can we all agree

[Real fan 02]

Whoa, that is harsh. I don't think it is that bad. The Patriots had some close games against powerful opponents, some bad calls, some crucial injuries, and some bad luck. This is a rebuilding year and I think that the Patriots had a nucleus of solid plays to build around. This year's draft was exceptional and if next years is as good, the Patriots can climb out of the basement.

Now, that being said, I think that you could make a strong case that the Patriots have the worst WR corp in the league. Years of mismanaged drafts and bad FA signings have resulted in this mess. You cannot blame Mac if his WRs cannot get open.

 

[Real fan 02]

I thought the same thing early on.. I was clearly a big Mac supporter. Then I started to see that there were plenty of time guys were wide open and he either misses them or doesn't see them. I'll agree they were competitive in some situations.. however the Dallas loss and then backed up with the Saints loss pretty much in my opinion sinked thier season. That is when the buy-in become and issue. Then the win over the bills you said wow this team has it in them.. then we were reminded at Miami of what the real identity of this team is. It has now affected the defense.. they have been on the field far to much this season and I'm sure guys are worn down.

 

[203Pat]

Whoa, that is harsh. I don't think it is that bad. The Patriots had some close games against powerful opponents, some bad calls, some crucial injuries, and some bad luck. This is a rebuilding year and I think that the Patriots had a nucleus of solid plays to build around. This year's draft was exceptional and if next years is as good, the Patriots can climb out of the basement.

Now, that being said, I think that you could make a strong case that the Patriots have the worst WR corp in the league. Years of mismanaged drafts and bad FA signings have resulted in this mess. You cannot blame Mac if his WRs cannot get open.

Every bad team has these things happen to them because they're bad and can't overcome those issues.

We have been in "rebuilding years" for 4 years now and we're working in reverse. You shouldn't end up worse in year 4 of a rebuild. From top down we are the worst roster in the league as of right now.

QB: Complete mess. Starter is broken. Don't have a backup another team would bother claiming off waivers.

RB: Stevenson has regressed. Blame it on the o-line, Mac, the scheme, whatever. He hasn't looked good this year. Zeke has been a non-factor outside of the awful fumbles which have been a factor in the wrong direction.

WR: Was probably the worst group in the league with Bourne healthy. They're easily the worst now with two terrible contracts in the mix.

TE: Henry is a solid starter and Gesecki has been nonexistent. Pharaoh Brown, a blocking TE, has looked better than Gesecki.

OL: Finally starting to gel now that Bill decided to put an NFL player at tackle. Unfortunately both of our current starting tackles are free agents at year's end.

DL: Average. Guy is on the downside of his career. Godchaux is overpaid despite what some on here believe. Wise is still a solid role player. Barmore finally looks to be putting it together on a more consistent basis and could be our best player at the moment.

LB: Average. Bentley and Tavai are solid role players but are often asked to do too much and get exposed when that is the case. Uche has disappeared without Judon. Jennings is decent in the run game. If this was 1994 he would be a pro bowler. Keion White has flashed here and there but hasn't really stepped into a larger role with Judon gone either.

CB: Below average and has some malcontents. JCJ and Jack Jones are on the verge of going off the reservation. Myles Bryant and Shaun Wade should be special teamers. Jon Jones is still a good corner but has been dinged up all year. Gonzalez clearly elevated this group in the short time he played and Marcus Jones wasn't a great corner but at least provided some depth. With those two out this group is below average.

Safties: Above average. Dugger has played out of position for most of the year as the mix of Mills, Phillips, and Mapu clearly aren't working in the McCourty role. Having Dugger there removes one of the few player makers this roster has. Mapu needs to play LB. I don't know why Bill is insistent he is a safety unless it is because he doesn't plan on re-signing Dugger. Peppers has played well and made some plays. I would like see him stick around for a while.

Special teams: Complete mess. Punter has been solid and the kicker has been okay but the coverage units and kickoff and punt teams can't get out of their own way.

 

[mgteich]

My problem looking at a complete coaching change is what that would entail. For one thing i expect it would be three years before the rebuilt team begins to take shape. First year the coaches are hired, start evaluating the mess they’ve gotten themselves into, Second year they turn over the roster, get their core players in place. Third year they’ve finally got coaches and players and can start to play football. My bet is they’ll be at best an average team from three to five years out. There are 14 playoff teams in a 32 team league so they’ll be inbthe battle for a playoff slot as an average team.

so I figure with a complete coaching change we are looking forward to five years of mediocrity.

not sure anybody here is really up for that. Except maybe the perpetual whiners who would love nothing more than five years of complaining.

I'm not buying this. We have a very solid Defense. We have a normal set of free agents to re-sign and we're likely to have at least a top 10 Defense (only Dugger, Mills, Uche and Jennings).

We have a top set of STer's The only weakness is the coach. The leaders are set for years with Schooler, the punter, the kicker and long snapper.
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We need an attitude overhaul at the top and a new Offense. I agree that won't start in Year One. But consider the likely extending of Bourne, Onwenu and the drafting one of the top OT's (even one from the middle of Round 1). We'd start with an OK OL, a couple of receivers and a RB.

Installing an Offense in all about the QB. We'll be competitive as soon as we have a starter. If we signed a veteran or traded for QB, we COULD be competitive in 2024 under BOB or the new OC. We would be competitive for the SB, but that can't come until we have a top 15 QB. Given that there are at least 8 top QB's in the AFC, the issue is getting a QB, without which there is no Title Game, in 1 year or in 5.