I think this concept you have is a good and logical argument and I couldn’t disagree at all.
My main question to you is this. Is bill wrong to enforce agreed upon rules? Everyone always says the pats success is because everyone buys in. That said, do you play butler even if he violates two deal breaker rules?
It’s a hard question but for me. I’d bench him over it.
I'll flip it back around: Do you honestly think BB wanted to bench Butler completely/demote him?
Only the people on the inside with Butler know how annoying he was. I feel for the kid, but the Pats offered likely a short term deal, but it was reported around 8 mil per.
The kid turned it down, so what do you think his level of delusion is?
My gut tells me they were already leaning Gilmore, Rowe, Bademosi due to the size elements Philly presented. I actually offered up Bademosi's name in my gameplan prediction thread as someone who may need to be used with Chung or in place of Chung at times. I was right. Chung was concussed. The problem is, BB chose Richards. Ugh. The size of Bademosi on Ertz. Butler offers no size. I like Bademosi. Good tackler, smart, some size. I think he can be good here and is intended to be Butler's replacement but at the perimeter CB spot, with Jon Jones graduating into the slot with his great speed and awesome 38" vertical leap.
i think the flu thing complicated matters, he comes in late, doesn't practice all that well, which sort of confirms their approach anyway.
His ego takes over, he goes off the rails with BB trying to keep it quiet, and then Butler starts crying on camera like a baby.
Again, I am more disappointed that my suggestions weren't closer to what BB actually did, because I truly and genuinely believe the approach I suggested in the game day threads, would have worked.
If we lose because overrated Torrey Smith catches a clutch TD, so be it. It would have meant we contained the run, held them to FGs more, and I feel matched up stronger, able to dictate more to Foles, as opposed to allowing him to dictate.
There is no way Bademosi was the guy on Smith for just the 11 snaps. That had to have been McCourty, but in man, that hurts you run support in the box. Butl someone was taking out Smith, that WOULD HAVE BEEN BUTLER, but we know what happened. Agoholor was the guy Gilmore needed to be on, IMO. That was the mistake.
And, Rowe had perfect man coverage on the Jeffery TD. The throw was almost indefensible, but if Harmon had shaded to that side at the snap, over the top, $100 that TD never happens, because the throw wouldn't have happened.
I am a believer in putting the onus on the players you believe in. It's what BB did with Butler in SB 49. Bademosi needed more snaps in this game, IMO, playing on Smith, the other match ups like I said, and McCourty as the floater, doubling and helping on some based on hunches pre snap or used in run support and blitzes. He was doing stuff like this, but without seeing gamefilm, he had to be the guy off camera playing more like a CB on Torrey Smith.
It was just this time around, Butler checked out mentally.
