Malcolm Butler Mega Thread

[SHOWTIME15]

Mr. Zero Super Bowls chimes in...

Cris Carter Rips Bill Belichick For Failing Patriots In Super Bowl LII

 

[ohiopatsfan]

The question as to why BB benched Butler may never be fully answered, rumors of him breaking curfew and being under the influence notwithstanding. All we know for sure is that he got off to a bad start in 2017, possibly due to dissatisfaction with his contract, possibly due to physical problems, and improved his game as the season wore on. The proof of the pudding will be how he does with the Titans. Butler has the big contract he didn't get from the Pats and now is his time to shine. If there is any truth to the rumors of his extra-curricular activities, the evidence will surface in Tennessee. I hope the rumors are false and that he has a strong career with the Titans. I will always remember his game saving play in the SB.

 

[supafly]

The question as to why BB benched Butler may never be fully answered, rumors of him breaking curfew and being under the influence notwithstanding. All we know for sure is that he got off to a bad start in 2017, possibly due to dissatisfaction with his contract, possibly due to physical problems, and improved his game as the season wore on. The proof of the pudding will be how he does with the Titans. Butler has the big contract he didn't get from the Pats and now is his time to shine. If there is any truth to the rumors of his extra-curricular activities, the evidence will surface in Tennessee. I hope the rumors are false and that he has a strong career with the Titans. I will always remember his game saving play in the SB.

I take the rumors with a grain of salt, but aside from some good hustle, Butler’s play had taken a good hit last season.

That said, there’s still reason to believe that he’d have been an improvement in the SB, but I really don’t blame Belichick as much as many others do. He made a call and stuck with it. Who knows if it would’ve worked out or not? After all, with such a lousy defensive performance, we were still up with 5 mins to go, needing a 4th down stop. As we know, that didn’t happen.

 

[ohiopatsfan]

While having Malcolm Butler at CB for SB LII would have certainly helped the Pats' defense, the main reason the Eagles won the game was because the depleted front seven defenders were unable to put any meaningful pressure on Foles. With all that time to pass, even a moderately decent QB could pick apart the best DB's in the NFL, more often than not.

 

[aluminum seats]

Exactly. People aren't processing this rationally. They've made up their mind that the Superbowl came down to whether or not one player played, based on an assumption (or should I call it a DELUSION?) that a guy WE KNOW DAMN WELL was sick and off his game, and had been playing poorly for weeks even before he reported to hospital the week before the Superbowl, would somehow be 100% and win the game for us.

This is exactly like the Grady Little thing. The difference is that Belichick has a much longer track record of making right decisions before the "big mistake." There is no actual logic behind this mentality, just a combination of anguish and hindsight and misplaced anger, and perhaps a bit of goading from the hyperactive media.

People are not thinking. They are emoting. And I get tired sometimes of fans who can't tell the difference between the two.

Exactly like the Grady Little thing...I don't disagree, but I don't think the point means what you think it means.

 

[Simpelton]

Exactly like the Grady Little thing...I don't disagree, but I don't think the point means what you think it means.

Except it does. The only reason either decision came off so badly is because we judge them entirely on the outcome.

 

[Kontradiction]

Except it does. The only reason either decision came off so badly is because we judge them entirely on the outcome.

I was judging the Grady Little incident as it happened. And I was 17 at the time. I don't know about you, but it became as clear as day that Pedro had been out there for too long. Just like it quickly became clear as day that the Patriots didn't have the horses needed to run the big nickel successfully against Philly by halftime.

 

[aluminum seats]

Except it does. The only reason either decision came off so badly is because we judge them entirely on the outcome.

I'm not sure it's possible to be more wrong.

 

[aluminum seats]

I was judging the Grady Little incident as it happened. And I was 17 at the time. I don't know about you. But it became as clear as day that Pedro had been out there for too long. Just like it quickly became clear as day that the Patriots didn't have the horses needed to run the big nickel successfully against Philly by halftime.

Exactly. The Grady Little comparison is actually very good but in exactly the opposite way he intended.

 

[lancerman]

Which should be the obvious proof that there was a severe reason that you are unaware of.
Please give us a list of all the other times that belichick made a capricious 180 degree turn on a player he felt all season long was his best chance to win then one day for no reason sent him to Siberia.

Yes let’s just make things up and smear a guys reputation without proof to make us feel better.

 

[Ring 6]

Yes let’s just make things up and smear a guys reputation without proof to make us feel better.

What did I make up?
And how would my opinion smear Malcolm butlers reputation if I had? Thanks but I’m not that important an opinion to do all that.
People saying belichick threw the game are the ones smearing reputations.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

BB blind loyalists need to stop trashing Butler as if he was a horrible CB in 2017. He may not have been the 2015 pro bowl CB or 2016 all-NFL CB he was, but as CB#2 and even CB#1 with Gilmore out in 2017 he started and played 98% of snaps on a Pats defense that gave up the fewest points allowed from week5-17. This was with a pathetic front7 defense missing key players like Mayo. Butler was extremely good in 2017, don't try to claim otherwise.

 

[TheRainMaker]

It easily could have been better too. Foles played better on the Sb than Wentz played in regular season.

What? The only reason Brady won MVP this season was because Wentz got injured.

 

[RobertWeathers]

BB blind loyalists need to stop trashing Butler as if he was a horrible CB in 2017. He may not have been the 2015 pro bowl CB or 2016 all-NFL CB he was, but as CB#2 and even CB#1 with Gilmore out in 2017 he started and played 98% of snaps on a Pats defense that gave up the fewest points allowed from week5-17. This was with a pathetic front7 defense missing key players like Mayo. Butler was extremely good in 2017, don't try to claim otherwise.

I don't see people calling him horrible but you don't have to be a blind BB loyalist to see Malcolm was not the same player in 2017 as he was in the previous two seasons.

 

[The Brandon Five]

I don't see people calling him horrible but you don't have to be a blind BB loyalist to see Malcolm was not the same player in 2017 as he was in the previous two seasons.

Butlers worst day > Jonathan Bademosi’s or Jordan Richards’ best

 

[Ring 6]

What? The only reason Brady won MVP this season was because Wentz got injured.

The reason brady won the mvp is because he is the best player in the nfl.
Foles played better in the Sb that Wentz did in the regular season, it’s a fact, look it up.

 

[The Brandon Five]

The reason brady won the mvp is because he is the best player in the nfl.
Foles played better in the Sb that Wentz did in the regular season, it’s a fact, look it up.

Not disagreeing with you, but I am not sure that is to Foles credit or to the detriment of the Patriots defense in that game...

 

[Ring 6]

Not disagreeing with you, but I am not sure that is to Foles credit or to the detriment of the Patriots defense in that game...

Patriot defense was 5th in the nfl.

 

[chasa]

Zero snaps.

It's like if the titanic had hit the ice berg, and then a welder went to go fix it, and when he got there the captain was assessing the damage, and looked at the welder and said "you sir are 5 minutes late, and you smell of booze, get out of my sight!" then had one of the cooks try to fix it.

I don't give a **** if butler wasn't "keyed in" 2 weeks before the game. he should have been given at least a series after halftime to see if he could help get a stop, instead BB stuck to his guns, and the patriots never caused a three and out.

 

[signbabybrady]

Butlers worst day > Jonathan Bademosi’s or Jordan Richards’ best

Well Butlers worst day saw him benched and useless. With no one to blame but himself yet the entire public seems to blame anyone except him with BB being the main target.