Eric Wilbur: Unlike Brady, Kraft will be remembered as one of the losers in Deflate Gate

Hard to argue with this...our owner came out looking worse in this situation than he did coming into it, and Kraft continues to show a lack of resolve even now.

http://www.boston.com/sports/footba...obert-kraft/qVoS1CWsmNQ54ToOgngW7N/story.html

By Eric Wilbur
Boston.com Columnist | 09.04.15 | 10:32 AM

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Even in the statement he made on Thursday in the wake of Berman’s vacation of the suspension, Bob Kraft made sure to accuse the “lawyers at the league” who “still insisted on imposing and defending unwarranted and unprecedented discipline.”

I’m sure Bill Belichick is thrilled that he won’t have to go the first-quarter of the season with Jimmy Garoppolo leading the charge, but once the confetti falls in San Francisco come February, the Patriots coach also faces the daunting task of getting his team younger without a first-round draft pick. Why, exactly, is that again other than the transparent fact that the owner and commissioner still rub each other’s back even after Goodell duplicitously attempted to bring down his pal’s most important employee?

Kraft’s abdication didn’t play well with Patriot fans back in May, and it certainly shouldn’t look any better now, even through the prism of Brady celebration. But it’s become clear, despite all the bluster he displayed publicly, Kraft is still endeared to Goodell, the guy the Pats owner has always been there for, including supporting him after bungling the Ray Rice situation.

Brady’s vindication is good news for the Patriots. But the team is still going to pay for Deflategate in a debilitating way. Guilty or not.

Their quarterback displayed his resolve in ultimately winning his appeal.

We haven’t seen the same from his employer.

Bend over Bob

Preaching to the choir.

Benedict Bob...never really forgave him for what he did at that presser. He is all talk and that talk has often more damning then good over the course of deflate gate.

Maybe Goodell has something on Kraft, otherwise all this sucking up Kraft is doing has not only NOT helped the team, it's made the team's penalties worse.
Spygate: Kraft should've come out and say 'loss of 1st round pick because we didn't put the camera in the stands is ridiculous; and we also abided by the letter of the rules'
Deflategate: We refuse to accept the findings of a biased Wells report. That's all he had to say

True.

Sad but true.

Enough of this Goodell has something on Kraft. If he did you can bet your ass he would have used it. This is on Kraft not getting what a POS snake his buddy is.

Yesterday, there was a report that getting rid of Goodell would cost the owners a roughly $150 million buyout. Kraft's targeting of Pash as opposed to Goodell makes a lot more sense if that's that case, because it means Goodell isn't going anywhere.

Sciz said:

Yesterday, there was a report that getting rid of Goodell would cost the owners a roughly $150 million buyout. Kraft's targeting of Pash as opposed to Goodell makes a lot more sense if that's that case, because it means Goodell isn't going anywhere.

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I expect minor tinkering in the office but I'll be surprised if Pash, Kensil, Gardi et al are all dismissed while retaining Goodell.

Are we reading and agreeing with THIS f*ckwit?



http://www.boston.com/sports/column...ion_to_cheater_wells_report_doesnt_shine.html

Really?

Sciz said:

Yesterday, there was a report that getting rid of Goodell would cost the owners a roughly $150 million buyout. Kraft's targeting of Pash as opposed to Goodell makes a lot more sense if that's that case, because it means Goodell isn't going anywhere.

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BS. Even 150 million is chump change for the league. It's not even clear if he would get that money if he is removed by a vote of no confidence for dereliction of duty, or, more appropriately, malfeasance.

Nothing effects the public's confidence in the integrity of the game more than corruption in the league office, which we undoubtedly have. I am one of a hopefully growing number of people who now refuse to have anything to do with the league until this issue is addressed. That means the firing of Goodell. Nothing else will get me back. Even letting him finish out his contract and replacing him then will not do it. If he is still commissioner on the last day of his contract, I will never, ever come back.

Chiuba E. Obele said:

Hard to argue with this...our owner came out looking worse in this situation than he did coming into it, and Kraft continues to show a lack of resolve even now.

http://www.boston.com/sports/footba...obert-kraft/qVoS1CWsmNQ54ToOgngW7N/story.html

By Eric Wilbur
Boston.com Columnist | 09.04.15 | 10:32 AM

....................
I’m sure Bill Belichick is thrilled that he won’t have to go the first-quarter of the season with Jimmy Garoppolo leading the charge, but once the confetti falls in San Francisco come February, the Patriots coach also faces the daunting task of getting his team younger without a first-round draft pick. .

