History snub could forever taint the '09 Colts - NFL - Yahoo! Sports
The Patriots are in a precarious situation with Thomas
The New England Patriots may have put Adalius Thomas(notes) back in the starting lineup the past two weeks, but there are those who would still be shocked if he was back next season. Thomas has been diplomatic of late, but a former Baltimore Ravens teammate says the onetime star free-agent signee feels like he has been made a scapegoat for some of the Patriots’ defensive struggles this season.
Clearly, if Thomas is cut, it will be because he hasn’t meshed well – both within the framework of the defense, and the expectation that he would toe the line through his own struggles. Thomas hasn’t shown the ability to be a natural pass rusher and has flirted with criticizing head coach Bill Belichick more than once. And word around the campfire was that when the Belichick sent four players home for showing up late to a meeting three weeks ago, his No. 1 target was Thomas.
“They’re not used to that type of guy and they’re not going to put up with that type of guy,” said Thomas’ former Ravens teammate. “They want you to be quiet and be a good little soldier. Then Bill [Belichick] can play his mind games and you can’t chime in on it or say anything about it. [Adalius is] frustrated. … They never should have moved him to inside linebacker when he got there. That messed everything up. Why try to make him that? He never played that, and you try to make him that because that’s what [Bill] saw for him.”
The former teammate said that, despite Thomas’ solid numbers, he believes the initial juggling at middle linebacker – combined with last year’s season-ending injury – took Thomas out of his groove as a pass rusher and contributed to problems this season. More troubling to the Patriots, he believes that if Thomas is released this offseason, he will sign with the New York Jets and reunite with Rex Ryan, whom Thomas thrived under when Ryan was the defensive coordinator with the Ravens.
“He’ll be a great fit [with the Jets],” Thomas’ former teammate said. “He’s still got a lot of juice in that body. He’ll be great. If anybody knows how to use him – who got 20 sacks from him in two years – it’s Rex. That’s the man who really created him. The Patriots have the ultimate weapon but they don’t know how to use him.”
One thing is clear: Whatever happens with Thomas won’t be strictly about money. The Patriots already paid out almost $24 million in Thomas’ first three seasons. And while his $4.9 million base salary in 2010 isn’t peanuts, it’s not so astronomical that he would be cut if he were playing at a high level this season.
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