Haloti Ngata

[Baltimorefan06]

your kind being Ravens fans or functioning, literate human beings?

Non-inbreds.

 

[flynismo]

your kind being Ravens fans or functioning, literate human beings?

lol...classic.

I meant Ravens fans, but I suppose that it could also be interpreted as anyone who does not breath out of their mouth, does not communicate in a series of grunts and hand gestures (usually of the one digit variety), does not wave a urine soaked rag as a symbol of approval, does not violate farm animals or does not consider anything trapped or found in their backyard to be "good eatin' "

 

[BradyFTW!]

You guys seem to have a collective mancrush on Ngata and Ed Reed, lol....

It's nice to see Ngata finally getting some recognition outside of Baltimore. He's as good as advertised. Maybe even better, because a little known fact is how is also used in our offense as well (we have a couple packages where he lines up as a tackle or TE for his run-blocking ability, and believe it or not, his HANDS.)
Every team has a few players who don't get the respect they deserve (Ngata, Kelly Gregg, Jared Gaither and Dawan Landry are ours). Who do you guys think are overlooked Pats players? (I think Mankins has to be on top of that list).

Because of the emphasis that Belichick places on the D-Line, I think Pats fans have learned, more often than not, to pay a lot of attention to that area. And FWIW, I think that Ngata is probably the best 3-4 d-lineman in the NFL. I liked him ever since he was drafted, but yeah, after seeing him play more extensively last year, I was totally sold' 350 pounders should not be all over the field like he is. It's like someone went into the Madden player creator and just maxed every setting out or something.

For the Pats, I don't think you'll find any consensus even on this board. Before Seymour got traded, it would've definitely been him IMO, but it's hard to argue that now, since he got traded for a first round pick (even if it was the Raiders that did it). As of now I'd say that it's Kevin Faulk. He's a *huge* part of the Pats' offense, and most people outside of New England don't realize it, probably because there aren't many other guys like him to compare him to. To a team that doesn't have a Kevin Faulk-type presence, it's hard to explain how a 33 year old 3rd down running back can be an absolute bargain at $4M against the cap.

Mankins is definitely on the shortlist too, along with Leigh Bodden (who has impressed the hell out of me through 3 weeks, and I always liked him in Cleveland). Our safety rotation--Meriweather, Sanders, McGowan--is also extremely underrated. One of the tops in the league, IMO.

 

[spacecrime]

I have know idea what your point is, so I have no idea where to go with this.
Show some class, you make the other Pats fans look bad by association.

I have no idea what your last sentence means. Are you saying that he is so classy he makes the rest of us look bad?

But chill, dude. You come to another teams board to yap, and accuse us of not having class because we won't buy into your Ravens hype? This is a Patriots board. We have our own hype.

Stick to football, and leave the insults back in Baltimore. When you are in someone's house, you shouldn't be insulting them and telling them what is wrong with them.

 

[flynismo]

I have no idea what your last sentence means. Are you saying that he is so classy he makes the rest of us look bad?

But chill, dude. You come to another teams board to yap, and accuse us of not having class because we won't buy into your Ravens hype? This is a Patriots board. We have our own hype.

Stick to football, and leave the insults back in Baltimore. When you are in someone's house, you shouldn't be insulting them and telling them what is wrong with them.

Did you bother reading what I responded to? If you had, you'd see that I wasn't insulting him, I was telling him to show some class rather than lob false and random insults.
I didn't come here to "yap" and talk smack. I'm also fully aware that this is a Patriots board. Hence the name PatsFans.com.
I also have not been trying to sell any hype, so no need to buy into it.
And I don't care who's house I'm in when things like that are said. If you're so worried about your house, keep some order in it. Thanks.

So thanks for your input, it has been noted.

 

[jays52]

A lot of us here fancy ourselves as general students of football, not as blind, half-******ed fans immune to logic and reason. The one thing that success has taught a lot of us, is how to see championship football and objectively respect good players in addition to good football.

This explains a lot of the man-love here behind Ngata and Reed. Anyone with a set of eyes and a fundamental understanding of football recognizes these two guys as exceptional football players. Ed Reed is as good a safety as there will ever be, and Ngata is a truly rare specimen. A lot of us here also have a man-crush on Suggs. I know that I was very high on him coming out of college. I think that Baltimore is one of those teams that just deserves respect. They do a great job defensively, and the change in HC has breathed new life into the organization. I have felt for a long time that they were one of the most tallented organizations in football, they just lacked a Coach and a QB.

