convertedpatsfan

I agree, and Seau won't be the leader on the field. But Seau's biggest contribution this season will be teaching the kids. In a way, that could be seen as a different form of leadership, but not the way you mean in the OP.

I'd guess Mayo since he's in charge of making the defensive calls. Wilfork is a great player, but if he was going to become the leader, I think he would have done so already after Sey left. I think Mayo learned quite a bit from Teddy, even though Bru was fading last year. The young guys need to learn from someone, and I think Seau will definitely help Mayo to become that leader.

Wolfpack

Strength of victory doesn't mean margin of victory. It means the records of the teams you have beaten, so the amount you win by does not factor into that tiebreaker.

BionicPatriot

Hopefully this game leaves a scar on the team so the next time a do or die situation comes up this season, they remember how this felt.

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Defense, defense, defense

brady et al fan

no Seau is a special case. He is an intense, natural born leader that players always want to follow. Wasn't he voted team captain the first year he was brought in here out of retirement? And he totally buys into BB which is huge for a team's morale when things get a bit dicey. I don't think he needs to play much to have an impact on this team.

I am still bothered by the smacking the defense took in the 4th quarter though. Forget the 4th and 2 call, this defense had absolutely no answer for Manning for the 2 drives before that last one. Were they tired. Sure. But the Manning no-huddle offense doesn't allow for many substitutions so they are going to have to figure that one out. no excuses. That's what was said before the game.

and the offense? Get one lousy first down to close out the game.

Sorry, not feeling the optimism of this thread yet. I think the Saints game will be very telling because we'll see if the defense can play a complete game against an elite offense. I do think we kick the Jets arses though.

aluminum seats

You're probably right that guys still listen to Seau, but I do think it's the guys who are the top players can lead most effectively.

I'm not overly optimistic about this, by the way--I think this adversity simply creates the climate for new leaders to emerge. Whether or not they do is another story.

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"And I'll tell you one more thing: You've got an all-out prizefight, you wait 'til the fight's over, one guy's left standing, and that's how you know who won."