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If you remember this thread...:
http://www.patsfans.com/new-england-patriots/messageboard/showthread.php?t=35748
Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports has responded to all the comments about his rankings:
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=cr-mailbag052806&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
How is this idiot have a job?
http://www.patsfans.com/new-england-patriots/messageboard/showthread.php?t=35748
Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports has responded to all the comments about his rankings:
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=cr-mailbag052806&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
Read and React: Protests from Patriot Nation
By Charles Robinson, Yahoo! Sports
May 28, 2006
Last offseason, the emails swept in from New England Patriots fans and made some of their most beloved coaches and players sound like spare parts. Romeo Crennel was replaceable. So was Charlie Weis. Ty Law was broken down. Joe Andruzzi was just a guard.
And now Eric Mangini and Willie McGinest are getting the same treatment.
Scores of Patriots fans took umbrage to my statement last week that New England was going to be just a good AFC team next season, and that the defense didn't have the makings of a top-10 unit. And like many of the fans who made light of the losses of Crennel, Weis, Law and Andruzzi, many New England emailers are yawning over the losses of Mangini and McGinest. That's funny considering these are many of the same people that worshipped McGinest a year ago and proclaimed Mangini as the next great defensive coordinator for the Patriots.
It seems to be a typical email reaction from Patriot Nation, which insists the team never gets respect, the players never get their due and Bill Belichick should never, ever, ever, be questioned. Not winning a Super Bowl? Well, many New England emailers insist it's always the fault of injuries, schedule – or poor game management by some guy who just left (in other words, blame Mangini).
So many Patriots fans are once again showing up in the mailbag in a tour de force. Some are taking things rationally. Some aren't. And as usual, it only helps to kick off an interesting mailbag.
How can you possibly say that the Patriots don't look to have a top-10 D this year? They locked up the best defensive end in the NFL (thank you, Coach B). They have a good crop of young DBs that are steadily improving. Tedy Bruschi running the 'backers (which, as much as I loved Big Willie McGinest, they did draft Jeremy Mincey and they still have Tully Banta-Cain). And Rodney Harrison will likely return early in the season. Oh, and Ty Law is still available and rumored to be looking to play for a champion for another year to ensure a Hall of Fame bid.
Matt
Hartford, Conn.
I'll give you Bruschi – having him for a full season will help. But here are the problems with the rest of your argument: Richard Seymour was on last year's middle-of-the-road defense, so he doesn't count as an addition; the young DBs can't stay healthy; nobody knows if Harrison will be the same player once he returns from what was a devastating injury; and last time I checked, you still hadn't signed Law. Oh, and I'll say it once more: Any fan that brushes off the loss of McGinest has no idea what he brought to that locker room and should be ashamed. And don't give me that stuff about Mincey and Banta-Cain. You can't replace McGinest's on-field or leadership contributions with a rookie sixth-round pick and a bit player.
In regard to your statement in last week's mailbag that "Of course, there are the perpetually whiny New England Patriots fans:" You're basing an entire fan base on some keyboard warriors? Come on. Most New England fans are well aware of the key losses during the offseason and are more than reasonable in our expectations for the upcoming season. The Patriots will be a very good team. Super Bowl-quality? I'd say not, but they'll be in the thick of the race. I'd lean more toward the Pats being in a mini-rebuilding mode this year, re-tooling the roster and going younger where they're long in the tooth. Since you're lumping Pats fans into one group, I'll do the same: Stop acting like the rest of the jerk media out there and look at things with your eyes open.
Neal Giordano
Apex, N.C.
That's a fair response. I shouldn't indict an entire fan base. But I can say this: More than any other emailers out there, Patriots fans are almost NEVER happy unless you have something glowing to say about the team. Fans forget the absolute lovefest the media had with the Patriots and act like they have never gotten respect and blah, blah, blah. Guess what? Comparing Tom Brady to Joe Montana and calling Belichick a genius qualifies as overwhelming respect. And another thing – New England's keyboard jockeys sure are quick to dismiss guys as "not that important" when they leave the team. You know, the Patriots' braintrust IS capable of making mistakes. And yet, it sounds like many of the people who email are lapping Kool Aid out of Belichick's palm.
How is this idiot have a job?
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