WOW...Reiss rips SHULA in mailbag

[DaBruinz]

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this, but PROPS TO YOU MIKE REISS...

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/articles/2008/01/01/perfect_questions/?page=2

I'm fed up with Bob Kuchenberg, Don Shula and, especially, Mercury Morris trying to downplay the accomplishments of the 2007 New England Patriots. Morris, in particular, has said that if the Patriots win the Super Bowl that they will join the 1972 Dolphins on the top of the mountain. Given the cap era and the new rules, the number of games they will have played, the records they have set and the records of the teams they conquered put the Patriots just a few steps from defining what the NFL equivalent of Everest. The '72 Dolphins are just a bunch of crybabies sitting on Hush-a-Bye Mountain. Your thoughts?
Vince Chase, Winchester, N.H.
A: After the Patriots capped off the 16-0 season, many writers were up in the Giants Stadium press box when a sheet of '72 Dolphins quotes were distributed for use in the next day's newspapers. To be honest, I couldn't believe what I was reading. I take the remarks of Kuchenberg and Morris with a grain of salt because it's clear they are not objective, but it was the comments from Don Shula which caught my eye the most. Shula said: "If they go on to complete an undefeated season, I will be the first to congratulate Coach Belichick and the Patriot organization." While many just realized history had been made in one of the great nights in NFL history, I interpreted Shula's comments as minimizing what had just taken place. I was surprised he said it. The Patriots beat six playoff teams, with three of those wins coming on the road. Last I checked, the Dolphins beat two teams with over .500 records in 1972. The Patriots won 16 regular-season games, the '72 Dolphins just 14. So when I look at the overall picture, and some of the comments that have been made by some members of the '72 Dolphins this year, I think it borders on ridiculous and classless.

I love the last sentence.. Its the sentiment that MANY Pats fans have voiced.

 

[BradyManny]

Reiss is as reasonable, respectful and level-headed as it comes - so I was surprised - pleasantly - to see him call out those Dolphins players in his mailbag. I thought it was just us homers!

 

[Mack Herron]

Shula is eveidently neither a smart man nor a magnanimous man. For me, his statements serve to make the '72 Dolphins a little smaller, a little selfish.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

Re: WOW... Reiss rips SHULA in mailbag

No schit. When they roll out the '72's from time to time, it's not as Superbowl heros. It's as the only undefeated regular season team glaring at some 10 or 12 or 13-0 threat to their claim to fame . Funny how when we become one, and a better one at that, suddenly the regular season part of the equation becomes meaningless...

Shula is just a pissy old man who is threatened by BB and beserk because the team with which he is forever associated has sucked for a decade now. When they were most recently honoring that team in week 16, the stands at Dolphin Stadium were less than a third full because the present day Dolphins were entering the day at 0-14...

Maybe one of the changes Tuna will make in an effort to change the culture in Miami will be to ban Shula and Co. from any and all future team related functions. It's an organization that desperately needs to quit living in the past.

 

[D-cleater]

well, consider this - when teams start the season undefeated for 8 or 9 games whatever, they will no longer be compared to these has-beens. Thanks to our Patriots the dolphins will never again be the standard and we won't have to hear their BS....Morris will best be remembered for hair plugs and smoking crack. Thats it.

I was in NY last week and passed Shula's restaurant. I hucked a big snotball on the menu outside, I hate that ****er.

Props to Reiss.

 

[aluminum seats]

I'm probably in the minority, but I've always thought the whole "Dolphins pour the champagne" each year when the last undefeated team falls has been sort of fun. It showed they were prideful of their record, and showed that it really mattered.

But in the same spirit, I always thought that if and when another team did it, they would raise their glasses to that team. The fact that they (with a few exceptions) have been so bitter about it just seems so sad. I guess they don't realize how pathetic they're coming across.

In future years, if the Pats pull off 19-0, you can bet Brady, Bruschi, BB, and all of them will be a million times more gracious than this Miami crew.

 

[Deus Irae]

I don't get the problem that people are having with this. Shula is absolutely correct. The '72 Dolphins aren't the only team to have an unbeaten regular season, that's been done 4 times now. They are, however, the only team to have an unbeaten regular season and then go undefeated in the playoffs. Unless New England wins the Super Bowl this year, Shula's '72 team will remain the only team to have an undefeated season. New England's 16-0 is historic, because a 16-0 regular season had never been done before. Without the Lombardi, though, this Patriots team still won't be on that same level as the '72 Dolphins.

