Schefter: Pats won't try to recoup lost picks

[NJPatsfan26]

Oh the comments. They hurt the brain.

 

[The Gr8est]

Figured. Kraft is all talk, no action. He's a pushover and a loser, and I look forward to the day he steps down.

If the Pats win the Superbowl I would prefer both Goodell and Kraft to keep a low profile during the celebration.

I can see both being booed.

 

[Deus Irae]

pats would go nowhere in trying to get the picks. goodell would have denied any appeal. and there are no labor laws that would help the organization i court, unlike the case with brady.

Brady won. Kraft would have had a legit shot to win. There's been nothing to stop Kraft from trying, except his wallet.

 

[SammyBlueCat]

I guess Mr. Kraft would need to file In forma pauperis...

 

[gruffypatsfan]

I still don't know why it was a 1st and 4th, what criteria did Goodell use to come up with that?

 

[BradyFTW!]

IMO, people just aren't mad enough about the pick we lost in Spygate. Because the Pats continued to be good, it's kind of an "oh well, he tried to stop us but couldn't" deal. But here's thing: I firmly believe that losing that pick cost us at least one Lombardi.

In 2011, the Pats came within one play of winning the Super Bowl. Had they not been stripped of the 31st pick in 2008 for Spygate, that guy would've been a fourth-year player: right in the sweet spot that Hightower and Jones are in now, where they're still on their rookie deal but have had three years of experience to develop and learn their role. The only question is who Belichick would've taken at #31. We obviously can't know that, but we can look at who went immediately after that spot in the draft. The next 20 picks after 31 included:

Jordy Nelson
Matt Forte
Brandon Flowers
Kenny Phillips
Calais Campbell
Curtis Lofton


These were the best players available at positions of need in 2008. We needed a big, downfield WR to pair with and eventually replace Moss (and in the mean time replace Stallworth). We needed a corner to replace Asante. We needed a versatile RB to eventually move on from Faulk. We needed a safety. We needed a 3-4 DE, knowing that Warren and Seymour wouldn't both be around long term. Any of the guys I just listed would have been logical picks from both a talent and need perspective.

Add any of those guys to the Patriots' SB46 roster on a rookie contract, and they win. Or maybe he picks the 2011 version of Tavon Wilson and this is all irrelevant. Obviously it's not quite as simple as I'm making it. But given how good those guys are and how close the Pats got without them, I think it's overwhelmingly likely that Goodell's ridiculous witch hunts have already cost us a title. Those are the stakes here, and that's why we--and more importantly, Kraft--should be willing to go to war over this nonsense.

 

[BradyFTW!]

pats would go nowhere in trying to get the picks. goodell would have denied any appeal. and there are no labor laws that would help the organization i court, unlike the case with brady.

kraft still should have appealed to make a point that the team dien't think brady did anything.

i think trump would have made a better owner than kraft.

Agreed, if the Pats had just appealed, even knowing they'd lose, I wouldn't be so mad. By capitulating like he did, Kraft gave a talking point to everyone who's determined to invent reasons to smear Brady. There's no way he didn't realize that that would be a consequence.

 

[Armchair Quarterback]

pats would go nowhere in trying to get the picks. goodell would have denied any appeal. and there are no labor laws that would help the organization i court, unlike the case with brady.

kraft still should have appealed to make a point that the team dien't think brady did anything.

i think trump would have made a better owner than kraft.

But..but didn't you hear? According to Kraft Sports Productions, Bob Kraft is the architect of these Patriots and the reason for their success.

 

[BradyFTW!]

Brady won. Kraft would have had a legit shot to win. There's been nothing to stop Kraft from trying, except his wallet.

And his priorities. "The 32" is the only interest he actually cares about, he wouldn't go after them even if he could do it for free.

 

[WinstonSmith]

Third option: get loud and angry, hit the airwaves, and take the PR war to Goodell. Would it work? Probably not. But it would make damn sure that Goodell takes a PR hit for upholding such a self-evidently stupid penalty. Make sure you take a bite out of him, so that he--and whoever comes after him--will have to be more careful before he uses your franchise as a punching bag to rehab his public image again.

Goodell's already come after us twice, and has emerged entirely unscathed from the Pats' actions. Brady alone took the fight to him, and Brady alone made him pay. As far as I'm concerned, ownership has an obligation to stand up for the team in that same way. We deserve an owner who values the interests of his franchise over the interests of his billionares' club. Kraft is clearly not that guy.

4th option: regime change... Maybe lure Kevin Mitnick back to the dark side and hack the NFL computers and do a Sony like data dump revealing all of Goodell's dark secrets including damaging communications regarding deflategate.

