Late night rant..but someone HAD to do it!!

[Wax Frog]

Great post fellow "homer" ... and as far as the ones on the ledge calling for BB head ... let them stay there and hope some just slip off. GO PATS :rocker:

My team! Win or lose, succeed or just suck, my team until the day I die.

[Edit: Serendipitously, an insta-fan since December 16, 1985 - "NEW ENGLAND HAS A TEAM?!?!?" ]

 

[supafly]

Brady lost a home game to Baltimore and New York since 2006, just thought I would throw it out there. Not everything has been perfect, we have done great things but its not wrong to expect more.

I am referring to the 31+ regular season game home win streak since 2006 when Brady starts that is continuous.

 

[supafly]

When all is said and done, I think this team has too much pride to ever consider coming close to throwing in the towel. Hopefully we see some of the nastiness in the trenches that we have seen in the past after eye-opening losses. Then the lot of you can come back in off the ledge...

We may not have a SB team this yr, but then again, there has not been any dominating performances besides the Packers, so anything can happen. Let's hope for a playoff berth, wildcard or not..then we'll see what happens. The idea that we can't win a couple of playoff games is ridiculous to me.

And if not, we still can relish the GIFT that is being able to get hyped up for every single Sunday's game with a chance and hope to win. Just remember, there are probably about 3/4 of the teams in the NFL that would jump at the chance to be in the shoes of both the team, and the fanbase.

Belichick may have made some seriously questionable decisions and calls--in the draft, and in the building of some years' teams, but I know that he always is 100% driven to doing what he feels is best for the team. I think his dedication, sheer smarts, and desire is good enough is to put us in competition on just about every single Sunday; regardless of who is starting where, and who is traded or released.

I know this may not be a popular thread/post with many, and I'm sure some ***** clown will chime in with some impatient comment about not "winning" right..this..second..but our sense of entitlement as a fan base is getting to be ridiculous anymore. I saw a post lately that asked someone if they thought "last year was a success." Are you kidding me? We were THE elite team in the NFL, and beat all 4 conference champion squads (and both SB squads to boot)...in a "rebuilding year." Out of 16 games we won 14. That's 14 Sundays that we all got to enjoy seeing our team walk away victorious. Yes, of course we all would've liked to win the SB, but let's be realistic, it just is not going to happen that often. It's an exceptionally special thing, or else duck boats, parades, and rallys would be scheduled for every single year like clockwork--that of course would ruin the whole "magical" feeling of actually winning the damn thing.

We've got to witness (not me personally, but I couldn't even imagine) going to a home game EVERY single time when Brady plays since 2006, and walking away feeling like we got our money's worth. Good GOD!! No, we haven't won a playoff game the past couple of yrs vs. the likes of the punishing Ravens and the hungry Jets, but all is not lost as a fanbase either. The Pats remain one of the NFL's toughest outs, and will likely stay that way. They didn't make the playoffs in 2008, and as tough as it was we all went on with our lives and regrouped the next yr.

We celebrate together with the wins, and console each other after losses; but we're not going to p!ss and moan like a bunch of spolied sissies anymore. This fanbase is still made up of many who sat on cold benches through 1-15 seasons; people who would've given anything just to compete.

We are given the chance to compete just about every single Sunday, now let's not run the damn coach out of town for God sakes.

And PS---F@#k Leigh Bodden, and anyone else who wasn't going to give their all and dedication. As much as I questioned the move too, it's time to move on and understand the bigger picture. Belichick's a guy who'd rather have all of his players believe in themselves and each other, then have a little bit more talent in the short run. You can say that it's right/wrong, whatever..but in the next couple/few yrs, I believe he will get us another SB trophy.

So, am I being a "homer," or just a true fan who goes down swinging with his team--sink or swim?

We're either going to get the season back on track this Sunday vs the NYG, or the Jets are going to face a very hungry and pissed off team next Sunday night. Regardless, we have a chance to be 6-3, maybe even 7-2.

Does anyone else believe there's a decent shot at making some noise, or do most of you feel as though it's somehow already a done deal?
[end rant]

LOL- dont let your fandom get in the way of reality-LOL
this team WILL NOT be in the SB- and most probabaly depending on the opponent WILL BE knocked out in the 1st RD- the D is probably the worst in the NFL and the wide recievers are almost invisible- you dont go far in the playoffs with that !!

Don't let my 'fandom' get in the way? Isn't that what being a 'fan' is all about? Sticking with your damn team, come hell or high water?