 

[Caspir]

I'm probably in the minority, but I've always thought the whole "Dolphins pour the champagne" each year when the last undefeated team falls has been sort of fun. It showed they were prideful of their record, and showed that it really mattered.

Except they don't do that.

 

[aluminum seats]

Except they don't do that.

Yeah, I've heard. Whatever. I liked the story. And even if they didn't gather in a circle and toast, they did vocalize pride in the accomplishment.

 

[DaBruinz]

I don't get the problem that people are having with this. Shula is absolutely correct. The '72 Dolphins aren't the only team to have an unbeaten regular season, that's been done 4 times now. They are, however, the only team to have an unbeaten regular season and then go undefeated in the playoffs. Unless New England wins the Super Bowl this year, Shula's '72 team will remain the only team to have an undefeated season. New England's 16-0 is historic, because a 16-0 regular season had never been done before. Without the Lombardi, though, this Patriots team still won't be on that same level as the '72 Dolphins.

Deus -
While Shula is, technically, correct, he's is totally downplaying the Pats accomplishment and disregarding how much harder the accomplishment is. Also, Shula, a few years ago, said that 16-0 would never be accomplished and he cited some of the following reasons. (please note that some of these are my own)

1) The salary cap.
2) The free agency era
3) Team turnover because of the first two
4) So many more teams now than there were then (32 compared to 26)
5) The longer schedule (16 compared to 14)
6) The additional wild card round.
7) The changes in the scheduling (Miami no longer getting New England IN Miami late in the season all the time and other scheduling "anomalies")

 

[[email protected]]

I don't get the problem that people are having with this. Shula is absolutely correct. The '72 Dolphins aren't the only team to have an unbeaten regular season, that's been done 4 times now. They are, however, the only team to have an unbeaten regular season and then go undefeated in the playoffs. Unless New England wins the Super Bowl this year, Shula's '72 team will remain the only team to have an undefeated season. New England's 16-0 is historic, because a 16-0 regular season had never been done before. Without the Lombardi, though, this Patriots team still won't be on that same level as the '72 Dolphins.

I agree with you, 18-1 gets the rest of the country having a good belly laugh which the Pats seem to be well aware of. I don't find anything even remotely annoying about this statement, now if you want to talk about his statement that the season is tainted is a completely different story. He knew that Pats have a good chance of going undefeated and was reaching for a way to protect his spot at the top of the mountain.

 

[The Boston Patriot]

I was in NY last week and passed Shula's restaurant. I hucked a big snotball on the menu outside, I hate that ****er.

Not cool. Some $10/hr worker is going to have to clean this off. You
ought to be ashamed of yourself. That is a pretty juvenile thing to do.

 

[Fanfrom1960]

I don't get the problem that people are having with this. Shula is absolutely correct. The '72 Dolphins aren't the only team to have an unbeaten regular season, that's been done 4 times now. They are, however, the only team to have an unbeaten regular season and then go undefeated in the playoffs. Unless New England wins the Super Bowl this year, Shula's '72 team will remain the only team to have an undefeated season. New England's 16-0 is historic, because a 16-0 regular season had never been done before. Without the Lombardi, though, this Patriots team still won't be on that same level as the '72 Dolphins.

Problem with Shula is that he's done an about face, probably to save face. He said earlier this year:

But if they can pull it off, Shula insists the NFL needs to place an asterisk next to the Patriots in the record books because Bill Belichick got caught cheating in the Spygate scandal.

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/f...don_shula_spygate_would_mar_pats_undefea.htmlhttp://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/2007/11/06/2007-11-06_don_shula_spygate_would_mar_pats_undefea.html

 

[PatsFanSince74]

i agree with those who were surprised and happy that mike reiss let himself lose a little bit of his typical cool over this. to be honest, as someone who once lived in Miami, i am at a complete loss as to why the 72 dolphins are being such complete jerks over the pats run. they seem to have forgotten that the american public (people who watch commercials) doesn't like "cranky and small minded."

it would seem to me that they would have a whole lot more to gain in terms of respect, endorsements and media time if they took this attitude: we are rooting for the patriots to join us on the top of the mountain, if for no other reason than to remind people how hard it is to do what we did. we'll be honest with you, we're competitors and so there's always going to be a part of us that wants to remain alone up here, but, all in all, we wish the patriots well in pulling off an undefeated season through the playoffs and joining us on the mountaintop. The champagne's on us. Go Pats!

