Full Monty

[State]

To me, the fact that a starting calibre RB (with Dillon, Faulk, Pass already on the roster) is more important than a starting calibre LB (where TBC, Beisel and Claridge are the competition) means something. Somehow Dillon, Faulk and Pass leave the roster "exposed" more than TBC, Beisel and Claridge.

Yeah, rookBoston, I was similarly surprised about the draft--I assumed a defensive player would have been taken in the first round--and I completely agree with your analysis. I have just one thing more to say: John Lynch.

Now we have a home run hitter in the running game that's going to keep our opponents' defensive coordinators up at night.

To blitz Tom Brady, or not to blitz? That's going to be the question.

 

[PromisedLand]

there are a few of her at this site: www.misskansasusa.com
or you could google "amanda beisel" images.

Actually, I tried googling that before I posted my question. It doesn't work. But "amanda carraway" images does.

Thanks. I was just wondering why everyone always mentions his wife whenever Monty is being discussed. Now I know.

 

[Ochmed Jones]

Functional Football Strength and Confidence

Last season Beisel's lack of functional football sense was exposed. Functional football strength means the ability to make opposing players go where you want them to go and not the other way around.
Last season Beisel also suffered greatly from a lack of confidence. A lot of what is being described in the previous posts are all examples of how a player that lacks confidence plays.
This offseason Beisel has put on a lot of muscle mass and increased his speed. That implies that the coaches are tackling the functional football strength isssue. (He's probably spent a lot of time working on leverage and techniques for taking on and shedding blocks) When you combine that with another year in the system, then the confidence should return.
I beleive the coaches are doing everything in their power to provide Beisel with the tools for success this year. This TC will be the time for Beisel to show them just how badly he wants to get it. If he doesn't amke the leap in TC, then he'll probably play ST this year and then it's out the trap door. If he hungers for it, he'll master the assignmkents and contribute tremendously.
The bottom line is only Beisel knows how badly he wants it.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

3) People had unfair expectations. In fact, now he has a "hate club" on him, especially in the media after some jerk in the media kept harassing him. They look at everything he does in the most negative light possible.

Heh PatsNutMe! I think we found Tom Curran's cover identity! :rocker:

 

[PATSNUTme]

Heh PatsNutMe! I think we found Tom Curran's cover identity! :rocker:

No wonder he acted ashamed on TV.

Just kidding Patriot-80.

 

[arrellbee]

mg, I agree with this. The way the draft unfolded was illuminating to me. At #21, by all accounts BB was looking to draft offense. This flies in the face of fan perception, my own included, that he would urgently look to fill his LB corp with talent: he could have traded up for Carpenter at a reasonable price, and Lawson was there for him, and he barely twitched in that direction.

I am really curious. Time after time ad nauseum Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli tell us that they draft the best player on the board, regardless of need. Belichick has directly said that you can't 'manufacture' a player for a particular position if there is not one there when you make your pick. And he has clearly said that taking a player for need is worthless if the player isn't capable and that you just have to use another pick next year - which is a total waste of a valuable draft pick.

You are not alone in the slightest. There are even posts that start out indicating that the Patriots draft the best player and then immediately diverge to talk about why the pick was a good one because it was a 'need' or, especially, why it was not a good one because there was a greater need at another position.

I think you can take it to the bank that Maroney was the best value on the board when he was picked and that on the Pats draft board he was a BETTER player in their eyes than all of the LBs and 'tweener DEs and DBs on the board. Isn't that an absolute proof that they pick the player they consider the best ? - especially when everyone seems to feel that LB and DE were definite 'needs' ?? Further support of that is that the Patriots could win a superbowl with Antoine Smith - they have proved that it doesn't take a star running back to win.

That being said, I'm sure that 'need' would undoubtedly be a tiebreaker if there were players at two different positions that were of equal capability and the Pats were shallow in depth at a position. I am as sure as I can be that all of those type of decisions were made when the board was put together. You can bet that the Patriots are not making those kind of judgments and decisions when they are on the clock.

Also, I think that once in a great while, lower in the draft the influence of need does enter in as one of the factors. Case in point this year would be drafting a kicker in the 4th round.

 

[PATRIOTS-80]

Heh PatsNutMe! I think we found Tom Curran's cover identity! :rocker:

I'm sorry, I don't get the joke. Was it Tom Curran who harassed Beisel?

 

[PATRIOTS-80]

Last season Beisel's lack of functional football sense was exposed. Functional football strength means the ability to make opposing players go where you want them to go and not the other way around.
Last season Beisel also suffered greatly from a lack of confidence. A lot of what is being described in the previous posts are all examples of how a player that lacks confidence plays.
This offseason Beisel has put on a lot of muscle mass and increased his speed. That implies that the coaches are tackling the functional football strength isssue. (He's probably spent a lot of time working on leverage and techniques for taking on and shedding blocks) When you combine that with another year in the system, then the confidence should return.
I beleive the coaches are doing everything in their power to provide Beisel with the tools for success this year. This TC will be the time for Beisel to show them just how badly he wants to get it. If he doesn't amke the leap in TC, then he'll probably play ST this year and then it's out the trap door. If he hungers for it, he'll master the assignmkents and contribute tremendously.
The bottom line is only Beisel knows how badly he wants it.

I absolutely agree. Isn't Beisel a FA next year?

 

[arrellbee]

I absolutely agree. Isn't Beisel a FA next year?

yes. he signed a 2 year contract.

 

[PATSNUTme]

I'm sorry, I don't get the joke. Was it Tom Curran who harassed Beisel?

Yea, he got a little testy with Curran once last year. Can't really remember now what it was all about.

 

[captain stone]

Hear, hear..

Both Larry and Don are in their mid-thirties now. Its time for new blood, if we have anyone worth keeping...