I never said they'd go far in the playoffs, but thinking that we have the ability to make some noise and win a game or two in the postseason is nothing to be ashamed at. No one has been dominating in the AFC. There's no reason to believe that at the midway point this defense is going to be the worst in the NFL. We saw them make some good strides against Dallas, Oakland, and the NYJ---the defense looked improved prior to the Steelers game + there's even some things they did very positively in that game too, despite the all-around poor effort.

The whole point of my post was being able to believe and show appreciation, instead of always having that extreme sense of enitilement.

It's going to suck to be a Patriots fan for some of you, if being one of the 'other' 31 teams at the end of the yr means that everything about the season was a total failure.

 

[Deus Irae]

Don't let my 'fandom' get in the way? Isn't that what being a 'fan' is all about? Sticking with your damn team, come hell or high water?

No........

 

[supafly]

I'm not mad because we're 5-2 instead of 6-1. I'm mad because I just witnessed a terrible performance by the secondary, which could have been avoided simply by not cutting half of its top 8 players. This team now has an achilles heel that it didn't need to have, and unless it gets fixed with unprecedented speed, there goes another year or two from Tom Brady's diminishing window as an elite QB.

I don't know how any Pats fan could not be irritated by that. If the Pats turn it around and somehow cobble together a defense that's competent enough to win a SB, I'll be as thrilled as anyone, and apparently far more surprised than a lot of you. In the mean time, though, I'm not going to pretend that we haven't seen what we've seen through 7 games: an offense that's good enough to overcome the defense's deficiencies against most teams, but which almost certainly won't make it to the SB in its current form.

You have a good post, and a fair point--no doubt about that.

The problem I'd have is your comparison to "cutting half of its top 8 players." If Meriweather, Sanders, Bodden, Butler, Wilhite et al were some of our best players, we'd be in trouble. Besides the fact that they haven't gone on to anything at all on other squads, we have to remember that our pass defense was HORRIBLE last year too!!

I understand the immediate questioning, and did a lot of it myself. As you said, it'd be hard as a Pats fan not too. But after the NYJ loss in January where the secondary made Sanchez look like Joe Montana out there, apparently BB thought that we needed a change.

Where and how that change came into play is an issue I do have, and it's quite possible that ALL of those players didn't need to be removed during the same year. It's also possible that we maybe should've looked at making a trade/free agent acquisition for another decent CB etc, I would agree with that too. But Belichick obviously wanted something specific out there. What is it? I really can't say that I fully understand right now. Maybe it's team cohesiveness, maybe it's more speed, maybe it's pure hunger and willingness to learn better. The problem is that it hasn't looked any different than last yr, maybe even worse. Another possible problem is that BB may have felt that McCourty was going to be just as solid, (although his early season struggles have gotten much better), and he likely didn't assume that there would be be struggles there too.

I think the bottom line is that we have to all remember how much last yr's secondary sucked, and that Belichick likely thought he was making improvements. We saw some improvement in recent games from them, (Steelers game not included). Hopefully we can get back to that.

 

[supafly]

No........

No?

Sticking with your team is not the definition of being a true fan?

 

[Deus Irae]

No?

Sticking with your team is not the definition of being a true fan?

No, it's not. There is no one definition of being a "true fan", and it's certainly not a requirement that you go about "Sticking with your damn team, come hell or high water?".

 

[supafly]

No, it's not. There is no one definition of being a "true fan", and it's certainly not a requirement that you go about "Sticking with your damn team, come hell or high water?".

I'm going to have to admit that I am a bit shocked at your statement, Deus.

It has always been a pleasure discussing football with you, and I admire your sense of questioning etc that some people don't fully appreciate.

But either you ARE a fan, or you AREN'T...

If that's going to be the popular opinion, then I imagine a lot of Green bay Packer (flavor of the month, maybe a couple yrs) jerseys will be introduced into many Boston area wardrobes.

We can sit back and question Belichick all we went, and that's fine. Actually it's needed. And the mistakes have been numerous..but so have the good times too. At the end of everything he's the coach who I want 100/100 times.

FWIW--I do think that "sticking with your team, come hell or high water" is the ultimate defintion of a true fan, and I'd expect a lot of people to feel the same. Otherwise, we'd all be following whoever was the popular choice. We are N.England Patriot fans, not fans of other teams.

 

[Deus Irae]

I'm going to have to admit that I am a bit shocked at your statement, Deus.

It has always been a pleasure discussing football with you, and I admire your sense of questioning etc that some people don't fully appreciate.

But either you ARE a fan, or you AREN'T...

If that's going to be the popular opinion, then I imagine a lot of Green bay Packer (flavor of the month, maybe a couple yrs) jerseys will be introduced into many Boston area wardrobes.

We can sit back and question Belichick all we went, and that's fine. Actually it's needed. And the mistakes have been numerous..but so have the good times too. At the end of everything he's the coach who I want 100/100 times.

