Content Post Dear Bill - Thanks for Giving Away the Super Bowl.

[Tuck]

If I was Gronk I would “Pearl Harbor” Belichick

Pearl Harbor? How does one do that?

 

[IllegalContact]

It really does say something when Donte Hightower 'likes' a post by Brandon Browner criticizing BB for benching Butler.

my fear is that the 2018 season is going to be like 2009 where there's enough ill will in the clubhouse to have half the team tuned out coach......new DC, and a unit that can't afford that in any way

 

[Huckleberry1]

I’m not blaming the coaches. I am approaching it from a few different points of view. “They lost faith in me” could mean his football skills too, you know. BB has said it’s not disciplinary. Everyone else keeps insisting it is. So accuse us of blaming the coaches for questioning their football decision but your argument actually calls the coaches liars.

No, my argument is that Butler told the truth when he said they lost faith in him and gave up on him. That is right in line with Belichick’s claim that it wasn’t disciplinary. Anyone who blows trust and faith only has themself to blame, and none of us knows how much rule breaking played in it, but losing faith and giving up on a player sounds much more like a player who wasn’t committed to their job than it does breaking a curfew.

Why people aren’t blaming Butler for his attitude and behavior is beyond me.

 

[Simpelton]

It really does say something when Donte Hightower 'likes' a post by Brandon Browner criticizing BB for benching Butler.

Has Dont'a even been with the team this year? How likely is a guy who's been out all season to even know more than we do about a situation this soon after it happened?

 

[PatriotsNumero1Fan]

Once again, they gave him trust and faith and he blew it, that’s Butler’s fault.

I see it as bill having a power trip and sacrificing a chance to win the super bowl. He didn't do "what's best for the team"like he said after the game.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

Strong man. This is a community of Patriots fans discussing a tough loss. Key word: discussing.

Hiding behind a little button and trolling dozens of posts is pathetic and displays insecurity. Give it a rest, the act is old.

I'm saving the board from having to hear me say the same thing over and over again in response to your many many posts in this thread that haven't said anything new since the first one or two.

 

[IllegalContact]

That was the most ridiculous thing i have ever heard. What's best for the team. I have no doubts some players where saying WTF's going on here when butler wasn't starting.

semantics........'what best for the team' vs 'put the team in the best position to win'

the 1st one is arguable....the 2nd one was flat out wrong

Hubris

 

[IllegalContact]

I see it as bill having a power trip and sacrificing a chance to win the super bowl. He didn't do "what's best for the team"like he said after the game.

I think he must have said to himself 'I'm winning the game without him' and the way the game played out, he wasn't going to let him go in and be the hero

Hubris

 

[Huckleberry1]

You’re so brave.

We will tell stories for a millennia on how you braved the storm of red X’s for the betterment of society.

Thanks

I’m sorry to hear that the little red x’s have broken your spirit. Have a good cry.

 

[Simpelton]

One thing we do -- or should -- know is that whatever happened, Bill Belichick did not do it capriciously, or with no thought taken to the consequences. Whatever his reasons, I'm 100% convinced he only took action against Butler because he thought it was his only remaining course of action.

Anything else will have to wait for more information to become available -- if it ever does. Either way, in a dispute between one of the greatest coaches in football history, and a player who's pissed away chances before due to poor behavior (remember, there was a REASON Butler was a UDFA and working at Popeyes), I give Belichick the benefit of the doubt 25 times out of 10.

 

[carmelo15]

I don’t care if he ***** slapped a coach sit his ass a quarter a series but to get to half time knowing we couldn’t stop a nose bleed is beyond me. For ****s sake why wasn’t Gilmore on Jeffery sorry ass from jump. ****

 

[Bella*chick]

No, my argument is that Butler told the truth when he said they lost faith in him and gave up on him. That is right in line with Belichick’s claim that it wasn’t disciplinary. Anyone who blows trust and faith only has themself to blame, and none of us knows how much rule breaking played in it, but losing faith and giving up on a player sounds much more like a player who wasn’t committed to their job than it does breaking a curfew.

Why people aren’t blaming Butler for his attitude and behavior is beyond me.

I’m not happy with Butler either. He’s clearly an immature idiot. But I also think benching him for a half and then maybe trying him on someone, anyone, in the second half when nothings going right would have been a better decision. He’s obviously gone after the season, let him to try help get one stop.

I suspect that deep down, Bill knows he screwed this one up.

 

[brdmaverick]

Has Dont'a even been with the team this year? How likely is a guy who's been out all season to even know more than we do about a situation this soon after it happened?

