Matt Light On the Super Bowl Loss

[Chris Stevenson]

So, I thought these comments were interesting, and if you read between the lines here a bit, he's sort of pointing to an ego issue/primadonna syndrome with Butler.

He never mentions Butler's name, which is telling, but that's clearly what the question was pertaining to.

This is also what I was talking about the other idea with BB adjusting from pure old school coach, to more of a hybrid style needing to adapt to the Millennials who are so into branding and promoting themselves, as opposed to just focusing on their job.

Obviously, if it doesn't interfere with the job at hand, BB could not care less. But, what if the chase of money, does?

I think Bulter rejecting NE's very generous contract offer is very telling, and the subsequent stuff that happened afterwards, meant BB did all he could to make it work, but Butler, at least mentally, could never get past not being guaranateed more money than was on the table:


Ex-Patriots tackle Matt Light offers his two cents on Super Bowl 52, Malcolm Butler

 

[luuked]

I am not sure what I care less about.. another Butler thread or what Matt Light thinks.. he is farther away from the situation than beat reporters are.

 

[Chris Stevenson]

I am not sure what I care less about.. another Butler thread or what Matt Light thinks.. he is farther away from the situation than beat reporters are.

I just find the anti-BB narrative incredibly annoying. Some of our fans run to it like a bug towards light.

 

[Kontradiction]

I don’t have the answer to that though, I haven’t talked to these guys, I haven’t heard from any of them directly

 

[Chris Stevenson]

Right.

But, I am sure he knows things BEFORE the SB happened. I am sure Bruschi does, too.

 

[Hercules Rockefeller]

the Millennials who are so into branding and promoting themselves

This quote right here is your brand.

You are the guy who whines non stop about those who you think are whiners.

 

[Chris Stevenson]

This quote right here is your brand.

You are the guy who whines non stop about those who you think are whiners.

it is a serious, serious problem in the workplace in our society. i am not whining about it. i am acknowledging the issue and how it needs addressing. you can live under a rock all you want.

 

[Steve102]

I think there is an issue, though, within the locker room, and I don’t think it’s anything unique to the Patriots. I think it has more to do with, kind of, society, and I hate to make it sound kind of, you know, this big picture thing we’re facing as a country, but there’s a difference in that locker room. I saw it when I transitioned out of the NFL, and it was one where young guys walk in and they have all the answers, they’re looking to build their brand and their image, social media is driving everything, the game is part of the story, but the camaraderie and the teamwork that happens off the field and the relationship-building and everything else just wasn’t what it used to be.

Couple things that stick out to me, from a coaching point. I am sure that the Patriots have a good handle on social media and how to deal with younger guys. BB's shtick of MyFace and InstaChat are put out there for the media. I am confident he knows what they all are. It's his way of putting those sites and apps down, because he can't say "I don't give a chit about social media, I care about winning football."

Actually, he could say that. Anyway...

Guys who are all about themselves and their branding generally don't stick around long in Foxboro. Exceptions are made for special talents, like Gronk and Brady, just like exceptions were made for LT back in the day.

Light shows his age. Young guys always think they know everything. It's us old buzzards that have figured out we don't know everything. It's a vicious cycle.

 

[Kontradiction]

I don’t have the answer to that though, I haven’t talked to these guys, I haven’t heard from any of them directly

 

[Hercules Rockefeller]

it is a serious, serious problem in the workplace in our society. i am not whining about it. i am acknowledging the issue and how it needs addressing. you can live under a rock all you want.

Every generation feels this way about the one after them, as has been pointed out to you before on this forum. I am not blind to the idea that there are some entitlement issues among some millennials. I am in that weird, in-between age where I am technically at the beginning of what is seen as the millennial generation (there are a few years where people don't really fit any of the well-defined criteria, the "Oregon Trail" kids as I have read) and I can occasionally have a pretty tough time understanding the motivations of those younger than me. But I think that's a common thing. The flappers were drunks who were too promiscuous. The damn hippie baby boomers were going to ruin everything. The Gen X kids were a bunch of slackers and stoners (see Beck's "Loser") and now they complain about millennials for being lazy slackers. See how easy it is to do?

The common denominator is that young people are, on average, stupid, no matter when they were born. It makes more sense to evaluate everyone on an individual basis rather than to make broad sweeping statements about large groups of people. My 21 year old brother is a bulldog who has had the sort of focus and discipline I still strive for since he was a young kid. If Malcolm Butler has entitlement issues, focus issues, etc., that's a Malcolm issue, not an issue of when he was born. Malcom Brown has no such problems, Duron Harmon has no such issues, Devin McCourty has no such issues. These are all millennials. Nearly the entire NFL consists of millennials.

