For me, NOW is the low point

[PatriotsReign]

One last thing: Chris Long rocked the combine and he will be gone 5 picks before the NEPs get their pick to the podium.

Ok Mr Clayton!

We'll hold you to that. If he goes at #5, you were way off, right?

 

[PatsFanJess]

All this negativity is starting to bore the crap out of me.

As long as Brady is on this team, we'll be a playoff team.

As long as Brady AND Moss are on this team, we'll be a Super Bowl contender.

As long as Brady AND Moss are on this team and we have a half-decent defense, we'll be Super Bowl favorites.

RELAX. This defense needed re-vamping. It's time to gut that old Comm Ave brownstone and turn it into a sleek modern condo. The foundation is in place for a great D, we just need to fill it out. Think of Capers as the new general contractor. Someone stop me before I take this metaphor way too far.

Great post. Exactly right. We also have BB, SP, and Krafty. I think were set.

 

[richpats]

Weve been to 4 SB's in 7 years, have 3 rings, went 18 and 1 this year...what makes anyone think that suddenly the Pats are in trouble?? Dont think so. When FA starts and then the draft, everything will pick up.

I'd be careful to use the past results to speculate future success. In 2008, we'll be good, maybe not great. It could be a couple of years before we get back to the Super Bowl.

I wouldn't say the Pats are "in trouble" in the conventional sense, but if we are talking "Super-Bowl contenders", I'm wait-and-see on the defensive side of the ball. We'll have new personnel playing key positions, it may take time to gel, maybe not.

 

[chrisfx811]

Fwiw, the Colt's had the league's top ranked defense this year statistically, with primarily unknowns on their roster.
They lost a number of players after the SB, got 1 player healthy, lost another big name guy, and sort of patched it together for the reg season.

Given what is needed, personnel wise, in a 3-4 defense, it will probably be harder for the Pats to pull something like that off, but I'd like to think the Pats FO understands what sort of window of opportunity they're working with.

 

[Patjew]

I'm actually pretty psyched to learn who the Pats add to fill some of these gaping holes. We know they have a plan, and now they have some dough to spend. FAs and the draft should be fun. I'm hoping for a big splash.

 

[Spiral]

Pardon me if it sounds like I just drank a gallon of the kool-aid, but the Patriots have had a pretty long run, and it's precisely because they're doing the type of benefit-cost analysis that they've done for the last seven or eight years. They're pretty brutal about evaluating the performance of older players and they avoid keeping veteran players around after their performance and durability start to decline. They're especially tough on players who are in their second or third contracts and have big cap numbers. They've probably turned their roster over at least twice since 2001and as long as they keep doing that, they'll be contenders every year until Brady retires.

 

[Rob0729]

I for one am not down until we see what we do. If guys like Calvin Pace, Clark Haggans, Victor Hobson, Kavika Mitchell, etc. come off the board without the Pats signing one of them, then I might get upset.

I think the Pats are in very good position to overhaul their defense pretty quickly and improve at least the LB corp and instill some youth there.

I expect Moss to re-sign. Same with Gaffney. I am hoping Chad Jackson will finally step up and contribute. I feel his lack of playing time last year was by design to get him ready to compete for a starting role in 2008. I think Washington has a good chance of returning too. I am not all that worried about the WR corp.

Asante leaving will hurt, but if we trade for Lito Sheppard it won't be that big of a deal.

Faulk's arrest is disapointing, but meaningless unless he was already in the drug program.

Lua hasn't done anything for the Pats. How is him being released any big deal?

We knew Wilson was gone long before this week.

According to the Herald, Gay is in negotiations to return. So is Washington for that matter.

Andrews is a minor contributor.

 

[shmessy]

People!

It's February 27th.