Bethel was not a bust

[PonyExpress]

Naytime you can count the munber of plays a 2nd rounder made on one hand after three years, he is a bust. THat does't say he was completely worthless. This was a very good trade for the Pats

CT,
If Bryant McFadden never makes another play in his life, beyond tipping the ball away from Reggie Wayne at the end of the game against the Colts, was he a bust? OR did he help deliver to you the greatest feeling you will ever have in your life as a sports fan?

 

[363839]

Bethel was a project. I was rooting for him, but let's face it he was looking like a career special teamer, maybe situational receiver at best.

By comparison, Sullivan is El Busto, but if Seymour can lean on him he's a fantastic upside player.

Might be a good change of scenery for both.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Bethel get it together, but their are fast guys every year that don't have what it takes.

A kick returner is easily replaced. He hasn't proved superior at anything else.

Still has to be a worthwhile gamble.

I read somewhere that Seymour was teammates with Sullivan at Georgia.
Does anyone know if this is true?

 

[drpatriot]

I read somewhere that Seymour was teammates with Sullivan at Georgia.
Does anyone know if this is true?

Yes, it is. They played on the same line for one year, actually.

 

[JoeSixPat]

We have 5th, 6th and 7th round picks who have made one or two big plays here or there....

As a 2nd round pick, Bethel was a bust...

The guy had a lot of potential, and did everything you could ever hope for in a WR except maybe catch passes.

 

[ClosingTime]

CT,
If Bryant McFadden never makes another play in his life, beyond tipping the ball away from Reggie Wayne at the end of the game against the Colts, was he a bust? OR did he help deliver to you the greatest feeling you will ever have in your life as a sports fan?

If he doesn't then yes he is.
Draft slos matter. f bethel was chesen in the 4th round then it wouldn;t be a big deal. You need your 1st dat picks to contribute consistently.
Willie Parker, an UDFA, contributed a lot more last year. If he doesn't do anything for the rest of his career, I'll be fine with it.
As a 2nd rounder I expect McFadden to make more plays in the future. They ain't paying him for showing up once in a blue moon.
Bethel "Blue Moon" Johnson. Sounds ike a good jazz musician. Unfortunately not a very good ootball player.
Face it, the Pats fell in love with his speed and overlooked his actual football ability.
he's not the Dolly Parton of Busts but he aint flat either

 

[dryheat44]

Well one thing about it the Saints just upgraded their return game as for the receiver part just have to wait and see.

No they haven't. They've added a great backup to the return teams, but how many teams carry a dedicated backup returner?

 

[dryheat44]

CT,
If Bryant McFadden never makes another play in his life, beyond tipping the ball away from Reggie Wayne at the end of the game against the Colts, was he a bust? OR did he help deliver to you the greatest feeling you will ever have in your life as a sports fan?

These things aren't mutually exclusive. Fred Coleman may have made the biggest catches in the 2001 season. If we had drafted him on day one, he still would have been a bust.

 

[bucky]

I'm not sure the Pats win the Superbowl in 2004 without Bethel. So was he a bust? Maybe, maybe not. But he was definitely a disappointment because of where he was drafted, his potential, and his declining productivity as both KR and WR.

 

[CrazyDave]

Not a bust, just a zero.

 

[deeds]

The fact is that trading up and grabbing him in the 2nd round you'd expect much more production out of him than what you got...

If we get similar production from Chad Jackson will we consider him a bust? we absolutely would!

Also, to think Bethal is going to turn it around somewhere else is a joke. If he couldn't succeed here, with the coaching, off-season programs and a QB like Brady, he won't succeed anywhere!

Bust is a strange word... I guess Sullivan can definately be considered a bust based on where he was taken in the draft. The bottom line is the draft is a crap shoot and if you get a player to produce, you are ahead of the game....

 

[dryheat44]

The fact is that trading up and grabbing him in the 2nd round you'd expect much more production out of him than what you got...

If we get similar production from Chad Jackson will we consider him a bust? we absolutely would!

.

Or Deion Branch. Win some, lose some.

 

[stcjones]

you are right....

Any draft pick that contributes substantially to winning a SB is not a bust. Bethel was a key player in the Tennessee playoff game. Just like JR Redmond was not a bust for his playoff performances. People are being too harsh on Bethel IMO. He was drafted too soon by BB, much sooner than all other projections, and the Pats simply reached. He performed like the 4th/5th rd pick he really was, and had some heroic moments.

in a way....however Bethel was HUGELY INCONSISTENT.....and VERY injury prone. I am not crazy about the trade overall as Sullivan has been an underachiever and a huge disappointment overall as well.....however, BB has a way of turning guys like this around........Bethel had great potential and tremendous speed....and I will never forget him for his 5-6 huge plays while here.....but he is unfortuneatly very expendible in my honest opinion.....again, hopefully we will make out well with the trade.......good luck Bethel....and thanks

 

[stcjones]

Really??

