Dan Connolly is a good example why the Pats have prevailed over the last 15 years. He was a guy who came into the league a very marginal player. We see them all the time all over the league, especially among OLmen,. 2 or 3 years in the league, 14 games 3 starts, and gone. Dan was well on the road to that kind of NFL career when he joined the Pats.
But the Pats did what they so often do so well. They found a guy with right character,. A guy who was willing to do what he needed to do to get better, A coachable guy who had great coaches. A guy who did enough to stay on the roster, so when his opportunity arrived he seized the moment.
From 2010 to 2015, Dan Connolly was the guy most Pats fans and so-called experts wanted upgraded and gone. He was the OL starter who was everyone's whipping boy, until Ryan Wendell took his place. The Pats saw someone who was improving with every year and had the patience and foresight to let it happen. Wendell is having a similar career, and when his time ends, he will also be fondly remembered as another obscure Patriot no-name that simply "did his job".
I think Connolly wanted to play this year, but only if he could get an offer in the $2-3MM range. When it became clear he was looking at Vet minimum deals it just wasn't worth risking more concussions and up rooting his family. He's a bright guy who probably earned around $10MM over his 10 year career, (most of it coming the last few years). He's set up well to move on to the next phase of his life.
As fans we should look more closely and have the same kind of foresight and patience the Pats show to those certain line of players that THEY deem worth the wait. We've seen too many examples over the years to demand immediate gratification from everyone all the time. So remember Dan Connolly before you post demands to release Kline, Barker, and Devey, because its pretty likely that one of those guys will end up being a key starter for the Pats before his career is over
