Bill James the Red Sox and the Pats !!

[mdawg]

Long time lurker and wanted to do my first big post based on what I am seeing in the Free Agent Thread.

There is a quote attributed to Bill James (other than the SOSH, I do not have a reference) that 17 players from last year’s Red Sox roster are either average or need to be upgraded. This got me to think of where the Pats are at and how do we build from here?

So much negativity or pie in the sky posts in the FA Thread. Look you root for one of the worst teams talent wise in the NFL (I do too). So, if like the Red Sox you have to replace or upgrade 17 players, you are not probably going to do it in one FA season.

The Pats have locked down almost all of their homegrown talent that is not in that 17. You add through FA and the draft, see what you have and keep building. I think the FO has done a good job and will continue to work it but know where the team is at talent wise.

Some Plusses

• No salary Cap issues
• #3 draft pick

Some Negatives

“Tom Brady is not walking through that door’

Lets give the FO a chance, one big money signing is not going to get this team to where it wants to be, it is a process.

Thanks to all whose posts I enjoyed, including PatFanKen. Keep at it but be realistic with where you are at and where you need to be.

 

[Hammer of Thor]

Baseball and football are very different sports. Baseball truly is the result of individual player performances. Football is much more of a team game, although not as much as it used to be with the rule changes over the last 15-20 years.

In baseball roles are well-defined, but in football they can be molded. That makes a huge difference. Patrick Chung was a player who needed a huge upgrade as a Tampa-2 safety in 2012. He retired after 2020 as a potential Pats HOF as a strong safety / hybrid linebacker. It’s the same player.

There is talent on this team, and with the right moves (including nailing the QB pick) can be a playoff team as early as this year. The odds are against that, but that doesn’t mean that we just intentionally tank the season. We may have the players on the OL already but just needing health, experience, the right positions, and good coaching. Or we may not. But we definitely don’t have a QB and a WR1 - finding both of them alone this offseason would be a huge boost.

I won’t be disappointed if they don’t win this year, I just would like to see progress. But it’s possible progress can result in winning too.

 

[mdawg]

I agree on all. The point I was trying to make was when you have to rebuild a roster, change is incremental and not a FA signing away. Justin Fields (anothers in the FA posts) are not leading this team out of the talent cellar, a good front office that builds talen through FA, the draft and pickups will. To get from here to there is a process, IMHO