betterthanthealternative

So the team has morphed from being staffed primarily with veterans and supplemented with athletic youth, to one that is staffed primarily with athletic youth and anchored by a few veterans.

It seems that the most useful attitude is to enjoy and celebrate our young, inexperienced team that will thrill us with athletic feats and cause much despair with youthful mistakes. It will be a roller coaster ride for a while. I've been trained under BB to enjoy steady and predictable. Undoubtedly he's working to get there again, but needs another year or so.

In the past, I would lament how slow the team was, or how we didn't have as many "game breakers" as other teams. With the exception of RB, we now have more speed and quickness than most teams in the "skill" positions.

To wit: the punt and KO return game, the TE's in the red zone, the DB's running down plays (often because they made a mistake that required it).

Next year's draft can bring more young talent on the two lines, OLB, and with a RB or two, and the puzzle pieces are in place. Just keep old man Brady healthy for a few years and let him ride it.

upstater1

I for one appreciate that you started this thread.

As long as the teams plays hard, I'm orienting myself for anything between 8-8 and 12-4, and anything in between there is acceptable.

The defense could have some bad growing pains in the front 7 (I think we have enough talent in the back 4 to be really good by mid-year). And if the front 7 can't stop the run well enough, or pass rush and pressure, or handle TEs, then we will have a middling year.

I'm fine with that.

I know that in the future we'll have Wilfork, Cunningham, Spikes, Guyton, Mayo, Brace and a bunch of solid backup contributors in Pryor, Deadrick, Wright, McKenzie to build on. This is a good problem to have, finding that much youth. With more experience, some of these guys can become our future Anthony Pleasants, Roman Phifers, Bobby Hamiltons, as Mayo, Spikes and Cunningham transform into Bruschi and Vrabel.

We need to draft the next McGinest and Seymour though. Easier said than done.

fgssand

The future is NOW..............I am going to really enjoy watching the young and talented "D" develop over the course of the season. By thanksgiving, I feel they will be one of the top defenses in the NFL.

The offense will be able to carry us early on and we should be in great position for a stretch run.

I can't wait for this season to start already..................anybody headed to Vegas, please let me know as I want to lay it in for over 9 wins.

__________________
Season ticket holder since 1971, first in section 209 and now in 134.

LOVE New England sports....10 years SEVEN championships!!!

Pat the Pats Fan

with 2 #1's next year, maybe, but the talent could be watered down due to so many kids coming out this year.

__________________

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.


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

JR4

Where do you see the losses?

I am looking at first 8 games and see 4 games against teams with a good
Defense AND a good Offense. Considering PATs' young defense these will
be the most likely loses in the first 8 games:
Bengals, Ravens, Vikes and Chargers(?)
(I'm hoping PATs will win at least one of these)

For the last 8 games I see PATs D being competitive so most
probable loses are Colts and Packers but PATs may surprise here if
the D is really improved by then.

Then there is the game they shouldn't have lost . Say one of those.
One loss in our division is always a good possibility.

I see 8 losses as a probability that is not highly unlikely.
But I think they win at least 10. It realy depends on how fast this
Defense comes together and no major injuries.

Some say the PATs offense is so good they will carry the team.
But for the offense to put up lots of points the D needs to get them
the ball. The time of possession will be an important stat to watch.

The D's of the past use to have an average of 17 points or less average
on points allowed. I do not see this D doing that at this point. My guess
is this team's points allowed average will be in the twenties this year.

JoeSixPat

I'm still sticking to my 10-6 prediction.

This is a killer schedule, travel, time and team opponent wise and I'm fully prepared for a handful of losses - usually there's a few I think they'll win that they lose and a few I think they'll lose that they win. Generally I've been pretty close with my predictions in the past.

This team could be better than the one we saw in 2007 and it would still finish with a worse schedule - I just want to see the team peaking in January... a few losses along the way don't bother me too much, but I do like to see a team playing hard at all times.

When they don't I'm critical even if they win - but when they play hard I stand by them even in a string of losses.

fgssand

Last years defense allowed 17.8 points.................I think this years defense will be better, so I am not agreeing with your feeling they let in more than 20 at all.

This years "D" is an upgrade when you factor in spikes, a healthy mayo, Devin island, second year for butler & chung, high hopes for brace & gerrard warren (to at least somewhat soften the blow of the loss of Ty) and overall youth movement.

I think this "D" will surprise, especially in the 2nd half of season.

__________________
Season ticket holder since 1971, first in section 209 and now in 134.

LOVE New England sports....10 years SEVEN championships!!!

mgteich

OFFENSE
The offense is still "staffed primarily with veterans and supplemented with athletic youth".
Do you really think that we only have a few veterans we are counting on? We will count on Grankowski and Vollmer, but for the rest, it is primarily veterans. The core of our passing offense is Brady, Moss, Welker, Faulk, Light, Neal, Koppen, Vollmer and Grankowski.

And in the running game, we are counting on three players over 30 plus Maroney. I am not counting Maroney as a budding athletic youthful star.

The offense is the strong veteran offense it has always been. If Taylor has a strong year, this could be much, much better than last year. Absent that, this year shouls still better with a healthy Brady and the improvement at TE.
=================================

DEFENSE
Wilfork, Mayo, Bodden and the kids!

PATSYLICIOUS

No I do not fantasize about Tom Brady.

OK only sometimes... when I'm lonely

__________________
Organized madness
The young Gott-stra
Young Frank Sinatra

FrreeeBird

Without a pass rush this team is going to be infuriatingly painful to watch, well, on defense at least.

Offensively I can't wait to watch Gronk and Hernandez.