Here is the part I dont get.
The Patriots are renowned for building a team, not collecting talent, which is what most other teams do and almost every fan begs for.
So when a Patriot fan begs for collecting talent, why jump all over him? Sure its not going to happen, and its a lack of understanding the Patriot Way, but its what 99% of all fans think is the right thing to do.
By the way, this does not mean BB would turn away a Gonzalez or that he doesnt want all the talent he can get, it means that he needs to get the most TALENT PER DOLLAR. The reason BBs team building approach is not to collect talent (i.e. no bidding for Jason Taylor last year to name one) as a fan would like is that the 'talent' a fan sees is already overpriced.
By the time fans recognize a 'great talent' or shortly thereafter, they have already begun or moved close to declining. To acquire those players you must pay for what they are, or even worse (I think Gonzalez has already declined) what they used to be. While you have them, they will decline further. In other words the bigger the 'name' the more you overpay, because you are paying for their PAST accomplishments, and they are no longer at that level.
We will continue to bring in the so-called damaged goods such as Dillon and Moss, because when they are 'damaged' they are cheaper and therefor better value.
The rule of thumb I've learned to look at with BB is that the better known, and the higher the reputation of a player, the less likely BB is going to be interested. If other teams love the guy, his value per cost will be worse. If we are the only bidder his value per cost will be higher. There are some exceptions, such as Colvin and AD and I think those are just a case of BB placing SO much value on their abilities that they were still worth even the high price because BBs opinion of them was higher than the market even though the market opinion was pretty high.
Look back through most all of the transactions under BB and almost every player brought in was either not well known, or not considered at their peak (i.e. Moss considered over the hill when BB felt he was not). BB typically buys when the price is discounted.
The other part of this that I think gets missed a lot is fans few each potential transaction in a vaccuum. "Imagine what Gonzalez would do for our passing game". Fans tend to consider a transaction good or bad, and not better or worse than the alternative, and in fact, tend to ignore that their are alternatives. (Opportunity costs for the economists out there). Fans think its yes or no to Gonzalez, then tend to think we 'have to have him' (same thing in the draft) where BB looks at each player as part of an alternative.
I think BB has shown over the years that the alternatives all add up similarly, and there is no reason to 'have to have' anyone.
So it isn't Gonzalez yes or no, but Gonzalez is worth X out of the value of the entire team, and there are 10,000 other ways that add up to X. If Gonzalez costs X+1 bringing him in, no matter how good he is, HURTS the team, because the other options that add up to X value cost X (or maybe even less)
