Asante Samuel by Jackie MacMullen - WTF?????

[cblesz]

This situation is similar to Deion. Here we are again. A player OVERVALUING himself. Sure, Samuel had ten picks this year. But, does anyone remember last year? He was flagged often for interference and beaten badly ..very often. We were all *****ing and moaning about him on this board. Anyone remember the Denver playoff game? Hmmmm. He IS NOT a shut down corner. Teams do not shy away from him. Several of his picks were tips or were thrown right at him. Not to take anything away from the accomplishment, but reality says he is an average corner.

Deion, on the other hand was under contract but got bad advice (probably from his agent). THE "system" here made him a better player than he was, (see his production in Seattle). Same is true for Samuel. Branch and now Samuel feel they needed/need to get paid for past accomplishments. Specifically one decent season and a great Super Bowl for Branch and a ten interception season (albeit some fortuitious tips, etc.) for Samuel. Anyone remember who was throwing Branch the ball in that Super Bowl?

A majority of professional atheletes overvalue their skills and/or abilities. The Patriots should not give Samuel top dollar in the offseason. We know they won't and then we will hear the media cry that they are cheap and have no loyalty, blah, blah, blah. But, it will be a smart business decision for the Team. The correct course of action, in my opinion is to franchise him and trade him. We all know some of the big spenders will be willing to pay top dollar for 10 interceptions, without valuing the full body of his work.

 

[zippo59]

Bye Bye Asante!

 

[spacecrime]

Point Blank: This is not good. If we're upset about it obviously his teammates and coaches are upset about it.

ha ha. I think the players and coaches are a lot smarter than some of us. Anyway, Asante isn't the savior of the Pats. It isn't like we will go 4-12 without him. We lost other players that were better at their positions than Asante is at his: Ted Washington, WMG, AV, The Twig, Chris Slade, Lawyer Milloy, Terry Glenn, the list goes on, and we still won the superbowls and not only finished this season 12-4, but few of us are staisfied even with that - with the talent on our team we all thought we should be 14-2 at least.

It'll be a huge story, but no effect on the long-term conpetitiveness of the Patriots.

Buried in the article is my favorite line always in contract negotiations:

It would be a shame if he has to leave. Asante has fallen in love with the place. uttered by the appropriately named Benny Sapp.

Benny, Asante only has to leave if they cut him. If they don't cut him and offer him a job, then if he leaves he is making a choice. Right choice or wrong choice, it doesn't matter really. But it is a choice they make. As I try to think, David Givens is the only guy who left that took responsibility for deciding to leave, saying he played a lot of years under a rookie minimum contract and wanted to make some money. You can respect that. More than the guys who try to say "I love NE. I wanted to stay. They made me leave."

 

[patsox23]

i wanted to sign him before. the timing of this is unacceptable. he's fallen in love with n.e.? tough. get out.

 

[marty]

What I don't understand is why the Pats and Asante's agent are talking this close to the playoffs? I thought it was a given that talks are suspended during this time for just this distraction effect? Unless this happened awhile ago and 'Sante's just bringing it up now for greater reaction? That seems to make the most sense to me and frankly, lessens Samuels in my eyes. Just be professional, don't use the media so blatantly to gain some leverage with your negotiations, it never works with the Pats!!!

 

[zippo59]

"We've talked to them about a new contract," Samuel said. "What they offered isn't even worth discussing."

"It's disappointing. You want to believe they know what you've done. So you hope for the best, but you end up feeling underappreciated. You feel disrespected, especially how they come at you with so much negative stuff. They show you such a low regard."

I'm pulling out my violin for you Asante.

 

[miDeuce]

I wonder if Maroney will take the vacated #22 next year.

 

[Lansdowne]

Not reading that until after the game. Don't want any distractions. Really unfortunate if Samuel is already worrying about himself getting paid. Worry about the game.

 

[RayClay]

Relax. The team that picked him in the 4th round is intact. And they have plenty of picks and dough.

Let him be a stat whore elsewhere, I've enjoyed his tenure as a team player here.

 

[Va_Pats_Fan]

I see this as more the reporter than Asante. The article is 6 pages long, and there are a TOTAL of 3 quotes from him regarding his contract. Why did the reporter lead with that? To sell the article. They could of put the contract negotiations at the end of the article and lead with his HS experiences.

Why did the article get names "Payment Due"? Why not something else?

You all are jumping all over Asante as if he ran to this reporter and whined about his contract....does anyone know that for sure? It was a wide ranging interview, and at ONE POINT in the interview, the contract status got brought up, and he made those quotes.

This is the media gentlemen. Its not there job to soothe your hurt feelings that our great Patriots have again low balled a player up for contract renewal.

Grow up. If anything, BB and Pioli have said over and over again...its business!!!!!

 

[Seneschal2]

In the meantime, #22, shut up and play. Quit running to the media on the eve of the playoffs with your contract gripes.

I have a problem anytime a player under contract starts complaining about the NEXT contract with the media. The issue is compounded when he does it the day before the playoffs start. That is the proverbial kick to the groin - - he knew what he was doing.

EXACTLY.

So why is he talking about this, in these terms, to the Boston Globe at this time?

Shut up and play, Asante.

...the timing of this is unacceptable.

---

I read the story but failed to find when EXACTLY Samuel was interviewed. Anyone know? Several individuals were quoted...and I'll assume it took some time to piece the story together. Is it possible that the Globe held on to the story till today? Just curious...

 

[Remix 6]

hell of a story of him in highschool up to now..if you take away the contract situation on 1st page..the rest is a great story.