FWIW--I do think that "sticking with your team, come hell or high water" is the ultimate defintion of a true fan, and I'd expect a lot of people to feel the same. Otherwise, we'd all be following whoever was the popular choice. We are N.England Patriot fans, not fans of other teams.

Well, we disagree on this, and I'll leave it at that.

 

[TBradyOwnsYou]

Were we not in a similar situation around this time last year? A team in transition, coming off a suspect first half of the season, coming off a loss which made everyone hysterical, then we turned it on and were on absolute fire the last 8 games of the season.
I see us in a similiar situation this year, only with the lockout and lack of OTAs and training camp, it will take us a bit longer to gell. That being said, the back end of our schedule is pretty soft, so if we turn it on with 4 or 5 games left, we should have our heads on right heading in to the playoffs, but not so high on ourselves that we piss away the game against a team we crushed 45-3 a month earlier.

 

[Rob0729]

I'm going to have to admit that I am a bit shocked at your statement, Deus.

It has always been a pleasure discussing football with you, and I admire your sense of questioning etc that some people don't fully appreciate.

But either you ARE a fan, or you AREN'T...

If that's going to be the popular opinion, then I imagine a lot of Green bay Packer (flavor of the month, maybe a couple yrs) jerseys will be introduced into many Boston area wardrobes.

We can sit back and question Belichick all we went, and that's fine. Actually it's needed. And the mistakes have been numerous..but so have the good times too. At the end of everything he's the coach who I want 100/100 times.

FWIW--I do think that "sticking with your team, come hell or high water" is the ultimate defintion of a true fan, and I'd expect a lot of people to feel the same. Otherwise, we'd all be following whoever was the popular choice. We are N.England Patriot fans, not fans of other teams.

I think it is fair to question moves by your team as a fan. But I think this turning on your team especially when they are 5-2 like many fans are with Belichick and this team is not what a true fan should do. Unfortunately, we in an area of the country where fans turn on their team on a dime and we are a fanbase who feel that Super Bowl rings are a birthright and not a something that 31 team don't get every year.

There are some legitimate questions about this team, but what we have seen here on this board this week has been disgusting. My biggest fear is that Belichick gets tired of the fanbase and the media turning on him and deciding to take a year off and find a new team in 2013. He may deserve to be questioned about some of his moves, but he doesn't deserve the crap he has been getting this week. The question is that if this continues all season with reporters constantly second guessing him and talk radio constantly trashing him that he doesn't decide a year at ESPN sounds good and write a book and then let about a dozen teams fight over him in 2013.

 

[Rob0729]

Were we not in a similar situation around this time last year? A team in transition, coming off a suspect first half of the season, coming off a loss which made everyone hysterical, then we turned it on and were on absolute fire the last 8 games of the season.
I see us in a similiar situation this year, only with the lockout and lack of OTAs and training camp, it will take us a bit longer to gell. That being said, the back end of our schedule is pretty soft, so if we turn it on with 4 or 5 games left, we should have our heads on right heading in to the playoffs, but not so high on ourselves that we piss away the game against a team we crushed 45-3 a month earlier.

It's all about how you are playing in December and January, not September and October. You need to win games in the first two months to make the other two months relevant, but plenty of teams have been mediocre in the first two months and turned it around and done damage in the playoffs.

I agree with what you are saying with the soft schedule after the next month and that it may take the Pats longer to gel. One thing that was positive about the failures of the defense last week was that there were a lot of communication issues with the defense. It isn't good that it is happening, but that is correctable. It is far more correctable than if it was purely a talent issue.

 

[supafly]

I think it is fair to question moves by your team as a fan. But I think this turning on your team especially when they are 5-2 like many fans are with Belichick and this team is not what a true fan should do. Unfortunately, we in an area of the country where fans turn on their team on a dime and we are a fanbase who feel that Super Bowl rings are a birthright and not a something that 31 team don't get every year.

There are some legitimate questions about this team, but what we have seen here on this board this week has been disgusting. My biggest fear is that Belichick gets tired of the fanbase and the media turning on him and deciding to take a year off and find a new team in 2013. He may deserve to be questioned about some of his moves, but he doesn't deserve the crap he has been getting this week. The question is that if this continues all season with reporters constantly second guessing him and talk radio constantly trashing him that he doesn't decide a year at ESPN sounds good and write a book and then let about a dozen teams fight over him in 2013.

My fears exactly, and that would be a horrible shame.

My guess is that he is a lot stronger than that, but if this week's B.S. keeps up, I fear for the exact same. It's just overkill and pure distraction. More importantly, it really is not totally fair. At all.

