Sounds like your fully defensive of Brady and fully willing to cast all blame on Belichick and Brady's teammates. Brady can do no wrong? You're fully prepared to blame Belichick, whitewash Brady, exonerate Branch, elevate Givens and deride Caldwell and the rest of his teammates?
Comes across like Brady hero worship to me.
Three rings worth Kasmir.
Brady is not having a great year, whatever the reason. As Box points out, his accuracy seems a little off. Something is bothering him, and the fall off in his WR corps may not account for all of it. No doubt his WR's are not as strong bunch this year, no one except a Patriots fanboy is going to confuse either Givens or Branch with an all-pro wide receiver. By any objective measure, Caldwell is an adequate replacement for Givens. So they lost Branch. Branch was often hurt while he was here, Brady always compensated in the past. Branch is the 3rd best receiver in the Seattle group, hardly a bunch of world beaters. Givens was putrid with Tenn before he got hurt. Patten has been nothing since he left here.
I simply think the reason is as plain as the nose on your face, and people who can't accept it and spend hours assessing body language and facial expressions and arm angles are just unable or unwilling to acknowledge it. Box is a great guy, but his analysis of network game tape without benefit of full view of the field or any hint at what players were expected to do is just in depth amatuer assessment. I know you love your outsider stats, but they did also prove that we have the worst WR unit in Brady's career. And while Caldwell may have replaced Givens production in 2005, that was not the team we were looking to reprise. In Branch's absence in 2004 Givens did what Caldwell can't - he replaced #1 production for several weeks including 4 100+ yard games. Brady wasn't the only one who compensated, and that is what we are lacking this season - others to step up on offense. I reminded someone in another thread today what BB always says about evaluating players - it doesn't matter what they do on another team, it's what they can do in this system. In this system Branch, Givens and even Patten produced exceptionally well. Brady doesn't need all pro weapons, just weapons who can function at a high level in the system.
In the past, Brady was able to elevate everyone around him, and he's again doing that with Caldwell, but he doesn't seem to have all the magic this year. Maybe that's why the coaches and players didn't concur with the fans that Brady is an all-pro this year. Maybe he really is hurt. Maybe he has off-field distractions we don't know about. Maybe he's depressed. Maybe it's just bad luck.
He still has the magic, it's merely wasted when you don't have players around you with the capacity to elevate to your level. Caldwell is knocking himself out, and I give him credit for that effort, but that it takes that much effort on his part after a full TC and 14 weeks into a season and in his 5th year in the league doesn't necessarily bode well long term. It's mentally exhausting, just like being a HOF QB who has to drag his piecemeal offense along becomes mentally as well as physically exhausting. Brady admitted to being both at the end of the 2005 season. I fear 2006 will just bring more of the same.
It's quite possible none of this is Brady's fault, but the attitude that Brady gets all the credit for success and is insulated from blame for failure is not reasonable. Just based on past accomplishment, Brady's going to the Hall of Fame. So is Belichick. You're quite rightly willing to blame Belichick, as HC/GM he is his fully accountable for the failures and success of the program. But Brady is not immune to criticism either.
As Tom says, he gets no say in player personnel decisions. Tommy isn't perfect - we all have 4 INT days every now and then, and he always has. But this year he's being asked AGAIN to work his magic with one hand tied behind his back. Last year it was no viable running game due to injuries. This year it's no consistent offense due to lack of WR's, inconsistent TE performance or availability, inconsistent Oline play and a RB split that is far from seamless because one is a rookie who likes to dance and the other is a bruiser whose in game stamina is again somewhat sketchy.
I didn't like ButtBoy's tone any more than you did -- he may even be a troll -- but it isn't unreasonable to ask if something has been wrong with Brady. More importantly, if Brady has been sub par, we have reason for hope. The season is hardly lost, and Brady has many times demonstrated that he can lift his game and carry the team to greatness like few if any QB's in NFL history.
If we're lucky, the Hall of Fame Brady may yet emerge this season, and carry this team to it's greatest success ever.