Maybe he hasn't been with the team much, but that's not the point. Here you have a team captain publicly taking a stance against a coach's decision. This is definitely not standard Patriots protocol and therefore is really telling about a potential divide and loss of respect for their coach that this could create. Sure, it could blow over and be another comical 'they hate their coach' rant, but there may be some smoke to this fire.

All of those players worked so hard all year, and they all know they would have been better served with Butler out there. No question about that.

 

[Huckleberry1]

I’m not happy with Butler either. He’s clearly an immature idiot. But I also think benching him for a half and then maybe trying him on someone, anyone, in the second half when nothings going right would have been a better decision. He’s obviously gone after the season, let him to try help get one stop.

I suspect that deep down, Bill knows he screwed this one up.

I doubt it. I think Butler had to do serious damage to himself with the coaching staff to lose their faith and trust. I think it went on for the entire lead up to the Super Bowl and culminated in them concluding they couldn’t trust him.

 

[Simpelton]

Maybe he hasn't been with the team much, but that's not the point. Here you have a team captain publicly taking a stance against a coach's decision. This is definitely not standard Patriots protocol and therefore is really telling about a potential divide and loss of respect for their coach that this could create. Sure, it could blow over and be another comical 'they hate their coach' rant, but there may be some smoke to this fire.

All of those players worked so hard all year, and they all know they would have been better served with Butler out there. No question about that.

I think there is a question. Nothing matters more to Belichick than winning. He's made that clear on numerous occasions. You can argue whether he's right or wrong -- heh, 25 pages is pretty good evidence that people can argue that. But he isn't the type to put his ego in the way of winning. That's just not Bill Belichick. Something else went down that put Bill in this situation.

He did not act lightly on a matter like this. Not on the eve of the Superbowl. It flies in the face of everything I know about Belichick to think that he would make that decision unless he was absolutely convinced he had no other choice.

 

[Bella*chick]

I doubt it. I think Butler had to do serious damage to himself with the coaching staff to lose their faith and trust. I think it went on for the entire lead up to the Super Bowl and culminated in them concluding they couldn’t trust him.

I suspect we’ll eventually find out at least bits and pieces.

All I know is playing him in the second half could not have resulted in any worse than what we got. That’s for damn sure. It’s not like they could have scored any more. Their plan was clearly to go for it on 4th down as much as humanly possible.

 

[RobertWeathers]

RW - with all due respect - I don't think it has to be an all or nothing situation. We can appreciate BB for what he does, but that does not make him immune to our critical review of what he does.

Thats fine but Bill felt Malcolm was not able to do the job on any level. 60 plays, 30 plays, 20 plays, 2 plays. It doesn't matter. There wasn't a single defensive package BB had confidence in Malcolm executing.

 

[SVN]

If the coaches lose faith and trust that a player won’t do what they are asked to do then that is completely on the player. Trust is earned, and playing time isn’t an entitlement.

Tomlin should have benched Bell, and had he Steeler fans would have blamed Tomlin for the loss to Jacksonville, when in truth it would have been Bell’s fault. Patriot fans are doing the same thing here.

Sure. But dont dress him and mke him stand on the sideline. I think you are being unfair to other patriots fans voicing their points by clubbing with what tomlin does. No one is saying BB is acting like tomlin. I just feel whether they decided to play butler or not coudlve been handled better. If they lost faith, dont dress him, send him home, cut him. But they felt they would need him in emergency right ? to dress him ? Emergency apparently was gilmore or someone else suffering an injury not defense unable to stop the eagles. Its important for the pats and BB to hold on to the principals and values which has reaped success. But it can be enforced in better ways which couldve effected the whole team less. At least that is what I am questioning.

 

[RobertWeathers]

I see people bringing up Lawrence Taylor quite a bit, but Belichick was never head coach of Lawrence Taylor so the decision to play him or bench him was not Belichick's to make.

No. It was always Tuna's but the point is BB had zero problem playing BB when he was hungover or carousing the night before. Why? Because he did his job.

 

[Observer]

No, my argument is that Butler told the truth when he said they lost faith in him and gave up on him. That is right in line with Belichick’s claim that it wasn’t disciplinary. Anyone who blows trust and faith only has themself to blame, and none of us knows how much rule breaking played in it, but losing faith and giving up on a player sounds much more like a player who wasn’t committed to their job than it does breaking a curfew.

Why people aren’t blaming Butler for his attitude and behavior is beyond me.

Because that is wild conjecture. The only fact is Belichick didn’t let him play.