The state of the Patriots - My evaluation

[PATRIOT64]

1) Time for the emergence of James Sanders - Rodney himself says this kid is very hard worker and BB has said he has been playing well on this team,Now is the chance for James to prove to us he is going to be the guy to take over Rodneys position once Harrison is gone which is very likely in 2008 if not earlier - If Sanders cannot do the job Brandon is waiting in the wings for a shot alongside of Wilson so its time for Sanders to show the best he's got - I hope that James has such a good showing in the first several games that Rodney has to work extremely hard to get his position back in week 5 - as a matter of fact if the secondary is strong and the Patriots are 4-0 at that time I think Sanders keeps it until further notice.

2) Kind of dissapointed we lost 2 key players in the past few days but it has seemed to me that all of the talk about an undefeated season and of how truly stacked the Patriots are is dwindling a bit in the media - Thats a GOOD thing for this team who likes the quiet low key approach and not in the spotlight as the team to beat,I Hope we do'nt have to hear of how its a guaranteed SB for us now - just quietly go out and prove that we are on the field - not on paper.

3) Ty Warren should finally show the world of how gifted of a DE he is - Personally I think Warren should have been a pro bowler last year and not Seymour,Warren IMO has been the best on this team in the front 3 for the past 2 years and has yet to really be noticed outside of New England,I think this is the year people look past the highly heralded Seymour as top guy on the line and see what really quite possibly is the best defensive lineman we have and right now its Warren and I expect a great season and pro bowl year for Ty - its his time to stand out as a great player,and he will.

3) Lets forget about the talk of allowing HGH to be allowed in the NFL,1 highly publicized and scrutinized Patriots player is NOT going to change the drug policy and that is the way it will be,If a player feels the only way he can become as fast and as productive as when he was younger is by taking an illegal substance than before he does that and break the rules of the NFL he should simply realize his body cannot do it anymore and retire gracefully and let the next young guy show his thing -

Not only is retiring the right thing to do if you feel your body cannot handle the rigors of an entire NFL season but saving yourself the possibility of having side effects that can affect your health in future years as you grow older should also be a reason to not take HGH or any drug enhancing product to keep the body young,God intended for our bodies to lose a bit of that 'crispness' when we get older and thats the way it should be.

4) I would not be surprised if BB at times in different games situations uses the 4-3 a bit more often this year with the versatility of the front 7 and the injury to Seymour even though with Green,Wilfork and Warren manning the line it is not a big thing but I expect if either starting ILB (Bruschi ,Seau) is out for any time than its a possibility of seeing the 4-3 a bit more,It won't be anywhere near alot of usage but seeing it a bit more often is a likely scenerio with an ILB injury IMO.

5) Keeping Guiterrez on the roster and using a 3rd QB spot to me means to me that BB has not seen enough good things of Cassell to be confident he can come in and play well should Brady get injured,Cassell had a decent preseason but not a great one,If Matt had played say like a Brady Quinn during August I think Guiterrez would have been available on the open market right now,I am not saying Guiterrez would then be the answer if Cassell stunk up the place but at least you would have someone who had been introduced into this system and is not 43 years old.

 

[ClevTrev]

5) Keeping Guiterrez on the roster and using a 3rd QB spot to me means to me that BB has not seen enough good things of Cassell to be confident he can come in and play well should Brady get injured,Cassell had a decent preseason but not a great one,If Matt had played say like a Brady Quinn during August I think Guiterrez would have been available right now,I am not saying Guiterrez would then be the answer if Cassell stunk up the place but at least you would have someone who had been introduced into this system and is not 43 years old.

Good points. Just a comment on keeping Gutierrez: I believe it's for the opposite reason you describe that Gutierrez is on the roster. Cassel performed well in pre-season and showed he's progressed from where he was a year ago. This gave the team assurance that Cassel, as the backup to Brady, was solid in that spot and enabled the team to add Guts to the roster.

Had Cassel shown instability, indecision, and poor play in pre-season, it would have cemented Testaverde's role as the veteran needed for insurance should Brady be unable to play. That didn't happen, and the signing of Gutierrez became reality.

 

[MrTibbs]

In regards to Cassel and Guitz. I'd just say that Guitz looks like he'd be the better QB given all the exposure that Cassell has had in the system. Why because of his composure and pocket presence in my opinion.

 

[PATRIOT64]

Good points. Just a comment on keeping Gutierrez: I believe it's for the opposite reason you describe that Gutierrez is on the roster. Cassel performed well in pre-season and showed he's progressed from where he was a year ago. This gave the team assurance that Cassel, as the backup to Brady, was solid in that spot and enabled the team to add Guts to the roster.

Had Cassel shown instability, indecision, and poor play in pre-season, it would have cemented Testaverde's role as the veteran needed for insurance should Brady be unable to play. That didn't happen, and the signing of Gutierrez became reality.

