PatsBoy12

In lieu of PATRIOT64's thread asking which new players will make the biggest contribution in 2009, I thought I'd present the converse. Which departure leaves the biggest hole/need to fill? Which player, coach, or front-office personnel was the biggest offseason loss to the organization? Note, I'm not asking for opinions on the most disappointing departure. I'm asking who you all think will be the toughest departure to replace (will we perhaps see early season struggles in a particular position/with a particular unit).

I included a poll to give some ideas . . .

ALP

right now im going with lonnie...

i was about to say matt cassel, but so far, with what ive read of our new long snappers, they arnt the definition of perfection...hopefully that changes by season start

but those situations can at times become mightily important...but well see, im hoping lonnie can get replaced w/o any headaches

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Last time I lived in New England the Pats became a Dynasty

Then I moved away and they haven't won since

...now I'm moving back, and a Lombardi I predict

Frezo

My vote was also for Paxton. It's hard to find players at any position that can execute their role with the positive consistency that he did.

Pat the Pats Fan

My first thought was Cassel, too, but changed it to a non player, Pioli.

Belechick has replaced players and coaches and continued to win. Let's see about front office personnel.

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A sarcastic Bill Belichick on Tom Brady's finger injury, "It's not life threatening."

PatsBoy12

How would you rate Belichick's first draft without Pioli? Many think he did a masterful job of moving around and the Pats walked away with two 2nd-round picks for next season's draft.

ausbacker

Pardon my rudeness, but isn't there a separate topic mimicking this exact thread that was started last week?

mgteich

Vrabel was a major loss, IMHO, the only major loss. There have been perhaps thousands of posts discussing how we will deal with the "situation" at OLB. That points to a serious concern in filling the void left by Vrabel.

On the other hand, consider that Harrison's retirement is not considered something that is in any way an issue. Belichick drafted a safety, re-signed another, signed a third; business as usual.

I do agree that Paxton was important, but Hodel is also one of the very best. Also, Ingram was the best in the NCAA last year. We have the long snapper position in good hands.

BTW, Belichick will do just fine with front office stuff. He has already done well in the Cassel situation, the draft, in 2009 cap management, and of course in the deals that he didn't make.

PatsBoy12

I checked before I created this and the other one is "most disappointing" thing this offseason and it included things that did not happen (i.e. signing Jason Taylor, Julius Peppers, etc.). So no, they are not the same. I wanted to know what the biggest hole would be to fill, not what we all think has been the most disappointing offseason occurrence.

ALP

thats my point....we trully wont know about that until the LS is tested...

as for vrabel...i dont see him as a major loss, he could not rush the QB anymore, and was only good at setting the edge on runs

i hope we can replace his edge setting, while upgrading the QB pressure...and age

__________________
Last time I lived in New England the Pats became a Dynasty

Then I moved away and they haven't won since

...now I'm moving back, and a Lombardi I predict

PatsBoy12

I agree that his ability to get to the QB had declined since the second half of the 2007 season, but you can't say his loss wasn't a HUGE one in terms of his leadership, experience and, most importantly, his intelligence, especially in big games and critical situations. We'll have a few big ones, especially as the season draws to a conclusion, so the Pats will miss that immensely. The same goes for Rodney. They were definitely old and, perhaps, even past their twilight. However, for all the speed and durability potential that the youth movement brings, it lacks experience and leadership.