Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

[signbabybrady]

I have heard this comment a few times since the Brady restructure and it makes me want to rip out my hair out. Not sure what his name is but I believe I heard it first from the new guy in the DA slot.

They are referring to Branch being traded after Brady restructured that time. And it is such a stupid comment because yes they did make the move for Branch and leave Brady thin at WR for one year but it was only for one year and the following year they bought Brady Wes, Moss, Stallworth, Gaffney and then the year after that they gave Moss a new deal too.

They spent a ton that time to make sure Brady was happy and they will do the same again this time hopefully it doesnt take a year to find the right guys again but I know they didnt then nor will they this time just pocket the savings.

 

[eom]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

I have heard this comment a few times since the Brady restructure and it makes me want to rip out my hair out. Not sure what his name is but I believe I heard it first from the new guy in the DA slot.

They are referring to Branch being traded after Brady restructured that time. And it is such a stupid comment because yes they did make the move for Branch and leave Brady thin at WR for one year but it was only for one year and the following year they bought Brady Wes, Moss, Stallworth, Gaffney and then the year after that they gave Moss a new deal too.

They spent a ton that time to make sure Brady was happy and they will do the same again this time hopefully it doesnt take a year to find the right guys again but I know they didnt then nor will they this time just pocket the savings.

I believe they finished 2006 76 cents under the cap.
at least, according to a certain superawesome patscap page.

 

[BradyManny]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

Honestly, outside of Bedard, Reiss, Curran and the local guys, everything said about this extension has been neanderthal levels of stupid.

Nobody can get the facts of the contract straight, and even once they do, nobody can interpret them.

"He didn't really take a discount, look at his signing bonus!!" - um, signing bonus is the only way to chip that cap number down...and the bulk of that money was defacto guaranteed anyway.

"They'll rip up the deal in two years to pay him more!" - when have the Pats done that?

"They're is something fishy going on here, there must be a side deal for him to accept those salaries." - yes, otherwise, Tom Brady will be panhandling at the intersection of Rt 2 & 16 in a few years.

If something happens to the Patriots, Tom Brady or Bill Belichick, you can rest assured that people will come out of the woodwork with their two stupid cents.

Now, back to your larger point, I agree completely. The notion that the Patriots don't go balls-to-the-wall for the title each year is crazytalk. Just because Belichick shows restraint and an eye towards the future, and has to - as a result - make some tough decisions, particularly as pertaining to retaining his own vets, does not mean this team cheaps out in free agency. That's nuts. The Felgers and Mazzs of the world who subscribe to that line of thinking are continually proving, and reproving, and outdoing their own stupidity.

The Pats had an awful receiving position in 2006 because they failed to address the position properly, but it was purely execution, not because they are cheap or whatever the accusation is.

 

[jmt57]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

There are a lot of people that follow the NFL that don't seem to be capable of grasping the concept that 9+6+3=15+2+1.

 

[upstater1]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

Letting Branch go and not having Ghost kick a long field goal in the first half of the 07 SB are the only two bad decisions BB ever made--according to me.

I'm fine with everything else BB has ever done.

So, I'm not unsympathetic to the idea that they should never have let Branch get away. I still say it would have meant a SB ring in 06 if Branch was in there instead of Caldwell.

As for the salary cap, we don't know what it was like at the time because the Patriots like to move up incentives from the forthcoming year to max out cap room for that year to come.

 

[chasa]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

I believe they finished 2006 76 cents under the cap.
at least, according to a certain superawesome patscap page.

in hindsight Branch regets not taking that 76 cent raise.

 

[eom]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

well, it'd be kind of funny if I heard anybody saying they want to pocket that money.

last year, they went to the superbowl.
after narrowly being defeated, that superbowl team went on to sign about 15 guys in the offseason.
how does that stack up to every other team in the league?

 

[eom]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

in hindsight Branch regets not taking that 76 cent raise.

 

[Frezo]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

98.5 (The Whore's Pub):
"Brady is a selfish idiot and is taking money away from the little NFL guy. Flacco, Brees, Rodgers, etc. hate him. He's only doing this because he married a super model and has a moat."

93.7 WEEI:
"Brady is awesome. He's a team first guy and is doing a good thing for his teammates and Pats fans."

This morning the bigs at EEI took the gloves off D & C. They called Doucher and Twitch and Retch every name in the book. It was classic radio. 98.5 just went off my list as a credible sports station. I'm done with them. Send Retch back to Pittsburgh where he wants to be. The stuff he was saying about Brady freaked me out.

 

[Uncle Rico]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

...

The Pats had an awful receiving position in 2006 because they failed to address the position properly, but it was purely execution, not because they are cheap or whatever the accusation is.

Yes, exactly.

Without getting into the whole "media" thing, I think a there is a lesson from then that can be applied now: receivers aren't interchangeable; when one proves he is consistently on the same page with Brady, it's special. And with the clock ticking on Brady's career, you don't have "only ... one year" to waste to get it right.

 

[eom]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

Letting Branch go and not having Ghost kick a long field goal in the first half of the 07 SB are the only two bad decisions BB ever made--according to me.

I'm fine with everything else BB has ever done.

So, I'm not unsympathetic to the idea that they should never have let Branch get away. I still say it would have meant a SB ring in 06 if Branch was in there instead of Caldwell.

