Schefter: Pats won't try to recoup lost picks

PatsWickedPissah · Sep 4, 2015

Bob Kraft is like a turtle.
If there's a day in the sun like a SuperBowl victory & parade or Tom's latest win against the espn odds, he's sure to be there sticking his head out and basking in the sun for all to see.
If there's the slightest shadow from Herr OberKommisionar or the 31 mental dwarfs (apologies to Patsfans' dwarfs & the dwarf planets Pluto, Ceres, et. al) he ducks for cover & turtles.
Completely predictable.

Soul_Survivor88 · Sep 4, 2015

PittPatriot said:
Why should he have to do that? Kraft bought the Patriots when they were in the cellar, and BB (and Brady) have worked tirelessly and sacrificed everything in their lives to help make the Patriots the greatest franchise of the last 20 years. BB has made sure every dime spent from the Kraft family was put to good use (taking Rodney Harrison to Ground Round instead of McCormick's).
I am still disgusted with the idea that such a valuable asset like a 1st round pick (a player who could have helped us win beyond the Brady years) was lost due to Kraft's missteps. If Kraft had appealed, we would be talking about getting the picks back (more valuable to me than Brady's 4 games or 'reputation').

I agree. It's not fair that Kraft has put the coach and the team in this position. But Belichick has to find a way to make up for Kraft's error. I'm still convinced that the best way to remedy this, is to trade up in the second round as high as we can. The only question is, how much are we willing to give up for it?

RelocatedPatFan · Sep 4, 2015

RayClay said:
Building you a stadium wasn't enough, eh?

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate everything Kraft has done to make the Patriots a model franchise and one I've been ecstatic to root for since he took over.

But, him building a stadium and hiring quality coaches doesn't mean he's just a fan of the team. For him his business interest exceedingly outweighs any fandom he may have.

Also, my comment was about him having already paid his dues by the 2007 infraction so maybe he was paying other owners back when he didn't support them during theirs. Not, the narrative that he has to suck it up because he's been telling other owners they had to. The Pats were the first egregious use of Goodell's power as the new Sheriff. that was the larger point of the comment you quoted.

The Gr8est · Sep 4, 2015

Hey Bob, why don't you go ask Roger if a 1st and a 4th are enough? Have him take some more picks and really get him to like you!

I'm getting far too pissed off for a fan of the current Superbowl champion, as I wait for their defending season to start.

The Kraft's are just totally tone deaf.

Real American Hero · Sep 4, 2015

We're not getting the picks back. But I still maintain if there is any chance to do so, it would best be pursued at the end of the season when the results are in on a full season of monitoring ball pressures. No lab testing hypothetical BS, just real world results from a full season of play. Assuming those results match what happened during the game in question it would be pretty open and shut.

Bobsyouruncle · Sep 4, 2015

PittPatriot said:
As a region...and as a fanbase...why can't we buy the team? Green Bay does not need to be the only community owned franchise. We all are more "In BB we trust" than the Krafts are...I think we'd make great owners!

The NFL doesn't allow that anymore. And the GB "stock" isn't real stock. It's just a piece of paper they sell to suckers when they need money. The 7 people who run the team aren't even chosen by the stock holders, and the stock has no value.

Koma · Sep 4, 2015

BradyFTW! said:
Third option: get loud and angry, hit the airwaves, and take the PR war to Goodell. Would it work? Probably not. But it would make damn sure that Goodell takes a PR hit for upholding such a self-evidently stupid penalty. Make sure you take a bite out of him, so that he--and whoever comes after him--will have to be more careful before he uses your franchise as a punching bag to rehab his public image again.

Goodell's already come after us twice, and has emerged entirely unscathed from the Pats' actions. Brady alone took the fight to him, and Brady alone made him pay. As far as I'm concerned, ownership has an obligation to stand up for the team in that same way. We deserve an owner who values the interests of his franchise over the interests of his billionares' club. Kraft is clearly not that guy.

