Reiss suggests the Pats might be concerned with Butler off the field

[SHOWTIME15]

I've noticed in the past with Reiss that when he throws stuff like this out there it means he's been hearing things from players, coaches and others close to the team but can't come out and say it. Instead he offers it up as an op/ed.

Exactly. Reiss isn't borges. He has a reason for this "speculation." And the truth of the matter is we don't know who MB is off the field. Did any of us expect chandler jones to be busted for synthetic weed? That blindsided me - but maybe i'm naive.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

I agree he's hearing it from someone but as a journalist he should either verify what he's heard and then report it as fact, even if it's "Patriots sources have told me..." or, if he can't verify what he's been told following investigation, not write anything bringing the man's character into question. He's normally a good journalist, he doesn't need to become a propaganda peddler for the organization.

That would absolutely destroy any chances of NE trading him to NO.

 

[Huckleberry1]

...and likely Jonathan had Reiss "put it out there"....

Yes, because he wants the Patriots to get as little for Butler as possible.

 

[TheRazorsEdge]

Over the top reaction.

Reiss is just going through the list of possible reasons the Patriots and Butler came to this boiling point. He even questions the off field theory himself but doesn't rule it out.

Personally I just feel Butler and his people (or person) were not prepared for the business side of the league. I mean look at his career.. Small school UDFA -> Makes the team with guys like Revis and Browner and Ryan on board little playing time to start -> game winning SB INT -> taking Over for Revis. -> winning another SB. WHAT RUSH in 3 years. He now is literally being caught with his pants down.

It's been reported his agent isn't established and Thats kind of showing. Meanwhile you know the second the SB INT happened Bill was already envisioning what was to come.

 

[TheRazorsEdge]

Not saying he doesn't have a right for a raise...he does....especially for the work he puts on it but I don't think his agent did his homework with who he was dealing with.

 

[XLIX]

I interpreted "off the field" to mean his agent... that comes under that category. They almost had a deal last year, now this rookie agent is pumping up Butler's head with dollar signs and acting as if the player is a UFA. I think the team just doesn't want to deal with representation who doesn't understand the written and unwritten rules of the league..

What are the unwritten rules of the league? All agents must bow before Belichick and accept pennies on the dollar when they can get twice as much by waiting a year?

There isn't anything going on here that we haven't seen several times before.

1) A player wants an extension (or new deal) for more money than the Patriots are willing to pay.

2) Once it became clear the two sides couldn't reach an agreement, the team decided to try to move him and get something in return instead of just letting him play out the existing deal (or, in this case, the RFA tender).

We've seen this several times in the past and, quite honestly, this situation is significantly less contentious than some of the others. Butler's agent is doing what he has to do for the betterment of his client and Coach Bill is doing what he has to do for the betterment of the team.

People are blaming the agent because that's an easy target. That way you get to criticize Butler without really criticizing Butler. But there is nothing going on here that hasn't happened countless times in the past in the NFL.

This agent is doing right by his client. It just isn't working to the team's advantage, so people resent him.

 

[Brady_to_Moss]

I wonder if this will become the narrative the next couple of days.

Now that it's out there..most likely

 

[signbabybrady]

Just a side note, people need to remember that Mike never puts anything out there unless it's 100% accurate and purposely has held off on many stories others jumped have jumped all over about other player (that were really in poor taste) because he refuses to do it before making sure he had all the facts first.

So my guess is he knows something, and the fact he's not going to really trash him by telling us the details doesn't make him a bad reporter. It just shows the discretion and restraint he has that a lot of other guys don't while trying to give the fans some sort of explanation as to how it ever got to this point. People are trying to find out why the Patriots paid Gilmore what they did and left Butler without a new deal and potentially gone from this football team. Reiss essentially revealed that there's more to this than we might have thought, so at least it now makes a little more sense.

Responsible journalism always leaves one guessing about the facts.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

Over the top reaction.

Reiss is just going through the list of possible reasons the Patriots and Butler came to this boiling point. He even questions the off field theory himself but doesn't rule it out.

Personally I just feel Butler and his people (or person) were not prepared for the business side of the league. I mean look at his career.. Small school UDFA -> Makes the team with guys like Revis and Browner and Ryan on board little playing time to start -> game winning SB INT -> taking Over for Revis. -> winning another SB. WHAT RUSH in 3 years. He now is literally being caught with his pants down.

It's been reported his agent isn't established and Thats kind of showing. Meanwhile you know the second the SB INT happened Bill was already envisioning what was to come.

His agent is a freakin' personal injury lawyer....holy cow.

Our Attorneys - Warren & Simpson, PC

 

[Mack Herron]

It's old news but it's still part of who he is. Maybe it's old but it is what it is, it happened and it's part of him.