Then, if the patriots lose in the playoffs, they can take the high road, and say how sorry they are that the pats didn't match their record. it would go without saying, then, that they were still the only team to pull it off. they would come across as classy and can you imagine the commercial endorsements they could get in the offseason.

 

[shmessy]

I don't get the problem that people are having with this. Shula is absolutely correct. The '72 Dolphins aren't the only team to have an unbeaten regular season, that's been done 4 times now. They are, however, the only team to have an unbeaten regular season and then go undefeated in the playoffs. Unless New England wins the Super Bowl this year, Shula's '72 team will remain the only team to have an undefeated season. New England's 16-0 is historic, because a 16-0 regular season had never been done before. Without the Lombardi, though, this Patriots team still won't be on that same level as the '72 Dolphins.

You don't see the ridiculousness of Shula and/or Morris running down a camerman every week DURING a Patriots game to get their mugs on TV to proclaim how great the 1972 Dolphins were and how "I'd be the first one to call them to congratulate IF they go all the way"?????????

#1: They have GONE OUT OF THEIR WAY to squeeze their mugs onto TV during this PATRIOTS season of accomplishments.

#2: It would be the right thing to do if Shula calmed down and decided to take a little vacation from holding press conferences for the next 5 weeks. He's already said his fill. At this point, he is desperately trying to share the spotlight - - it's pathetic.

#3: I'd put good money that Shula, Morris, etc. are not foremost on BB's, Brady's etc.'s list of "first people" they'll want to talk with after SB 42.

What makes him so sure they are so hungry for his "blessing"?????????

The hubris is incredible.

 

[karran_s]

I've looked at the '72 Dolphins and the teams they faced ... As Reiss points out, they played only 2 teams that were better than .500

As for their so called tough players, they are a joke. None of them would even make the current Pats teams as even backups as they would not get selected or drafted in the first place.

Even Parcells in his interview stated that the 72 Dolphins would be killed by Brady and co in a match up as their defense would not be able to stop anything.

Face it, most of these guys are pretty senile and instead of being gracious, they all come across as bitter, cantakerous old men who are extremely jealous of the Pats. Don't even get me started on Mercury Morris, the cocaine addict who's now on ESPN shooting off his mouth...

What was the last ridiculous comment he made .. yes, I seem to recall.. he wanted to wear his tuxedo and welcome the Pats like his new "bride"... Is he an idiot or what ?

 

[PatsFanSince74]

Not cool. Some $10/hr worker is going to have to clean this off. You
ought to be ashamed of yourself. That is a pretty juvenile thing to do.

$10/hr? What city do you live in? In NYC the guy who does jobs like that gets minimum wage ($7.15/hr), assuming he's getting a legal paycheck in the first place. still, i agree with your point. boycott the restaurant and use a handkerchief.

 

[shmessy]

$10/hr? What city do you live in? In NYC the guy who does jobs like that gets minimum wage ($7.15/hr), assuming he's getting a legal paycheck in the first place. still, i agree with your point. boycott the restaurant and use a handkerchief.

Shula never knew had to work the salary cap. That's why he had to be pushed out in the 90's.

 

[juxtapoz15]

The one thing that I just realized is that possibly a main reason that the ex-Dolphin players are getting so pissy about this season is due to the fact that they probably receive quite a bit of endorsement money from the fact that they are the only undefeated team in NFL history. Seriously, every interview you see from one of them is on a golf course or a dinner gala or some other event celebrating that season. And I'm sure they don't come to these meet and greet functions for free! This has probably helped these over the hill players keep quite a cushy lifestyle and avoid getting a real job.

When the Patriots complete the 19-0 campaign I guarantee these gigs will be cut in half. Then where will they get all the money for their Geritol, assisted living and prostate exams!

 

[pheenix11]

I told you guys Shula was an ass. I sent him a bunch of plays that I drew up when I was 8 years old in 1982. That year and 2 years later they went to the SuperBowl. You think I got so much as a thank you?

Eff Him!