I think that this game is going be tightly contested, and will be a good game. If the Patriots can put the ball in the endzone, they will win the game. The Baltimore D is exceptional in the tight situations, so I don't think that this is highly likely, especially given the Patriots recent difficulties punching it in. Then again, to think that the Patriots repeat negative trends shows a lack of football knowledge. These two teams will see eachother again, and it should be a fantastic football game.

 

[Baltimorefan06]

they just lacked a Coach and a QB.

As a Ravens fan, I appreciate the sentiment in your post.

We have never, ever had a quarterback like Flacco, but Billick really was a good coach for quite awhile, I just suspect that his attitude was played out by 2006ish despite the 13-3 record, and as is the nature of the NFL, we needed a breath of fresh air which is what Harbaugh has provided.

As depressing as it sounds, Harbaugh's strict/all-pads all-the-time outlook will probably create a schism in the locker room once things don't go well.

Unless you're a truly exceptional coach, in the mold of Belichick/Cowher, then you simply cannot sustain a career in the NFL as a head coach with one franchise, and although Billick was serviceable to pretty good, he was a tier below Belichick/Cowher/Dungy, and there was a huge gap between that first level and everyone else.

Billick's situation was especially tough because the defense from the Super Bowl year in 2000 until this season has had a chokehold on the entire franchise, with Ray basically controlling the team and Rex increasingly imposing his gung-ho attitude upon the team, which both exacerbated the situation for Brian.

I'm not sure you actually care about Brian Billick, but that's a tidbit from a Ravens fan; Brian wasn't great by any means, but he oversaw quite a few successful seasons.

 

[jays52]

As a Ravens fan, I appreciate the sentiment in your post.

We have never, ever had a quarterback like Flacco, but Billick really was a good coach for quite awhile, I just suspect that his attitude was played out by 2006ish despite the 13-3 record, and as is the nature of the NFL, we needed a breath of fresh air which is what Harbaugh has provided.

As depressing as it sounds, Harbaugh's strict/all-pads all-the-time outlook will probably create a schism in the locker room once things don't go well.

Unless you're a truly exceptional coach, in the mold of Belichick/Cowher, then you simply cannot sustain a career in the NFL as a head coach with one franchise, and although Billick was serviceable to pretty good, he was a tier below Belichick/Cowher/Dungy, and there was a huge gap between that first level and everyone else.

Billick's situation was especially tough because the defense from the Super Bowl year in 2000 until this season has had a chokehold on the entire franchise, with Ray basically controlling the team and Rex increasingly imposing his gung-ho attitude upon the team, which both exacerbated the situation for Brian.

I'm not sure you actually care about Brian Billick, but that's a tidbit from a Ravens fan; Brian wasn't great by any means, but he oversaw quite a few successful seasons.

I completely agree with everything that you have said here. I think Billick's challenge was keeping continuity between the offense and the defense. When you have a unit that is as good as Baltimore's D, and a unit as poor as the Baltimore O was, it is going to be a tough fight. When one unit is once in a decade exceptional, and the other is fighting to get out of the bottom five, it will obviously create a rift. Now that the Ravens have a QB, and I truly feel that Flacco is the next top flight QB in the NFL, it will build greater cohesion between the two units. This is specifically why I think that you guys have a legit team this year that has a real chance of winning the AFC. While I think that as the current state of the Patriots is not that of an AFC Champion, I think that with the inevitably improved play of Brady, further cohesion with the offense, and the defense becoming healthy again, they will be in the conversation.

Frankly, I'm stoked for you guys that you have a QB and a coach that can keep the two units together. I wasn't trying to disparage Billick, just more so trying to illustrate how much he had lost the team. The HC needs to be the undisputed leader, and when he looses the confidence of the most important component of the team, his leadership is significantly mitigated. Regardless of what happens in 12 hours, I wish you guys nothing but the best this season, and hold nothing but respect for what your team has done in not only this, but in prior seasons. You guys are legit, and there is no disputing this fact. Let's hope for a kickass game, and that both teams get out of it healthy. Let's pick this conversation back up in AFC Championship game week...when it really matters

 

[mayoclinic]

A lot of us here fancy ourselves as general students of football, not as blind, half-******ed fans immune to logic and reason.

Speak for yourself.

Seriously, I don't think I've ever heard anyone on this board have anything negative to say about Ed Reed, Haloti Ngata, Troy Polamalu, DeMarcus Ware, Jonathan Ogden, Larry Fitzgerald or Adrian Peterson. Great players are great players, and when all they do is go out and play they deserve our admiration and respect regardless of their team. Bill Belichick has been open in his admiration of many players on opposing teams.

 

[Baltimorefan06]

Let's pick this conversation back up in AFC Championship game week...when it really matters

Yup, agreed.