 

[Chris Stevenson]

Every generation feels this way about the one after them, as has been pointed out to you before on this forum. I am not blind to the idea that there are some entitlement issues among some millennials. I am in that weird, in-between age where I am technically at the beginning of what is seen as the millennial generation (there are a few years where people don't really fit any of the well-defined criteria, the "Oregon Trail" kids as I have read) and I can occasionally have a pretty tough time understanding the motivations of those younger than me. But I think that's a common thing. The flappers were drunks who were too promiscuous. The damn hippie baby boomers were going to ruin everything. The Gen X kids were a bunch of slackers and stoners (see Beck's "Loser") and now they complain about millennials for being lazy slackers. See how easy it is to do?

The common denominator is that young people are, on average, stupid, no matter when they were born. It makes more sense to evaluate everyone on an individual basis rather than to make broad sweeping statements about large groups of people. My 21 year old brother is a bulldog who has had the sort of focus and discipline I still strive for since he was a young kid. If Malcolm Butler has entitlement issues, focus issues, etc., that's a Malcolm issue, not an issue of when he was born. Malcom Brown has no such problems, Duron Harmon has no such issues, Devin McCourty has no such issues. These are all millennials. Nearly the entire NFL consists of millennials.

I agree with everything your wrote, but you have to generalize to be able to have a larger scale discussion.

I also think it goes just beyond entitlement, too, though. Lack of experience or life experiences is noticeable.

 

[Hercules Rockefeller]

Lack of experience or life experiences is noticeable.

Of course, but that just comes with age. Every generation is a unique pain in the ass though, that's for sure

 

[varjao]

Well like the article says, we are not over the SB, and it will take like years to be over it. One thing I thank BB and company for this loss, it made me forget SB46 completely.

On the big picture though, we should have never won last year, and even though we "deserved" to win the SB against the Seahawks given Brady historical comeback, we let them march to our 1 yard line and Wilson blew it so in the end 5/3 is better than 3/5.

The thing is, if we lose the game without all this noise, rumors, relationships and all sorts of BS, I think we would have moved on already, OK, we lost a ball game on the field, period. But all these extra backstage stuff and the Butler issue seems to give this impression that things would end up differently if we went to this game in a different moment. Not taking anything away from the Eagles, that's a hell of a football team.

 

[Chris Stevenson]

Of course, but that just comes with age. Every generation is a unique pain in the ass though, that's for sure

See, I sort of disagree. I know numerous, seemingly more Millennials who didn't go to college and/or once they did graduate, refused needed "experience" based jobs and traveled the world on mommy/daddy's dime or sat in basements living at home playing video games, refusing to get a job.

They basically missed an entire decade of needed real, on the job experience of any kind. So, now they're in their 30s, and it' incredible what they don't know about the real world.

I am talking about people 6 or 7 years younger than myself.

Outside of a war, say like Vietnam and "Greatest Gem?Deprression Era folks, up against the anti-Vietnam hippie baby Boomers, this disparity so close in age, is stunning, IMO, and it's due to the internet in the mid 90s.

We know what like was like pre-internet, and honestly, we're more dumb now as a society.

Just my opinion.

 

[Chris Stevenson]

Well like the article says, we are not over the SB, and it will take like years to be over it. One thing I thank BB and company for this loss, it made me forget SB46 completely.

On the big picture though, we should have never won last year, and even though we "deserved" to win the SB against the Seahawks given Brady historical comeback, we let them march to our 1 yard line and Wilson blew it so in the end 5/3 is better than 3/5.

The thing is, if we lose the game without all this noise, rumors, relationships and all sorts of BS, I think we would have moved on already, OK, we lost a ball game on the field, period. But all these extra backstage stuff and the Butler issue seems to give this impression that things would end up differently if we went to this game in a different moment. Not taking anything away from the Eagles, that's a hell of a football team.

I still say SB 46 is worse. We handed two SBs on a platter to NYGs, and the second one just feels worse than SB 42.

At least Philly played better and we can walk away knowing that. They did what they needed to and put the foot on the gas for 4 qtrs, never letting up. They did it. I tip my cap and move on.

Considering the injuries, I think the team at least battled well and made it close.