I agree with the PR attack. Kraft (either one, preferably both) should point out that the Wells report, even though it was completely one-sided in the NFL's favor, determined the coaches and team had no involvment in any scheme. If the team wasn't involved, why are they being punished? Like someone else pointed out earlier, other teams aren't being punished as a result of players being suspended for PED and substance abuse violations. In the Patriots case, the player isn't even suspended any more. Why is the team still punished?

They should keep making points like that and asking those questions.

VJCPatriot · Sep 4, 2015

Kraft's best chance to appeal was immediately after Goodell's decision (issued through Vincent) went down. I believe he has long passed the 30 day window to appeal the punishment at this time. And his reasoning is he probably just wants the team to focus on football going forward. But losing the draft picks definitely hurts.

Would I like to see Kraft take some action? Sure. At the very least, run Roger's reputation through the mud again in the public eye, the same way he did to our franchise. But I doubt Kraft will do anything about it at this time.

Bella*chick · Sep 4, 2015

Out of the whole crap situation, when the penalty was first handed down, the picks were what outraged me the most. I knew they would fine, knew they would go after Brady but a first round pick was just outrageous, so over the top. And they didn't stop there.

Honestly if I think about it too much I can feel my blood pressure rise.

VectorPrime · Sep 4, 2015

I was one of the most outspoken critics of Kraft after he capitulated, saying many extreme things about him and the team on this forum that I now regret. Call me spineless or a hypocrite but I just can't continue to stay mad about it all. It was exhausting and Im just happy Brady was vindicated.

MitchKumstein · Sep 4, 2015

PittPatriot said:
As a region...and as a fanbase...why can't we buy the team? Green Bay does not need to be the only community owned franchise. We all are more "In BB we trust" than the Krafts are...I think we'd make great owners!

If we do that, I vote for Joker to represent us at the owners meetings

Patsfanin Philly · Sep 4, 2015

If Kraft really wanted to play hardball, get back in the good graces of the fans while burning a few bridges, all he has to say,( whether truthful or not) is,
" I screwed up. Roger Goodell told me, no promised me that if the Patriots accepted the penalties and didn't appeal, he would substantially reduce Tom Brady's suspension to a game at most. I believed him and trusted him to keep his word which he didn't. I am not naive and I did appeal because I believe I was acting in the. Best interests of the Patriots organization."
I wonder if a statement like that wouldn't effectively get Goodell fired, by making it look like he made a backroom deal and then reneged on it....... I would say it even if not true, but I' m an SOB.

Patsfanin Philly · Sep 4, 2015

Actually, I'm a prince, in a Machiavellian kind of way.......

primetime · Sep 4, 2015

Bobsyouruncle said:
The NFL doesn't allow that anymore. And the GB "stock" isn't real stock. It's just a piece of paper they sell to suckers when they need money. The 7 people who run the team aren't even chosen by the stock holders, and the stock has no value.

The important thing is that all profits have to be reinvested in the team. The board of directors may get bonuses and such if the team does well financially, but the Packers lack the same profit motive that the other teams have. The team also can't be sold (or, it can be, but a charitable foundation receives all proceeds).

Clearly the leagues are afraid of this type of nonprofit governance, though. As you said, the NFL has banned it, with the Packers grandfathered in. The Padres owner tried to will the team to the city of San Diego after he died and the rest of the owners forbade it.

patsfan06 · Sep 4, 2015

Kraft is a patsy. A league shill.

RayClay · Sep 4, 2015

BradyFTW! said:
He made a profitable investment. Good for him, I'm glad he did.

I certainly don't owe him anything for that, and neither does anyone else. He's made enough money from the fan base that any debt you could possibly argue we owe him has been paid in full.

I guess some people are new. for the record, nobody wanted the team in 1960 for any sum, especially without a stadium or the possibility Mass politicians would lift a finger to help build one.

Sullivan kept the team going with no stadium,. then a craphole wreck of a stadium when he was forced to find one or sell by the league.

Victor Kiam, Orthwein, assorted shady characters like Murray with the team.

No one that's followed the team a long time thinks that building a stadium was a prudent business move.

