LaFell is a huge loss; Pats front office makes rare mistake

[doesntmatter1]

Am I the only one w/ faith in Harper? I liked him from day 1 over Gibson. He is skinny but he has springs in his feet that will make him dangerous after the catch. I just wish Tyms had more opportunities this year. We will be just fine if Dobson and/or Chandler work out.

 

[Joker]

And that's exactly what I try to avoid second-guessing the coaches. My only point was that Gibson was likely to make the team. When the WR position starts to thin out, you should try to preserve a player like that and not expose him to that kinda risk.

Fourteen years ago, right here on these threads, we went through this exact same wailing and gnashing of teeth. I was one of the members here crying the loudest. "Why is BB doing this!! It doesn't make sense!! We lost that player now!! Horrible!!!"...

I remember BB responded to all the media cries of "WHY???????????????"...I remember his response was "Football players PLAY.."

I'm on the other side of the argument from where I was...4 Super Bowls, 6 Supe appearances, division championships up the ying. Yeah, I'm out of the "Belechick SHOULD DO THIS !" business. Brandon Gibson was LIKELY to make the team??..and from THAT you get "Bill should have done THIS!!"? That's some pretty unbelievable hindsight you're unloading on this board. Tell you what...send your resume into 1 Patriot Place...give a shot...hell, you MAY be right...

 

[Soul_Survivor88]

Am I the only one w/ faith in Harper? I liked him from day 1 over Gibson. He is skinny but he has springs in his feet that will make him dangerous after the catch. I just wish Tyms had more opportunities this year. We will be just fine if Dobson and/or Chandler work out.

You would take the rookie over a 6-year vet with previous experience playing under McDaniels?

 

[eom]

I'd like to see them sign moss back again


then get him 3 td against pitt and trade him

 

[Joker]

From what I saw in practices and two home preseason games in person, yeah, I'd take Harper over ANY of these other guys. This kid has GREAT, not good, GREAT hands...and he gets open.

 

[supafly]

yes I can

You really don't get this whole "maturity" thing, do you?

Edit: I'm just busting your balls. No disrespect intended.

 

[supafly]

From what I saw in practices and two home preseason games in person, yeah, I'd take Harper over ANY of these other guys. This kid has GREAT, not good, GREAT hands...and he gets open.

Harper has looked just fine, particularly for a rookie. He has the potential to surprise some people with continued hard work, which should lead to more opportunities. I actually feel good about Harper.

 

[Ice_Ice_Brady]

Any team that doesn't have 5 pro bowl WRs is run by a **** GM, I agree.

Wow, that is pretty idiotic and unrealistic.

 

[fnordcircle]

Wow, that is pretty idiotic and unrealistic.

Edelman, DA, Gronk, Chandler. But they're **** ups because Jojo is hurt and Belichick can't **** out easy-mode trades with Oakland/TB whenever he wants?

 

[oceansizer]

First of all JoJo LaFell is a crucial piece of our offense, but putting him on a PUP list isn't the end of the world. Gronk and Edelman are the main weapons in my opinion. There is Chandler, Amendola and I'm sure one of the Dobson/Harper duo ( or maybe both of them ) will jump into a higher level. Of course BB would think about experienced WR vet like James Jones, Michael Floyd or maybe even VJ, but a trade isn't a necessary matter. Many times we question and doubt in BB's decisions , but all in all he's got right. Personally I prefer to see a team as a one body with manny weapons in the offense, than put my trust in one or two superstars with no backups.

 

[supafly]

First of all JoJo LaFell is a crucial piece of our offense, but putting him on a PUP list isn't the end of the world. Gronk and Edelman are the main weapons in my opinion. There is Chandler, Amendola and I'm sure one of the Dobson/Harper duo ( or maybe both of them ) will jump into a higher level. Of course BB would think about experienced WR vet like James Jones, Michael Floyd or maybe even VJ, but a trade isn't a necessary matter. Many times we question and doubt in BB's decisions , but all in all he's got right. Personally I prefer to see a team as a one body with manny weapons in the offense, than put my trust in one or two superstars with no backups.