I can understand your point of view and it might be just that,we probably will never know unless Brady gets injured of how good Cassell and Guiterrez are or aren't ..I hope we never find out until Brady retires but you know somewhere along the line one of the 2 backups will be taking snaps from center - There is only 1 Brett Favre when it comes to longevity these days in playing that many years without a missed game.

I would rather see Guiterrez over Cassell if we had to have a QB other than Brady lead the team,Guitterez looks much more poised and confident in the pocket than Cassell who dances around alot.

I knew at least 1 QB of the 4 was going to get cut and Vinny was much the likeliest which of course happened.

 

[patsox23]

1) Time for the emergence of James Sanders - Rodney himself says this kid is very hard worker and BB has said he has been playing well on this team,Now is the chance for James to prove to us he is going to be the guy to take over Rodneys position once Harrison is gone which is very likely in 2008 if not earlier - If Sanders cannot do the job Brandon is waiting in the wings for a shot alongside of Wilson so its time for Sanders to show the best he's got - I hope that James has such a good showing in the first several games that Rodney has to work extremely hard to get his position back in week 5 - as a matter of fact if the secondary is strong and the Patriots are 4-0 at that time I think Sanders keeps it until further notice.

2) Kind of dissapointed we lost 2 key players in the past few days but it has seemed to me that all of the talk about an undefeated season and of how truly stacked the Patriots are is dwindling a bit in the media - Thats a GOOD thing for this team who likes the quiet low key approach and not in the spotlight as the team to beat,I Hope we do'nt have to hear of how its a guaranteed SB for us now - just quietly go out and prove that we are on the field - not on paper.

3) Ty Warren should finally show the world of how gifted of a DE he is - Personally I think Warren should have been a pro bowler last year and not Seymour,Warren IMO has been the best on this team in the front 3 for the past 2 years and has yet to really be noticed outside of New England,I think this is the year people look past the highly heralded Seymour as top guy on the line and see what really quite possibly is the best defensive lineman we have and right now its Warren and I expect a great season and pro bowl year for Ty - its his time to stand out as a great player,and he will.

3) Lets forget about the talk of allowing HGH to be allowed in the NFL,1 highly publicized and scrutinized Patriots player is NOT going to change the drug policy and that is the way it will be,If a player feels the only way he can become as fast and as productive as when he was younger is by taking an illegal substance than before he does that and break the rules of the NFL he should simply realize his body cannot do it anymore and retire gracefully and let the next young guy show his thing -

Not only is retiring the right thing to do if you feel your body cannot handle the rigors of an entire NFL season but saving yourself the possibility of having side effects that can affect your health in future years as you grow older should also be a reason to not take HGH or any drug enhancing product to keep the body young,God intended for our bodies to lose a bit of that 'crispness' when we get older and thats the way it should be.

4) I would not be surprised if BB at times in different games situations uses the 4-3 a bit more often this year with the versatility of the front 7 and the injury to Seymour even though with Green,Wilfork and Warren manning the line it is not a big thing but I expect if either starting ILB (Bruschi ,Seau) is out for any time than its a possibility of seeing the 4-3 a bit more,It won't be anywhere near alot of usage but seeing it a bit more often is a likely scenerio with an ILB injury IMO.

5) Keeping Guiterrez on the roster and using a 3rd QB spot to me means to me that BB has not seen enough good things of Cassell to be confident he can come in and play well should Brady get injured,Cassell had a decent preseason but not a great one,If Matt had played say like a Brady Quinn during August I think Guiterrez would have been available on the open market right now,I am not saying Guiterrez would then be the answer if Cassell stunk up the place but at least you would have someone who had been introduced into this system and is not 43 years old.

You had me 'til the last two. In terms of more 4-3, this is something we hear EVERY YEAR at this time, due largely to our perennial face-to-face with an aging LB corps. It will be a balance of both, a hybrid, it is what it is.

And Gutierrez wasn't kept because Cassel is BAD and Gutierrez WILL be the one coming in for Brady. He was kept because BB thinks Gutierrez showed a little something, enough that he didn't want to risk cutting him and sending him to the P.S.

JMO, but I'm pretty sure I'm right. Good, interesting thread, though.

 

[PatsFanSince74]

2) Kind of dissapointed we lost 2 key players in the past few days but it has seemed to me that all of the talk about an undefeated season and of how truly stacked the Patriots are is dwindling a bit in the media - Thats a GOOD thing for this team who likes the quiet low key approach and not in the spotlight as the team to beat,I Hope we do'nt have to hear of how its a guaranteed SB for us now - just quietly go out and prove that we are on the field - not on paper.

Good point. And, I think it will be supported by the first month of the season. I can see us coming out of those games 2--2, losing a lot of the hype and still winning the division and securing a bye.