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Getting better is always possible but they have gotten younger. This isn't 5 years ago when the LB corps were all in their 30s. The only players over the age of 30 (that's 31+ for the math challenged) are TFB, Wayne, Gostkowski, Ninkovich and Vollmer. Wayne is peripheral to the discussion and Gost like many kickers can be valuable for a long time. You have one of the younger teams in the league ....But yeah, it would always be nice to have another first rounder... Wouldn't be shocked to see them trade a third in '16 (likely to have an extra for Revis which can't be traded) for a second in '17 if they can find a taker...and hopefully flip that for a first in '18...You get the same total number of first rounders, just the opportunity costs of two lost years....sort of like a good pick that goes on IR two years in a row...

Mike the Brit said:

Are we reading and agreeing with THIS f*ckwit?

http://www.boston.com/sports/column...ion_to_cheater_wells_report_doesnt_shine.html

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Wilbur is a long-time, respected sports journalist in Boston. Yes, he was wrong to write that. But there were many reporters and radio hosts in Boston who initially brought into the Wells Report, but have since come around to become supporters of Brady and critics of the League...that includes people like Mike Florio, Dale Arnold, and even Tom Curran.

Just because they had it all wrong, I'm not gonna stop reading or listening to them.

voluntarysaftey said:

Maybe Goodell has something on Kraft, otherwise all this sucking up Kraft is doing has not only NOT helped the team, it's made the team's penalties worse.
Spygate: Kraft should've come out and say 'loss of 1st round pick because we didn't put the camera in the stands is ridiculous; and we also abided by the letter of the rules'
Deflategate: We refuse to accept the findings of a biased Wells report. That's all he had to say

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You're reading way too much into it, IMO. Kraft doesn't rock the boat because he's a company man and company men never rock the boat. The pre-SB speech he gave is just about the most extreme thing we'll ever see from Kraft.

Mike the Brit said:

Are we reading and agreeing with THIS f*ckwit?

If Tom Brady knew, he lied to our faces.

Wednesday's Wells Report concludes: “It is more probable than not that Brady was at least generally aware of the inappropriate activities” of the Patriots personnel in the Deflategate scandal. If that's so, he probably also lied to team owner Bob Kraft, who, in turn, defiantly challenged the NFL to apologize.

And if he refused to share text message and emails with Wells’ independent investigation because he understood that they would prove him complicit, then he probably lied to the investigator as well.​

No matter what your worship level for the four-time Super Bowl champion, the 243-page Deflategate report that Wells finally delivered to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell this week makes Brady sound guilty. Even without definitively coming out and accusing him of ordering that the weight of the balls be altered.​

http://www.boston.com/sports/column...ion_to_cheater_wells_report_doesnt_shine.html

Really?

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If we didn't accept anyone who ever thought the Patriots might have done something, there'd be about 5 of us pure on this issue, just as with Spygate.

Chiuba E. Obele said:

Wilbur is a long-time, respected sports journalist in Boston. Yes, he was wrong to write that. But there were many reporters and radio hosts in Boston who initially brought into the Wells Report, but have since come around to become supporters of Brady and critics of the League...that includes people like Mike Florio, Dale Arnold, and even Tom Curran.

Just because they had it all wrong, I'm not gonna stop reading or listening to them.

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I subscribed to the Globe for years and I can't remember reading anything of his that was worth while. I have him down with Shaughnessy, Ryan, Volin and the rest as part of the Globe's anti-Patriots agenda. Seems to me that he's just switched from an anti-Brady bandwagon to an anti-Kraft bandwagon. Get on it if you like, but I won't.

I accepted his apology with the caveat that pure forgiveness would come when he took some type of action and did it publicly. To this day, he doesn't even so much as throw the blame at Goodell by name for this mess and instead chooses to call out the NFL's lawyers. He's spineless and only cares about the almighty dollar. He and this mess are a big reason why I'm not uber pumped about kickoff like I have been in years past. Honestly, I'm far more excited about college kickoff and Saturday pigskin tomorrow.

Mike the Brit said:

I subscribed to the Globe for years and I can't remember reading anything of his that was worth while. I have him down with Shaughnessy, Ryan, Volin and the rest as part of the Globe's anti-Patriots agenda.

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I think Wilbur is one of the better writers to come out of the Globe, and regardless, I totally agree with his assessment of Kraft. Don't you?

Chiuba E. Obele said:

I think Wilbur is one of the better writers to come out of the Globe

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"But it’s become clear, despite all the bluster he displayed publicly, Kraft is still endeared to Goodell, the guy the Pats owner has always been there for, including supporting him after bungling the Ray Rice situation."

If that's good writing then God save us from bad. It isn't even correct English -- Kraft's attitude might endear him to Goodell but Kraft can't be endeared to Goodell (Wilbur seems to think it means "affectionately tied to").

Chiuba E. Obele said:

and regardless, I totally agree with his assessment of Kraft. Don't you?

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I have my criticisms of Mr Kraft, but I'm damned if I'm taking them from a troll like Wilbur.