I think it's much easier to have concerns about a guy like Amendola, Dobson, or Harper contributing opposite Edelman, when you separate their positions into a pure WR group. That's what the OP is getting at.

Of course your point is excellent that we all need to take Gronkowski and Chandler into account as TE receiving options just the same. That makes a big difference.

 

[Fencer]

Last year at this time we had Edelman. That's it . Gronk was still in preseason mode. Amendola was still recovering from a nutsack tear. Lafell was still trying to get on the same page as Brady. The offensive line was still disorganized. How did that turn out??

For the first few games? Not so well.

 

[Fencer]

meanwhile, jets went out and scooped brandon marshall right out from under our noses.
buffalo drafted watkins.
I'm sure miami did something

we are losing the arms race!!

Hands, actually.

 

[Fencer]

You really don't get this whole "maturity" thing, do you?

Lot of people here don't.

 

[Fencer]

Gronk is an awesome receiver in any part of the field. I have flashbacks of him getting seriously injured diving for a sideline pass and landing on a wrist that already had a rod in it. But he also can get hurt running free between the hash marks, or rumbling down the field Bavarro-style with 3 guys draped over him. If he has to take more outside routes for while, so be it.

So Gronk/Edelman/Chandler/Dobson is just fine as spacing goes. And the first two of those guys will defeat most attempts at single coverage. That's all you can reasonably ask for from a receiving corps, unless it's an area of extreme investment that starves other position groups.

And by the way, the Pats aren't even starving the position group. Gronk gets an elite salary, while a bunch of other guys are paid nice middle-class money.

 

[Triumph]

Trade for David Boston.

NEM was right all along.

 

[JetFan79]

Gronk is a matchup nightmare vs any team. So no matter what happens with your receivers, as long as Gronk is healthy and you have Brady making whoever lines up at WR better, the offense should be in good shape.

With that said, Revis/Cro/Skrine are waiting with bated breath for week 7.

 

[supafly]

Gronk is a matchup nightmare vs any team. So no matter what happens with your receivers, as long as Gronk is healthy and you have Brady making whoever lines up at WR better, the offense should be in good shape.

With that said, Revis/Cro/Skrine are waiting with bated breath for week 7.

Should be a good matchup again this year. I actually think Fitzpatrick is a better option for you, and would've much rather have seen Geno Smith.

 

[JetFan79]

Should be a good matchup again this year. I actually think Fitzpatrick is a better option for you, and would've much rather have seen Geno Smith.

I was happy to see Fitz show something vs the Midgets, but I'm not sold on him just yet. 2nd play that game, Marshall had the CB beat by a good 3yds and it shoulda been an easy long TD. Fitz underthrew it at least 10yds and it was an incompletion. Unless he can prove to have some deep throw ability, I'd probably still want to see Geno back in there. Otherwise our rookie deep threat Devin Smith will go to waste.

In the meantime though, the big combo of Marshall/Decker/Enunwa all complement Fitz's game well.

 

[PatsBoy12]

If LaFell, Gibson and Tyms were all 100% healthy Wayne would have never stepped foot in Foxboro. Yet apparently according to some in this thread BB was supposed to foresee the future and know Gibson and Tyms would be put on IR and LaFell would go on PUP to start the season and draft Tyler Lockett or Sammie Coates, both who have shown just as much as Chris Harper has in the nfl.

Yeah, I agree. The moves at WR during TC have mostly been because of attrition. I knew something had to be up with LaFell. It's funny how his story went so far under the radar. I would search everyday for news on him and there really never was any significant news prior to yesterday. That's odd to me, even by Patriots standards.

Man, I really hope Dobson does something. We need some production out of him and it does not even need to be all-world. We just need someone the defense does not have to completely ignore out there. The Pats usually adjust, but it does not always mean the transition is an easy one. If they can get something out of Dobson and he can fill some of LaFell's role, then we can survive the first six games until JoJo is good to go. Maybe Harper can be a boost too. He's showed up well.