Post game thoughts....the short version

[Metaphors]

This is from Comcast Sports. Although tons of people on the TV/radio have been pointing the obvious fact that Butler played poorly.

Mary Paoletti

The cornerback played every quarter -- both outside and as a nickel back -- sweating it out for a roster spot. It's a been a hard fall for a player who started last year's regular-season opener.

Mike Reiss

Cornerback plays deep into the fourth quarter and ties for the team lead with five tackles, which isn't a good sign. He's had a long fall from when he was a 2010 opening-day starter.

So I guess he played the whole game (which isn't a good thing) and that indicates a long and/or hard fall from last year when he started in the first game.

Like a recording of a parrot squawking into the Grand Canyon. Frequency of repetition doesn't guarantee clarity of thought...just noise.

 

[Patriot 37]

OK, I'll stop bad mouthing Butler. I get it Butler is new Maroney, a player who has done nothing, but because he was drafted high by Belichick you better not point out that he sucks.

The Moroneyites had me on their hitlist until he was traded.

 

[upstater1]

This is from Comcast Sports. Although tons of people on the TV/radio have been pointing the obvious fact that Butler played poorly.

Much more work to be done for Pats secondary | CSNNE.com | Mary Paoletti




When they throw the ball to WR they switch to another camera (they have lots of cameras). Do you listen to the game on the radio ?

The 2 days I was at training camp he sucked then also.
If I insulted your binky I'm sorry, but he's shown nothing.

Lame post.

They didn't show the CBs on the sacks.

Once again you've got nothing.

 

[BlueThunder]

Maybe we need someone's opinion who actually WENT to the game on how Butler performed...since nobody has the coaches tapes.....

 

[Deus Irae]

OK, I'll stop bad mouthing Butler. I get it Butler is new Maroney, a player who has done nothing, but because he was drafted high by Belichick you better not point out that he sucks.

The Moroneyites had me on their hitlist until he was traded.

Share your thoughts. Don't sweat the replies.


It's a message board.

 

[Clonamery]

OK, I'll stop bad mouthing Butler. I get it Butler is new Maroney, a player who has done nothing, but because he was drafted high by Belichick you better not point out that he sucks.

The Moroneyites had me on their hitlist until he was traded.

Be objective, don't be objective, who cares, just stop whining.

 

[D-Money]

Why is anyne surprise about Butler?The guy looks like a bust pick.I hope Dowling is not the same.Also i wanna see Price ahead of Tate.I dont know how Tate beat Price.

 

[Snake Eyes]

OK, I'll stop bad mouthing Butler. I get it Butler is new Maroney, a player who has done nothing, but because he was drafted high by Belichick you better not point out that he sucks.

The Moroneyites had me on their hitlist until he was traded.

Butler's a stiff, I wish BB would work out a trade to pick up McCourty's brother.

Anyway, Maroney was/is a bum who's not even in the league anymore, good riddance.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

This year could be Butler's final chance to show his skills which I think he really has but has not put out full effort ....yet

I think it would be best to put him out there with a little more playing time and even more time against low ranked teams on the schedule....not enough time on the field won't help his chances and you can't improve if you are not given a chance.

 

[Urgent]

If Maneri can play LT and RT, he's $500K cheaper than LeVoir.

 

[Rob0729]

Butler didn't have a good night to say the least, but he is getting the Matt Light treatment (Light will dominate his side of the line all game and then give up a sack and people will call him a turnstyle). Butler did some good things last night. He did a lot bad last night. He is still a bubble player, but he didn't play nearly as bad as many people on this board make it out to be.

 

[DefenseRules]

I have one concern after watching the game. The depth in the secondary worries me a little. The safety position seems a little thin to me. Wilhite and Merriweather looked a little shaky, IMO.

EDIT: I know Wilhite and Merriweather play different positions. I just thought that their level of play needs a little work. Especially Wilhite.

 

[MoVaughn4Prez]

What did you guys make of Meriweather and Chung switching spots at safety last night? Do you think that was just an experiment or a potential permanent switch?