Well one thing about it the Saints just upgraded their return game as for the receiver part just have to wait and see.

I wouldn't call Bethel a huge upgrade ANYWHERE just yet......Overall the guy has been terribly inconsistent and very injury prone. I think he still has great potential, but he may never get there.......I will take a look at his return numbers.....he had a few big breakaway returns but overall felt he was pretty average .....

 

[stcjones]

If you are basing whether a player is a.....

CT,
If Bryant McFadden never makes another play in his life, beyond tipping the ball away from Reggie Wayne at the end of the game against the Colts, was he a bust? OR did he help deliver to you the greatest feeling you will ever have in your life as a sports fan?

bust or a success based on one play....then I think you are missing the point.........You should be basing a player's success in the NFL on his ENTIRE career in the NFL....not just one play.......Using this method,.....yes Bethel was a BUST......He had about six big plays and one or two came in key moments of a BIG game......but it is NEVER ABOUT ONE PLAY when it comes to SB's or playoffs or even seasons......It is about the team getting it done on EVERY DOWN!!!! In my opinion, Bethel was a BUST for us.....never lived up to his potential.......one man's opinion

 

[ilduce06410]

he was pick #45 in that year's draft

Your right. He is not a bust. I see it this way, if your a first round pick and don't pan out, then you are a bust. However, Johnson was a high second round pick and he just didn't turn out the way the Pats hoped.

it's reasonable to expect a player taken that high to perform at an elite level. he has not. in fact, he hasn't been able to get on the field except to run some (successful) fly patterns. IMO that's a bust.
he's also made some big plays that turned games around for patriots. he's a good-sized WR who has blazing speed. he's still young and hasn't got too many nfl snaps on his meter.
he has value, except that everybody in the nfl probably thought he'd be cut in TC this year.
patriots done good to get some potentiall in return for him.

 

[PonyExpress]

I just want to point something out for the people slamming Bethel. I looked over the ProFootballWeekly archives at their 2003 draft preview that was issued the week prior to that draft. They rank their players based on what NFL personnel people around the league tell them. They had Bethel rated as the 108th player overall and the 16th receiver, which made him second day talent. So the fact BB reached at #45 overall for Bethel was a draft day blunder of the first order. Considering the justified praise we lavish on BB can't we be evenhanded in calling a mistake a mistake, on those rare occasions he makes one? Why did we expect Bethel to magically morph into an elite talent? I think this was an occasion when BB and Scott got too smart for themselves. Too much was expected of Bethel because BB took him too soon. Bethel was a 2nd day talent who contributed to two SB titles. Calling him a bust seems like a fair weather fan kind of thing...but maybe I've gone off the deep end- its happened before...

 

[RayClay]

I just want to point something out for the people slamming Bethel. I looked over the ProFootballWeekly archives at their 2003 draft preview that was issued the week prior to that draft. They rank their players based on what NFL personnel people around the league tell them. They had Bethel rated as the 108th player overall and the 16th receiver, which made him second day talent. So the fact BB reached at #45 overall for Bethel was a draft day blunder of the first order. Considering the justified praise we lavish on BB can't we be evenhanded in calling a mistake a mistake, on those rare occasions he makes one? Why did we expect Bethel to magically morph into an elite talent? I think this was an occasion when BB and Scott got too smart for themselves. Too much was expected of Bethel because BB took him too soon. Bethel was a 2nd day talent who contributed to two SB titles. Calling him a bust seems like a fair weather fan kind of thing...but maybe I've gone off the deep end- its happened before...

I know we should draft based on Pro Football Weekly.

Of course I'll keep that 4-5 rounder Deion Branch if that's OK with you.

 

[Pats726]

The reason for the stretch was his speed and such..His attitude was always going to be a problem...and that was the downfall..he never got it. I don't think any of the coaches in the 3 years here got to him at all..he never understood. WASTED talent in my opinion VERY much wasted.. I think they thought he would change..but never did..I lean a bit more to bust even though he made some big plays..5..6 in three years..yes they were big..but how about the other 1,000???

 

[bucky]

The reason for the stretch was his speed and such..His attitude was always going to be a problem...and that was the downfall..he never got it. I don't think any of the coaches in the 3 years here got to him at all..he never understood. WASTED talent in my opinion VERY much wasted.. I think they thought he would change..but never did..I lean a bit more to bust even though he made some big plays..5..6 in three years..yes they were big..but how about the other 1,000???

It wasn't just his attitude. There was also the ruptured kidney issue with Bethel. Obviously, this came back to cause him some problems and MAY have contributed to his declining performance. Nevertheless, it was another reason why Bethel shouldn't have been an early second rounder.

On the other hand, if you think that BB drafted him specifically to solve the immediate problem of KR and deep threat, that's exactly what he provided over the course of 2 Superbowl runs.

As for judging Bethel's overall NFL career, his career ain't over just yet.