Good on ya, AZ. Izzo and Davis are two of the reasons the ST coverage units stunk. Dave Thomas, Garrett Mills, Mel Mitchell, TBuck, etc. should make us forget the fossils by Labor Day.

 

[dryheat44]

Good on ya, AZ. Izzo and Davis are two of the reasons the ST coverage units stunk. Dave Thomas, Garrett Mills, Mel Mitchell, TBuck, etc. should make us forget the fossils by Labor Day.

Can't agree with ya there. Davis was still very productive last year.

Our problems on ST weren't in kick coverage, they were in the return game, as I remember.

 

[ilduce06410]

wht would anyone get testy with tom curran

Yea, he got a little testy with Curran once last year. Can't really remember now what it was all about.

i dunno what the sportswriters in kansas city or in lawrence kansas are like.
but surely beisel knew/knows about the general opinions on his performance. nuttin' like having a championship team trade to get you, going to a big city and all, and having people start dumping on you as a player well before halloween.
moving from kc to boston is a huge culture shock in itself. my west-of-the-mississippi friends say the 2 most noticeable diffrernces are a.. traffic. and b. the dispositions (you guess) of the people.
then comes this doofus, who's already criticized you in a column, asking a couplle questions.
i know what i'd have to say. and probably do.

 

[DB15]

is she hot?

as for monty getting any better I will belive it when I see it

 

[Patjew]

i dunno what the sportswriters in kansas city or in lawrence kansas are like.
but surely beisel knew/knows about the general opinions on his performance. nuttin' like having a championship team trade to get you, going to a big city and all, and having people start dumping on you as a player well before halloween.
moving from kc to boston is a huge culture shock in itself. my west-of-the-mississippi friends say the 2 most noticeable diffrernces are a.. traffic. and b. the dispositions (you guess) of the people.
then comes this doofus, who's already criticized you in a column, asking a couplle questions.
i know what i'd have to say. and probably do.

Part of being a pro-athlete is being able to take criticism by the media. Curran is fair with his analysis and has the right to write things as he sees them. Much more often than not he is correct. He didn't make any personal attacks on Beisel. Beisel is the one that acted unprofessionally in his response. How does that make Curran a "doofus"?

 

[maverick4]

re

I thought I'd chime in with my skepticism.

I think it's great that Beisel has put on 10 pounds, but I won't believe he's changed as a player until I actually see it on the field.

You can't play scared as a middle linebacker, you have to be willing to take on blockers head on and win those battles. All I've seen from Beisel is a player who runs away from the action, who doesn't tackle head-on but rather sideways, or often while trailing a runner.

Maybe the extra weight will give him confidence to be more of a warrior in there, but sometimes players just don't have 'it' and never will - heart, determination, and a fighter's mentality.

To me, Beisel seems a lot like the character Roger Dorn in the movie Major League, in terms of attitude and willingness to get dirty and risk injury.

 

[PATSNUTme]

I thought I'd chime in with my skepticism.

I think it's great that Beisel has put on 10 pounds, but I won't believe he's changed as a player until I actually see it on the field.

You can't play scared as a middle linebacker, you have to be willing to take on blockers head on and win those battles. All I've seen from Beisel is a player who runs away from the action, who doesn't tackle head-on but rather sideways, or often while trailing a runner.

Maybe the extra weight will give him confidence to be more of a warrior in there, but sometimes players just don't have 'it' and never will - heart, determination, and a fighter's mentality.

To me, Beisel seems a lot like the character Roger Dorn in the movie Major League, in terms of attitude and willingness to get dirty and risk injury.

You are not the only one who has said that.

However, I find that saying Monte is not tough and even afraid to be absurd.

Do you or others actaully think that he would still be on the team if that was remotely true? I don't care how long his contract is, BB would have sent him packing last year if that were true. He would have put him on IR last year if that were true. He would have cut him this year.

The other players would seen that and it would have been like a virus to the rest of the team.

Question his ability or questions his smarts,if you want to. But please think a little before posting that this guy is scared to play.

 

[maverick4]

re

Fair enough.

Scared may be the wrong choice of word. Maybe 'unwillingness' or 'inability' would describe it better. You can't play 3-4 with an inside linebacker who won't willingly take on blockers on a regular basis. It requires a special type of person to have the desire and skill to collide with offensive guards and centers, beat the block, and take down the runner.

On the other hand, it's dangerous and untrue to say that all football players are tough and play unafraid. There are wide receivers who are afraid to go over the middle, there are cornerbacks who are afraid to tackle, and it is also possible for some linebackers to prefer to play in a 4-3 and not have to play as physical as a 3-4 linebacker.

 

[PATSNUTme]

Fair enough.

Scared may be the wrong choice of word. Maybe 'unwillingness' or 'inability' would describe it better. You can't play 3-4 with an inside linebacker who won't willingly take on blockers on a regular basis. It requires a special type of person to have the desire and skill to collide with offensive guards and centers, beat the block, and take down the runner.

On the other hand, it's dangerous and untrue to say that all football players are tough and play unafraid. There are wide receivers who are afraid to go over the middle, there are cornerbacks who are afraid to tackle, and it is also possible for some linebackers to prefer to play in a 4-3 and not have to play as physical as a 3-4 linebacker.

I will agree with you regarding the WR's and some CB's. We have all seen that.

But, if you play afraid as a front 7 player in the NFL, you won't last more than one season. The opposition will see it, your teammates will see it, and your coaches will see it. You will be gone.

As far a Monte is concerned, I want to see how he plays in preseason before I make any further judgement. He was thrown in a situation that was not foreseen before he signed with us. He had a very badly mangled finger which made him play one handed.

Not making any excuses but I do want to deal with the reality of his situation. He also didn't have a SS playing in back of hime for most of thr year.