As for the salary cap, we don't know what it was like at the time because the Patriots like to move up incentives from the forthcoming year to max out cap room for that year to come.

first of all, I agree with you that if we had kept branch we very possibly win another superbowl in '06.
however, and I'm not taking any kind of personal shot at you, the idea that they should just issue a blank check to all their players is kind of dumb.

they were right up against the cap '06-'08, and it's not like they laughed in the guy's face.
they offered him something like 3/20 that spring, and ended up having to trade him for a first to seattle, who paid him 6/40 -- how'd that work out for them?

the first rounder, unfortunately, ended up being meriweather, but that gave them the freedom to trade their own first rounder for a 4th, which turned into moss, and a first in '08, which turned into mayo.

I'd say the pats factually did alright long term, but you'd throw all that out to throw money at an underachiever because of what happened in your imagination.

 

[jmt57]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

I think that when it comes to player contracts and roster building there are a lot of people who are baseball fans first and foremost, and they use baseball roster building concepts and apply them to football in regards to those player contracts. Few if any understand the salary cap, and a certain segment actually still hold on to the belief that it is meaningless.

A high-end player taking a team-friendly contract in baseball could indeed possibly have an effect on other baseball players (though with it being just one player even that is a reach). That logic is only mildly, if at all true with the NFL; the only effect would be to lower the franchise tag by a relatively miniscule amount. What those people fail to consider is that amount of money will go to other players; the players as a collective whole should still receive the same amount.

Football teams have a genuine salary cap that is outlined in the most recent CBA, and both sides will need to live with it for several years going forward. Baseball has nothing more than a luxury tax that has zero muscle behind it, and is not a deterrent whatsoever to those teams that wish to spend a lot of money.

 

[upstater1]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

first of all, I agree with you that if we had kept branch we very possibly win another superbowl in '06.
however, and I'm not taking any kind of personal shot at you, the idea that they should just issue a blank check to all their players is kind of dumb.

they were right up against the cap '06-'08, and it's not like they laughed in the guy's face.
they offered him something like 3/20 that spring, and ended up having to trade him for a first to seattle, who paid him 6/40 -- how'd that work out for them?

the first rounder, unfortunately, ended up being meriweather, but that gave them the freedom to trade their own first rounder for a 4th, which turned into moss, and a first in '08, which turned into mayo.

I'd say the pats factually did alright long term, but you'd throw all that out to throw money at an underachiever because of what happened in your imagination.

Branch was not an underachiever. How did you come up with that?

And, I'd like to see how they were right up against the cap. Remember, the Patriots guarantee incentives every year for players to max the cap at the end of every year. This is good practice. So it's hard to tell where they were with the cap.

 

[DefenseRules]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

Honest to God, WHAT IS THE BIG DEAL. The dude negotiated a new deal that lowered his cap and put the team in an excellent position to improve the personnel and keep their own players if they choose. What is the problem? What is the debate? This is cause for joy as far as I'm concerned. I can't believe some of the crap that I have heard over the last 24 hours from the media in this town, but I should have expected it. They are all nothing more than a bunch OF MORONS and HACKS. Somebody tell me what is wrong with what Brady did? And they just read the "PRIVATE" email that he sent to John Dennis. WTF was wrong with what he said? Some people are stupid.
Brady redid his deal, gave the team cap room so BB and Co can make the team stronger. This is a good thing. END OF DISCUSSION

 

[eom]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

Branch was not an underachiever. How did you come up with that?

.

so, you think his production in seattle was well worth the first + the contract they gave him?

 

[ctpatsfan77]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

Letting Branch go and not having Ghost kick a long field goal in the first half of the 07 SB are the only two bad decisions BB ever made--according to me.

I don't even consider the first one an error; he made the best of a terrible situation (I forget—didn't Branch ultimately fire the agent responsible for that mess?).

 

[ctpatsfan77]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

And, I'd like to see how they were right up against the cap. Remember, the Patriots guarantee incentives every year for players to max the cap at the end of every year. This is good practice. So it's hard to tell where they were with the cap.

I think it's a reasonable assessment to say this:

It is theoretically possible for owners to pay less than the maximum salary cap, and pocket the difference. While the Patriots did routinely carry over a few million dollars from one year to the next, Kraft did not make a habit of underpaying so he could pocket money the way that other notoriously cheap teams have done.

 

[upstater1]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

so, you think his production in seattle was well worth the first + the contract they gave him?

His production in Seattle had nothing to do with it. Seattle was a place where hope went to die, not to mention his ACL injuries (multiple). Guy was MVP of a Super Bowl.

 

[upstater1]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

I think it's a reasonable assessment to say this:

It is theoretically possible for owners to pay less than the maximum salary cap, and pocket the difference. While the Patriots did routinely carry over a few million dollars from one year to the next, Kraft did not make a habit of underpaying so he could pocket money the way that other notoriously cheap teams have done.

It's simply good practice because you never know if you need the salary, and carrying it over to the next year is good too, as long as you don't do it regularly. By November, you should try to be about $1-2 million under the cap.

 

[eom]

re: Stupid media: "Hopefully they dont screw Brady like last time he took a discount"

so, what you're saying is that anytime one of these guys wants more money you should just issue them a blank check to fill in, and there are no consequences from that down the road.

the pats offer of 3/20 wasn't enough for branch, because you feel he should have been paid the 6/40 deal that reggie wayne got that year.

you know they should have done this because that gives them an imaginary superbowl win, despite losing moss and mayo, and whoever else gets squeezed out by the cap consequences.