Hey Pats fans - I have another question for you guys...
 

Something just occured to me - with the turn of a new decade just a few decades ago, it was only 10 years ago from a few days ago that the 21st century arrived.

Of course, it was around this time last year when Wade Phillips was forced to bench Doug Flutie, and then had to go through that "Music City Miracle".

Just curious - when Pete Carroll was fired like a week before the Music City Miracle, what were your thoughts when Belichick was hired, a #1 pick had to be forked over to the Jets, and the state of the franchise going forward? Did any of you in the back of your minds think you would pick up an elite QB from a late round, win 3 Super Bowls, and become the team of the decade fast forward 10 years later?

Funny how we're entering this weekend with Wade Phillips coaching a hot team, but with a 500 pd gorilla on his and his team's backs, while the Patriots has become the team of the 1st decade of the 21st century, and is making another SB run.

Re: Hey Pats fan - I have another question for you guys...
 

I assumed we would pick up an elite QB from a late round, win 3 Super Bowls, and become the team of the decade fast forward 10 years later.

Re: Hey Pats fan - I have another question for you guys...
 

I was 14 years old and didn't know much about Bill Belichick. So this is, essentially, a +1 post for me.

Re: Hey Pats fan - I have another question for you guys...
 

The soothsayer Balaam has spoken...............I bow at your feet,"O Holy One":cool:

Re: Hey Pats fan - I have another question for you guys...
 

The people I knew within the organization were telling me what a disaster Carroll had been, so I had no problem with him getting fired. I'd always felt that Belichick had gotten hosed in Cleveland, so I was actually happy about the hiring.

The press conference was certainly interesting.

Re: Hey Pats fan - I have another question for you guys...
 

I would have bet my house that the Pats would not have won 3 Super Bowls in the next 5 years. Even though I was very happy to get rid of Carroll, it seemed like another bonehead Patriot move to get snookered for a 1st round pick for a head coach. Then when they gave cement feet a 10 year deal it assured the Pats of 10 years of mediocrity. This was on my mind! Mo Lewis Rules. But it also took Belichick to have the guts to stick with Brady. And it also took miraculous dedication by Brady to do what had to be done to start winning. The Pats being arguably the team of the decade was as unlikely as the Raiders being the team of the next decade. Glad I was wrong. So all you fans of hopeless teams out there, your time will come. If the Patriots can do it, any team can.

Re: Hey Pats fan - I have another question for you guys...
 

Can I get some lottery numbers off ya?

Re: Hey Pats fan - I have another question for you guys...
 

I didn't have high hopes. I was glad to see Carroll gone, and was optimistic about Belichick coming in (recalling his days as an excellent DC for the Giants). But Bledsoe, for as well as he could sling the ball, had a lot of weaknesses, and the team seemed to be settling into a losing mentality. I expected mediocrity; a bunch of 7-9, 8-8, 9-7 type years with maybe a lucky trip to the playoffs here and there.

Re: Hey Pats fan - I have another question for you guys...
 

I was happy to see Belichick join the team even with the lost pick, more because of his earlier affiliation with Parcells and the success the Pats enjoyed during his time. It was also great seeing the Jets response when he bailed on that organization, well worth the pick. I thought he was a good coach with the Browns, but not a great one. I remembered him bouncing the Pats from the playoffs in 1994 when all the Pats seemed to have was Bledsoe and Ben Coates.

As for the rest of that story, I was a Bledsoe fan and cringed in 2001 when he got knocked out of the Jets game and Brady replaced him. By the end of the season, I was elated when Bledsoe threw the TD pass in the playoffs against the Steelers but cringed when he started improvising again, remembering his penchant for mental errors on the field and appreciating Brady.

At the time I was just happy to see the Pats compete for a title, and 1996 was the best season I could recall given the chance to win the game in an era dominated by the NFC. I would never have dreamed of 3 titles. The 2000 Belichick Pats were still not far removed from the Patsies.

Re: Hey Pats fan - I have another question for you guys...
 

I was 11 and knew petey was no good. that was about all i knew though. i am lucky to be witnessing this as my first decade of cognitive years of football fandom.