 

[Deus Irae]

My fears exactly, and that would be a horrible shame.

My guess is that he is a lot stronger than that, but if this week's B.S. keeps up, I fear for the exact same. It's just overkill and pure distraction. More importantly, it really is not totally fair. At all.

How is it unfair? BB's personnel work since about 2007/2008 has earned a lot more negativity than it's gotten, but his early success and the resultant Super Bowls gave him a lot of slack. I don't see how him finally getting the skewering he should have been getting since at least the 2008/2009 offseason is unfair in any way, shape, matter or form. There are extremists in every crowd, but this is the first time there's really been any kind of crowd at all in so long that people are "SHOCKED!" by something that's not at all surprising or unusual, either here or elsewhere throughout the country.

 

[Rob0729]

My fears exactly, and that would be a horrible shame.

My guess is that he is a lot stronger than that, but if this week's B.S. keeps up, I fear for the exact same. It's just overkill and pure distraction. More importantly, it really is not totally fair. At all.

I don't think there is any doubt Belichick has thick skin, but he may not want to deal with the BS. It is one thing for the national media to turn on him for Spygate, it is another thing for the local media and fans to turn on him. I don't think he really cares who likes him or not, but he does know that if he was available to coach elsewhere that fans, teams, and local media would be falling over themselves to get him there. It is less that his feelings are hurt and more that he just thinks "Screw them! If they don't want me here, let them see what it is like without me".

If Belichick left the Pats, he would easily make a heck of a lot more money than Kraft would pay for him. He might decide it might be a better challenge is to go elsewhere and build a champion than stay here with an entitled fanbase who are never happy unless the Pats win the Super Bowl.

 

[Jackson 2]

I don't think there is any doubt Belichick has thick skin, but he may not want to deal with the BS. It is one thing for the national media to turn on him for Spygate, it is another thing for the local media and fans to turn on him. I don't think he really cares who likes him or not, but he does know that if he was available to coach elsewhere that fans, teams, and local media would be falling over themselves to get him there. It is less that his feelings are hurt and more that he just thinks "Screw them! If they don't want me here, let them see what it is like without him".

If Belichick left the Pats, he would easily make a heck of a lot more money than Kraft would pay for him. He might decide it might be a better challenge is to go elsewhere and build a champion than stay here with an entitled fanbase who are never happy unless the Pats win the Super Bowl.

I agree with you. In fact, this week the thought occurred to me that in light of all of the BS this week, he just might say "F this." Then all of the geniuses who denigrate the "fanboys" will be hiding for cover. What a crew of cowards.

 

[N.Eman]

well damn said. wish the whole team could read that!! Go Pats and Go Patsfans!!!

 

[supafly]

How is it unfair? BB's personnel work since about 2007/2008 has earned a lot more negativity than it's gotten, but his early success and the resultant Super Bowls gave him a lot of slack. I don't see how him finally getting the skewering he should have been getting since at least the 2008/2009 offseason is unfair in any way, shape, matter or form. There are extremists in every crowd, but this is the first time there's really been any kind of crowd at all in so long that people are "SHOCKED!" by something that's not at all surprising or unusual, either here or elsewhere throughout the country.

While our opinions may differ, I believe that is unfair since we have competed (and pretty much dominated) every single year. Show me a division in the NFL that has been so one-sided.

14-2 last yr, and 5-2 this yr...and he should be dealing with polls that ask if he should be fired? Are you honestly kidding me? It's ridiculous.

 

[supafly]

SB's in 2001, 2003, and 2004

Playoffs in 2005

AFCCG in 2006

SB again in 2007

Possibly the best work of his coaching career in 2008, when Brady was out in the 1st quarter of game #1, and the whole entire world wrote us off--yet the team finished 11-5 anyway, and became the only team in the 16 game modern format to miss the playoffs

Playoffs in 2009, the loss of Welker and a very tough Ravens D ousted us

#1 seed and a 14-2 record in 2010

A 5-2 record, with a legitimate shot at being 6-3, or even 7-2 after next week; which will possibly include a 2-0 sweep of the NYJ

-------------

And yet we have polls that ask for his firing, and non-stop, 'round the clock stories about his horrible personnel choices and team decisions.

And you AGREE with this???

 

[Deus Irae]

While our opinions may differ, I believe that is unfair since we have competed (and pretty much dominated) every single year. Show me a division in the NFL that has been so one-sided.

You mean besides the AFC South?

14-2 last yr, and 5-2 this yr...and he should be dealing with polls that ask if he should be fired? Are you honestly kidding me? It's ridiculous.

Why should he be different from every other coach, especially when most people are questioning his personnel/GM moves rather than his actual coaching?