Who knows maybe the slow drip of new information leaking out could reach critical mass on its own.

 

[The Gr8est]

So who actually benefits from the Pats making this announcement?

Certainly not BB or the fans.

 

[upstater1]

The illogic of these picks getting taken away is astounding.

The NFL tried to make it seem like deflated balls = steroid use.

Well, they don't take picks away for steroid use.

But in the future, teams should lose picks if players are caught taking performance enhancing substances.

After all, we know that this is the same as deflating balls, right?

 

[RayClay]

Though it could be cameraplacementgate that caused Kraft to take such a position in the first place. Still, it sickens me to see him supporting Goodell and I certainly hope he never expects us to accept that he's a true fan of the team.

Building you a stadium wasn't enough, eh?

 

[BradyFTW!]

Building you a stadium wasn't enough, eh?

He made a profitable investment. Good for him, I'm glad he did.

I certainly don't owe him anything for that, and neither does anyone else. He's made enough money from the fan base that any debt you could possibly argue we owe him has been paid in full.

 

[PittPatriot]

Let Belichick trade up as far as he can in the second round. Outsmart the NFL by getting the 33rd as opposed to the 32nd. Now that would be genius!

Though I wonder what it would cost us to do that

Why should he have to do that? Kraft bought the Patriots when they were in the cellar, and BB (and Brady) have worked tirelessly and sacrificed everything in their lives to help make the Patriots the greatest franchise of the last 20 years. BB has made sure every dime spent from the Kraft family was put to good use (taking Rodney Harrison to Ground Round instead of McCormick's).
I am still disgusted with the idea that such a valuable asset like a 1st round pick (a player who could have helped us win beyond the Brady years) was lost due to Kraft's missteps. If Kraft had appealed, we would be talking about getting the picks back (more valuable to me than Brady's 4 games or 'reputation').

 

[BradyFTW!]

Why should he have to do that? Kraft bought the Patriots when they were in the cellar, and BB (and Brady) have worked tirelessly and sacrificed everything in their lives to help make the Patriots the greatest franchise of the last 20 years. BB has made sure every dime spent from the Kraft family was put to good use (taking Rodney Harrison to Ground Round instead of McCormick's).
I am still disgusted with the idea that such a valuable asset like a 1st round pick (a player who could have helped us win beyond the Brady years) was lost due to Kraft's missteps. If Kraft had appealed, we would be talking about getting the picks back (more valuable to me than Brady's 4 games or 'reputation').

While Brady's legacy is very important to me (largely because it's so important to Brady himself), I at least agree that--legacy considerations aside--I would rather lose Brady for 4 games than a first round pick.

 

[PittPatriot]

J. Kraft said this on the radio yesterday. Great inside info Adam.

Krafts suck, can we get BB and Brady to buy the team.

As a region...and as a fanbase...why can't we buy the team? Green Bay does not need to be the only community owned franchise. We all are more "In BB we trust" than the Krafts are...I think we'd make great owners!

 

[PittPatriot]

While Brady's legacy is very important to me (largely because it's so important to Brady himself), I at least agree that--legacy considerations aside--I would rather lose Brady for 4 games than a first round pick.

I am with you, Brother.
Let me qualify my comment:
Brady's legacy and reputation will forever be forged in greatness for people like us. The people who don't like him will always have some negative impression of him.
The people in the gray area...I guess those people may have been won over with Berman's decision and the positive publicity being showered on Brady and the Patriots...but those people won't care one way or the other by next month, anyway.

 

[reneluar]

at this point we know the picks are lost, im mad because kraft acts like a coward and is seeing "for the good of the 32"!

 

[aluminum seats]

Third option: get loud and angry, hit the airwaves, and take the PR war to Goodell. Would it work? Probably not. But it would make damn sure that Goodell takes a PR hit for upholding such a self-evidently stupid penalty. Make sure you take a bite out of him, so that he--and whoever comes after him--will have to be more careful before he uses your franchise as a punching bag to rehab his public image again.

Goodell's already come after us twice, and has emerged entirely unscathed from the Pats' actions. Brady alone took the fight to him, and Brady alone made him pay. As far as I'm concerned, ownership has an obligation to stand up for the team in that same way. We deserve an owner who values the interests of his franchise over the interests of his billionares' club. Kraft is clearly not that guy.

Well said. I think it's a fair point those who were saying that there's really no chance they would've gotten them back, but standing on the mountain tops and screaming about how wrong it is would be worth something.