A Patriots fan since their American Football League days, Kraft has been a season ticket holder since 1971, when the team moved to the then-Schaefer Stadium.[5] In 1985, Kraft bought a 10-year option on Foxboro Raceway, a horse track adjacent to the stadium. The purchase prevented Patriots owner Billy Sullivan from holding non-Patriot events at Sullivan Stadium while races were being held.[21] Kraft took advantage of the fact that the Sullivans owned the stadium, but not the surrounding land. It was the beginning of a quest to not only buy the stadium, but the Patriots as well...

In 1988, Kraft outbid several competitors, including Kiam, to buy the stadium out of bankruptcy court from Sullivan for $22 million. The stadium was considered to be outdated and nearly worthless, but the purchase included the stadium's lease to the Patriots, which ran through 2001.[25] The lease was ironclad enough to end Sullivan's three-decade involvement with the Patriots. When he and Kiam tried to move the team to Jacksonville, Kraft refused to let them break the lease. As a result, when Kiam was nearly brought down by bad investments of his own, he was forced to sell the Patriots to James Orthwein.[24]

In 1994, Orthwein offered Kraft $75 million to buy out the remainder of the team's lease at what was now Foxboro Stadium. Ever since Orthwein had bought the team in 1992, there had been constant rumors that he wanted to move the Patriots to St. Louis. Had Kraft accepted Orthwein's offer, it would have cleared the last significant hurdle to moving the team. However, Kraft turned it down.[26][27][28][29]

By this time, Orthwein was not interested in operating the team in New England long-term, and decided to sell the team. However, due to the terms of the operating covenant, any prospective buyers had to deal with Kraft. With this in mind, Kraft made an offer for an outright purchase of the team for $172 million, an offer which Orthwein accepted. No other sports team had ever sold for a price this high in any league at that time. Years later, Kraft said his passion for the Patriots led him to "break every one of my financial rules" in his pursuit of the team. To this day, Kraft has a Victory Tour poster among his mementos as a reminder of what allowed him to realize his longstanding dream of becoming a major league team owner.[22]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Kraft

Yeah, just lucked into the team, not a fan, hates the team.

Archeryaddict12 · Sep 4, 2015

I just can't imagine they aren't gonna try and fight it sometime in the future. Maybe not now, but everyone is not guilty of anything from players to organization members. something is gonna happen with goodell this football year and that whatever that is will make the final decision for Kraft to get the picks back or wave goodbye to them.

RayClay · Sep 4, 2015

RelocatedPatFan said:
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate everything Kraft has done to make the Patriots a model franchise and one I've been ecstatic to root for since he took over.

But, him building a stadium and hiring quality coaches doesn't mean he's just a fan of the team. For him his business interest exceedingly outweighs any fandom he may have.

Also, my comment was about him having already paid his dues by the 2007 infraction so maybe he was paying other owners back when he didn't support them during theirs. Not, the narrative that he has to suck it up because he's been telling other owners they had to. The Pats were the first egregious use of Goodell's power as the new Sheriff. that was the larger point of the comment you quoted.

Maybe you should read my other post full of facts. Being a season ticket owner since 1971, buying a broken down racetrack and a **** stadium out of bankruptcy, thereby preventing one owner from moving the team to Jacksonville and another from moving the team to St. Louis and privately financing a showpiece stadium...

I don't think people appreciate what they have, not by half. I don't wish a bad owner on people, but there are plenty out there.

TommyD4207 · Sep 4, 2015

Archeryaddict12 said:
I just can't imagine they aren't gonna try and fight it sometime in the future. Maybe not now, but everyone is not guilty of anything from players to organization members. something is gonna happen with goodell this football year and that whatever that is will make the final decision for Kraft to get the picks back or wave goodbye to them.

They're not. The sooner people accept this, the easier it will be for everyone.

Those picks are gone. Kraft gave them away so the owners would like him more.

Froob · Sep 4, 2015

Chiuba E. Obele said:
I agree. It's not fair that Kraft has put the coach and the team in this position. But Belichick has to find a way to make up for Kraft's error. I'm still convinced that the best way to remedy this, is to trade up in the second round as high as we can. The only question is, how much are we willing to give up for it?

I don't see why he would do that. Just stick to the usual plan.

Schefter: Pats won't try to recoup lost picks

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