I think we disagree on the team's view of its importance. The team offered him a long term extension and just committed $4M to him. I don't think the evidence suggests any concerns with Butler. Rather, BB has leverage and is fiscally prudent. The question of value need not impugn anything negative about Butler. It could simply be that he is an RFA not a FA with a first round pick hanging over his head. Leverage to BB.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Exactly. Reiss isn't borges. He has a reason for this "speculation." And the truth of the matter is we don't know who MB is off the field. Did any of us expect chandler jones to be busted for synthetic weed? That blindsided me - but maybe i'm naive.

Correct. We have no idea what any of these people are like. I have a slight problem with using Gilmore as being married as in some way making him a "safer" player to invest in. I'm willing to bet there are dozens of players who are married and good fathers but are out of control partiers and get mixed up with the wrong crowd.

 

[XLIX]

It was a very strange article. When I reached the end I thought to myself "that's it"..?!? There's no there there." So what if Malcolm is single. Is he a playa? Who cares? As long as he makes all practices and games and works hard and plays well (which he has) then I don't give a crap about his night life (assuming, obviously, that we aren't talking about him, like, breaking laws).

Even if Reiss knows something the rest of us don't, I think it is irresponsible to write things the way he did. And if this is indeed coming from the team then shame on them. Trashing a player on their way out is very Red Soxian.

 

[Thelonious]

I'd like to think that Reiss is a decent enough guy that he wouldn't put this kind of sleaze out there unless he knows, but cannot say yet, that there is a substrate of fact here. If there isn't, and if the truth of the matter is not soon known, then Reiss is gulty of about as journalistically scumball a move as you're likely to see.

 

[bormio]

Responsible journalism always leaves one guessing about the facts.

His piece was Nat Enq - like gossip.

 

[Thelonious]

Over the top reaction.

Reiss is just going through the list of possible reasons the Patriots and Butler came to this boiling point. He even questions the off field theory himself but doesn't rule it out.

Personally I just feel Butler and his people (or person) were not prepared for the business side of the league. I mean look at his career.. Small school UDFA -> Makes the team with guys like Revis and Browner and Ryan on board little playing time to start -> game winning SB INT -> taking Over for Revis. -> winning another SB. WHAT RUSH in 3 years. He now is literally being caught with his pants down.

It's been reported his agent isn't established and Thats kind of showing. Meanwhile you know the second the SB INT happened Bill was already envisioning what was to come.

If you don't care about journalistic ethics and simple decency, then you might see comment here as an overreaction. Otherwise, no.

 

[TheRazorsEdge]

His agent is a freakin' personal injury lawyer....holy cow.

Our Attorneys - Warren & Simpson, PC

See! In the end all parties may point at the agent and say "bruh WTF are you doing?!?!?"

If you don't care about journalistic ethics and simple decency, then you might see comment here as an overreaction. Otherwise, no.

Oh I do care. Irresponsible journalism and misinformation are no bueno. None of that happened in the article.

 

[borg]

Just a side note, people need to remember that Mike never puts anything out there unless it's 100% accurate and purposely has held off on many stories others jumped have jumped all over about other player (that were really in poor taste) because he refuses to do it before making sure he had all the facts first.

So my guess is he knows something, and the fact he's not going to really trash him by telling us the details doesn't make him a bad reporter. It just shows the discretion and restraint he has that a lot of other guys don't while trying to give the fans some sort of explanation as to how it ever got to this point. People are trying to find out why the Patriots paid Gilmore what they did and left Butler without a new deal and potentially gone from this football team. Reiss essentially revealed that there's more to this than we might have thought, so at least it now makes a little more sense.

I expect more from Reiss than insinuations without support.
Chris Cooley approves of Reiss' tactics.

 

[zydecochris]

That's not exactly true, he has a "past" of some kind :

From the archives: Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler a rags-to-riches story

But in one fell swoop his football career almost came to crashing halt. After five games during his 2009 freshman season, Butler was kicked out of school. (Though he wouldn't confirm the reason, the only arrest on his record shows a charge for possession of drug paraphernalia.)

I'm not trying to suggest he's a bad guy but what you said really isn't true as he's been kicked off a team before.

Kicked out of school at a community college (Hinds), no less, that must take some doing. However everything I've read has indicated that event shook him up enough to turn things around, at least with regard to his football career.

 

[BlueThunder]

I wonder if BB has discussed this/these supposed off field issue(s) Butler may have with Sean Payton. They seem to be good friends in the NFL world.....

 

[Thelonious]

See! In the end all parties may point at the agent and say "bruh WTF are you doing?!?!?"

Oh I do care. Irresponsible journalism and misinformation are no bueno. None of that happened in the article.

You are blind.