Jeez you guys don't get it.
The Pats will pay an amount at which they value a player. Period. This is the case with Law. In fact, if there's an error here of any kind, I'll be the first one to go "woo hoo! Got him after all!" But of course it's almost certain that KC has Law. He will make KC better. He would have made NE better. There is a loss there, though the integrity of the team model -- for NE -- is more important than a missed opportunity with any given individual.
Do the Pats still compete for a SB without Law? Of course. Ask any team in the NFL if they look at the NE game as a W on their schedule (or knowledgable fans of any team.) Do the Pats still improve over last year? Unless Bird Flu comes to America and only hits the NE Patriots secondary (which I don't put out of the range of possibility, given the NE injury track record...) of course they do. They plugged in young guys last year all over the team that have had a year to develop and gel, and they get Rodney back at some point.
How about KC? Of course they get better. You might not like Law's comments about putting food on the table, etc., but he is a good player. Just not as good as the money he wanted, in BB's eyes.
When NE plows that money forward through LTBE and/or early payment to Seymour, we'll see what the impact of this year's passing up Law will be. Several million a year for several years is a nice little pot at the end of the rainbow, and could pay for Colvin through the decade, get us a premier O lineman or #1 receiver, you name it (even -- if it still looks needed -- help in the secondary.)
I for one am comfortable with the Law decision, kool-aid drinking Belichick fan that I am.
But it's dumb not to acknowledge he'll be a boost in KC.
PFnV