5.4 in 40 yard dash in HS? DAMN. Good to see his hard work come so far but my dissapointment in the reading is "get paid" and hes highly dissapointed. I hope its not exactly like she wrote it because only thing we heard was we would wait till end of season.

 

[Seneschal2]

hell of a story of him in highschool up to now..if you take away the contract situation on 1st page..the rest is a great story.

5.4 in 40 yard dash in HS? DAMN. Good to see his hard work come so far but my dissapointment in the reading is "get paid" and hes highly dissapointed. I hope its not exactly like she wrote it because only thing we heard was we would wait till end of season.

It is a good story about how hard work can pay off. Now of course, "paying off" is a different issue. While we wait, I'll choose to hold on to Rodney's words as a sign of hope:

One thing about Asante: he likes money like the rest of the guys, but he's not purely motivated by money.

 

[jczxohn1]

---

I read the story but failed to find when EXACTLY Samuel was interviewed. Anyone know? Several individuals were quoted...and I'll assume it took some time to piece the story together. Is it possible that the Globe held on to the story till today? Just curious...

Bingo! Suprised the knife came from Jackie McMullen. Could have expected something like this from Borges. She's not a known hack. Seldom says anything to discredit anyone.

 

[kolbitr]

To those claiming that the Globe's job is to report the news, not hide it, and who have seen this as an opportunity to rejoice in the freedom of the fourth estate, I would say: you are being naive.

Samuel's callow tattoo, his high school struggles and successes, his domino playing...none of this is "news", not now, not at this point in time. No, it's a story, one obviously shaped and molded to be dissident and brash, and to make the Globe and MacMullen objects of attention, if not now, then soon. There are numerous ways to "package" the modicum of info contained in this article, but the story's goal is to seem controversial...the goal of almost all modern columnists.

My guess? MacMullen has been working on an Asante angle for some time--after all, his contract status, performance, and happiness are of interest to fans and Globe readers--she chose her angle (raising negative questions about the Patriots' front office, as is typical), and her editor decided to run it on the a.m. of the playoffs. I doubt Asante went to her Thursday with the story...most players just aren't that cunning. He is just being played, a bit, and may not be happy that it came out when it did, any more than BB, Brady and Bruschi will be.

 

[SoonerPatriot]

Terrible move by either the reporter of Assante for having this come out before the Pats play one of the biggest games of the yr... Stupid..

The Globe is under no obligation to cherry pick when they do and do not run controversial stories. Nobody put a gun to Samuel's head to say what he said. It's all on him.

 

[shmessy]

To those claiming that the Globe's job is to report the news, not hide it, and who have seen this as an opportunity to rejoice in the freedom of the fourth estate, I would say: you are being naive.

Samuel's callow tattoo, his high school struggles and successes, his domino playing...none of this is "news", not now, not at this point in time. No, it's a story, one obviously shaped and molded to be dissident and brash, and to make the Globe and MacMullen objects of attention, if not now, then soon. There are numerous ways to "package" the modicum of info contained in this article, but the story's goal is to seem controversial...the goal of almost all modern columnists.

My guess? MacMullen has been working on an Asante angle for some time--after all, his contract status, performance, and happiness are of interest to fans and Globe readers--she chose her angle (raising negative questions about the Patriots' front office, as is typical), and her editor decided to run it on the a.m. of the playoffs. I doubt Asante went to her Thursday with the story...most players just aren't that cunning. He is just being played, a bit, and may not be happy that it came out when it did, any more than BB, Brady and Bruschi will be.

Excellent point. It would be interesting if MacMullen is ever asked WHEN Samuel made those comments. If they were made 2 or 3 months ago, then that is on the Globe for manipulating against the Pats again, and shame on Editor Joe Sullivan (who has an agenda against the Pats). If Samuel said those things this week, then shame on Samuel.

 

[DaBruinz]

They're ALL about the cash. Football is a short lived career and you need to make what you can. Since asante has helped us win two superbowls and has had a break-out year I think Asante should go after the money, it's just his timing is off. Talking about stuff like this to the media before a big game is thoughtless and selfish. After it is all said and done, if you want to go after the money and the pats don't give it to you, then move on.

We all know that the pats are going to try to get the most out of you for the least amount as possible. IT'S SMART BUSINESS. And by doing business that way they put players like Asante and Deion and vinateri in positions where they can go to other teams and get TOP DOLLAR. WTF are they mad about???

People keep claiming Asante had a break-out year this year and I have to ask you all WHY do you think that? Because he had 10 ints? I don't remember him going up against a receiver and actually beating the receiver for the ball but 2-3 maybe 4 times. The others were all on poorly thrown passes by the QB and any one of us could have made the interception.

Asanta is a good CB, but he is NOT an ELITE QB in any sense of the term.

Just look at today. How many times was he playing off the receiver by 10 yards and they hit that receiver?

The other BS in that article was this and I think it came from Benny Sapp:
""I don't know what's going on with the Patriots, but let me tell you this: Forget all that talk about the 'system.' The system doesn't make the player; the player makes the system. That's not why he's picked off all those balls.""

That is clearly someone who doesn't know wtf he is talking about.

 

[frankiesfly]

I don't care about this. Let Samuels play in the playoffs like he deserves a big contract.

I'll worry about his leaving in the off season. There is too much to think about right now.

i hear that

 

[shmessy]

The other BS in that article was this and I think it came from Benny Sapp:
""I don't know what's going on with the Patriots, but let me tell you this: Forget all that talk about the 'system.' The system doesn't make the player; the player makes the system. That's not why he's picked off all those balls.""

That is clearly someone who doesn't know wtf he is talking about.

Yup, it sounds like a Kansas City Chief!