that really affected his play. The bottom line was the team limped to an embarrassing finish, the guy couldn’t throw the ball, and when he wanted to be 2015 Cam and run it, he looked slow and awkward.

The terms on bringing this slow quarterback with no arm initially reported at $14 million. My brain started to seep out of my head. Then they broke it down a little.

• $5.1 Million Base Salary
  • $2 million signing bonus
  • $1.5 million in base salary
  • $1.5 in per-game roster bonuses (so we’re clear, that’s $1.5 million total – not $1.5 million per game)
• $8.5 Million in incentives
  • Play 60% of the snaps – $500K
  • Play 90% of the snaps – $1 million
  • Playoff Incentives
    • $500,000 each for
      • 60% regular season snaps + a playoff berth
      • 70% regular season snaps + a playoff berth
      • 80% regular season snaps + a playoff berth
      • 90% regular season snaps + a playoff berth
  • $500,000 for each playoff win (50% snaps), max $1.5M
  • Super Bowl Win (50% snaps): $1.5M
  • Super Bowl MVP: $1M
  • Pro Bowl (original ballot): $500,000
  • All-Pro: $500,000
  • $100k workout bonus

So having reviewed the totals, I think we’d all be comfortable paying Cam $14 million for the year if he achieves all of those goals. That would mean the Patriots won the Super Bowl, he was the MVP, an All Pro etc. Seems like a bargain.

Realistically he’s not likely to do any of those things based on his performance last year. In reality he’s a backup that will likely be given a chance to win the starting job in camp. But who’s there to compete with him?

That’s the real question that’s facing the Patriots. It became very clear last season that they have no interest at all in getting Stidham reps. Even when it was more than apparent that Cam couldn’t throw the ball, they continued to start him even after they were eliminated from the playoffs. So he’s out.

The free agent market is abysmal. Ancient options like Alex Smith and Ryan Fitzpatrick seem like just as useless options as Cam Newton.

So what’s the plan?

Belichick is too competitive to tank for a year. He proved it this past year. So did word come from on high that the Krafts were OK with him tanking this coming year so long as they netted a top three pick and were able to draft an elite quarterback?

Are the going to try and trade up in this draft with the hopes of snagging a quarterback? Or is the ego so large that Bill thinks he can draft someone in the second round, stop gap for a year with Cam under center, and start the rookie in 2022?

The bottom line is, none of know the plan and at this point some of us are starting to question if the Patriots even know the plan. So for the time being as of March 15th, I’m going with my initial response of congraluating the Bills on a second straight AFC Championship and hope that the Patriots have an ace up their sleeve that none of us sees coming.

Otherwise it’s going to be another long, boring football season.

Lighting a Fire?

I know it’s been years, but when something has me fired up enough, I’m willing to dust off the old blog and post.

Yesterday while the 7-9 Patriots were sitting home, ineligible for the playoffs, we witnessed greatness yet again as our former quarterback – with declining skills – lead his new team to the Super Bowl. Flashback 20 years and none of us would dream of Tampa Bay going into Green Bay and knocking off the Packers but that’s exactly what happened yesterday.

Now, I know there’s a lot of folks wishing Brady well, but there’s a smaller segment wishing him nothing but bad things.

Brady brought the Patriots to NINE Super Bowls. Just shy of a 50% mark for his Patriots career. Of those nine, he won six. For those reasons alone I can’t root against the guy.

Forever was the argument of whether it was Brady of Belichick responsible for the success of the team. Brady flourished in Belichick’s system or Belichick looks like a genius because he has Tom Brady under center. I certainly don’t think one year is going to define the narrative but I certainly think that the scale tips Brady’s way based on 2020.

Above all, I am a loyal Patriots fan. Even with the team eliminated from the playoffs, I still scheduled my day around watching them. That won’t change. But what I am hoping will change is the product on the field that we suffered through most of the year. Cam Newton was a shell of his former MVP self and with no weapons the Patriots offense looked lost.

But their defense was still pretty good. Put Hightower back on the field (arguably the MVP against the Falcons in the Super Bowl) and all of sudden it doesn’t seem as bleak on that side of the ball. So let’s ignore the defense for the time being and assume that Hightower in the mix and a solid secondary they can hold their own.

Improvement most definitely needs to come on the offensive side. They need a quarterback, they need receivers, and even though we saw them draft two last year, I think they need tight end help as well.

Now what I’m hoping is that the success of Brady independent of Belichick, will light a fire in Bill. That he’s so vindictive that he’ll want to load up and do anything and everything in his power to not only field a winning team next year, but a team that will blow Brady’s Bucs off the field in the regular season, and will roll into the postseason.