The Patriots made a shift at safety for this game, using Brandon Meriweather as their strong safety -- over the tight end and often 'in the box' -- and leaving Patrick Chung as the free safety, 'over the top.' Last season, it was often Chung playing closer to the line and Meriweather in the deep zone. This will be something to monitor as the preseason progresses.

Picked-up pieces from 1st quarter review - New England Patriots Blog - ESPN Boston

 

[Sfpat]

Maybe Butler played most of the game because the Pats didn't have many CB's available to play. Essentially, the top three didn't play, they cut a scrub CB a few days ago, leaving few bodies to play. Just a thought.

 

[BHSL2]

What did you guys make of Meriweather and Chung switching spots at safety last night? Do you think that was just an experiment or a potential permanent switch?



Picked-up pieces from 1st quarter review - New England Patriots Blog - ESPN Boston

Perhaps they want to maximize Meriweather's nose for the ball by playing him closer to the box. Meanwhile Chung does much less free-lancing as a safety, so the staff feels more comfortable playing him as the last line of defense.

Just a thought, nothings for certain

 

[italia44]

Perhaps they want to maximize Meriweather's nose for the ball by playing him closer to the box. Meanwhile Chung does much less free-lancing as a safety, so the staff feels more comfortable playing him as the last line of defense.

Just a thought, nothings for certain

They were using meriweather to blitz(ineffectually) from the middle-deep zone......too much attempt to disguise and he started too deep.

 

[nnmnmmnn]

No you can have an opinion, but it would be a more accurate one if you couched in terms like, "from what I saw". Just because you saw passes being caught in Butler's area DOES NOT mean he did anything wrong. If his responsibility is to make sure that NO one gets behind him in a zone, then passes are going to be completed in front of him. BAD QBs complete over 50% of their passes. The VERY best CBs in the league allow 4 out of 10 passes to their area to be completed.

No my problem isn't your opinion of Butler's play, with the fact you completely ignored a couple of posts that talked about several plays NOT ON the TV feed where he played well. BTW- Mike Reiss is a great reporter, but his analysis has NO more value than your's or mine. He just has better seats.

I cant help but think of BBs post game interview. I forget exactly what the question was, but he basically made the point that the difference between good players and bad players is that good players play well consistently, and bad players do not play well consistently.

Nobody needs access to coaches tapes to see that Butler does not play well consistently. Of course he plays well on some plays. If Jacksonville took a few sacks because Butler did a great job in coverage, that's swell. But as long as there are 5-6 times a game where Butler moments occur, I don't see how you can arrive at the conclusion that he's a good player.

 

[Haley]

Butler didn't have a good night to say the least, but he is getting the Matt Light treatment (Light will dominate his side of the line all game and then give up a sack and people will call him a turnstyle). Butler did some good things last night. He did a lot bad last night. He is still a bubble player, but he didn't play nearly as bad as many people on this board make it out to be.

What BB said last night in his presser really resonates with this debate:

BB: I think [for] every player on our team, it's the same thing; it's consistency. I mean, everybody in this league has talent. Every player in the league has talent or they wouldn't be in the league. It's really about consistent performance. A lot of guys can flash and make good plays here and there; the good players make them repetitively and consistently. I think that's across the board, across the whole league. It's no big secret.

 

[Metaphors]

But as long as there are 5-6 times a game where Butler moments occur, I don't see how you can arrive at the conclusion that he's a good player.

The key point is that it isn't black or white. He isn't consistently good or a complete disaster. He is currently somewhere in the middle and nothing he did last night shifted the meter much in either direction. He showed enough in 2009 and in flashes since to think he could be a solid CB in the league. He isn't there yet and nobody outside Belichick knows when the clock strikes midnight for him. Since Arrington didn't distinguish himself last night either, Wilhite was pretty awful in the time he played and Dowling can't seem to get on the field, I'm thinking Butler will get more chances to prove he can be a playmaker (and not just a conservative deep ball prevention guy).

 

[D-Money]

I hope Dowling heals quickly.I am stoked to see what this guy brings to the table.