Tougher to do with a legit Buffalo team now in your division, tougher with Miami on the rise. But I don’t think the team is that far removed that it’s a complete rebuild. They just need the right pieces to fall into place (no thank you Stafford, Jimmy G and his aching whatever, and certainly no on Trubiski).

So here’s hoping the Bucs win the Super Bowl and that Bill’s fire is reignited and he’s all in for next season to show it wasn’t Brady that he needs to credit his success to. It’ll take a successful free agency period and draft by Bill the GM.

Scorched Earth 2021!

Embarassing

I have written off many teams and players over the years. The Josh Beckett Red Sox under Bobby Valentine stand out for instance.

Teams that I openly rooted for to lose. Then to take it a step further, volunteered myself to drive individual players to the airport on their way out of town. Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett, Julio Lugo, JD Drew (lots of Red Sox), Rajon Rondo, a series of bum Patriots receivers and defensive backs, and of course Wideman on the Bruins.

I also openly criticized Danny Ainge and his three year plan for the Celtics that turned into a six year plan that failed miserably. But somehow he swindled New Jersey and rebuilt on the fly. The Celtics were turning great again and then he traded for Kyrie Irving and didn’t give up anything for him (OK, he gave up a little but nothing we lost sleep over).

We wrote off last year as the fluke. Just wait till Irving is healthy with Hayward back from his injury and the Celtics would just waltz into the NBA Finals through a weakened East with no LeBron.

But the season sucked. They’d lose to garbage teams, lose back to back games, go on incredible losing streaks, and add in the fact that Kyrie played what felt like 60 games all season and the dread started building more and more.

I mean, they weren’t Lakers bad, but the Celtics were a dumpster fire. They were low in the standings and people questioned whether they’d make the playoffs never mind cruise to the Finals. Then the weak East got weaker and they wound up with the four seed.

Following a sweep of the Pacers the Green Teamers came out of the woodwork claiming they were back and that they’d waltz to the Finals.

Oh how wrong they were.

The Celtics won the first game against the much better Bucks team and then disappeared. Their heart, non-existent. The team, unlikable. Kyrie, very unlikeable. As soon as this team gets punched in the mouth they cave. There’s no fight in them, there’s no resilience. They stink.

They’re playing way outside their league. Milwaukee looks like a world beater against the Celtics. They look like a #1 seed the C’s were supposed to be, and look just as unstoppable. Oh and they’re a team that did something at the trading deadline while Danny sat on his hands and did nothing.

So where do we go from here? Keep in mind this obituary started in the third quarter knowing the outcome was already decided.

First and foremost you let Kyrie walk. You don’t even offer a contract. Before he came here this team was coachable and Stevens was the reason they did well. Then they abandoned teamwork and defense in favor of star power and ball hogs.

No thank you.

And please for the love of God and all things Holy, please don’t trade Tatum. I don’t care how sexy Anthony Davis looks. No. He’ll walk after a year and you’ll become the Pelicans but with a better coach. Sure in the East you’ll be better than an eight seed, but you’re still not a Championship contender.

Let Rozier be your starting PG. Or try and move up on the draft board with you THREE first round picks and draft a PG that will learn and run Brad’s system.

A huge disappointment of a season. A crap “leader” in Kyrie. Not likable. I’d offer to drive him to the airport, but instead I’ll offer him the advise of not coming back to Boston. Stay in Milwaukee. You’re dead to me and I’ll root against you wherever you sign.

And as we old Boston fans used to say; there’s always next year.

Draft Day; Don’t Wait Up

Sorry for the long hiatus. I’m still adjusting to the new schedule and really sleep in the morning weighs much heavier that spitting out a blog post.

But that being said, I couldn’t let today come without offering a little something. I mean it’s draft day. If you go back through my blog’s years of posts you’ll see, the draft is one of my favorite events. I still hate that it starts on a Thursday but what I can I do, they’re not changing it.

So tonight the Patriots hold the 32nd overall pick. The last pick in the first round. The pick that will be selected around 12:30AM. Maybe I’m exaggerating a little but it’ll definitely be late and definitely be picked long after I’ve gone to bed.

Here’s the deal, the people saying the Pats are going to keep the pick because Belichick values that extra year they get on a first round pick are nuts. When what he’s picking at 32 can easily be had in the mid 40’s for the same caliber of player, zero chance he picks when he can add a seventh round pick to his draft load but jumping back 10 picks.

The need exists desperately for a corner. My fanboy hope is that the Pats trade up, get into the teens and get a game changing corner. But realistic me knows that the three third round picks Belichick can get for his first is far too enticing.

So I recommend you get your sleep tonight, stay with it as long as you can, but don’t count on the Pats ending the night. I don’t think it’s going to happen.