Asante goes off on Bill/Pats organization

[Biffins]

Malcolm Butler f---ed over his teammates in the Philly Super Bowl and he knew it, that's why he was standing on the sidelines crying prior to the game.

If he felt the team were in the wrong... he would be fuming, not crying. He was a disgruntled malcontent over his contract and was our worst starting player all season... then he acted a fool the week leading up to the biggest game of the year. That's why once he left to Tennessee and thought it over he was repentant and thanked New England for everything they did for him. If BB wanted to be a real **** he could have broadcast to the league what a disgruntled little child Butler was prior to the Super Bowl and him being a free agent costing him millions of dollars, instead Bill took the high road and did right by a player who screwed his team over on the biggest stage.

Malcolm Butler wasn't good in 2017, in fact he was terrible. He started the season by refusing to communicate with Stephon Gilmore which set the defense back to begin the year. Then he got destroyed by the Dolphin's Jay Cutler and 5'6" Jakeem Grant, then after getting repeatedly burned he threw the coaching staff under the bus... as if they were at fault for him letting some scrubs destroy him. He is entirely overrated as a starter in general and was benched in favor of Adoree Jackson in Tennessee and now he's likely to be a cap casualty. The guy was an UDFA for a reason and isn't fast, he was great when he had Darrelle Revis to mimic... he peaked in year three and has gone downhill since.

The notion that Butler would have changed the outcome of that Super Bowl is laughable. They rushed for 164 yards on us, Hightower, Alan Branch, Jon Jones and eventually Chung were all hurt and that's why they lost... they lost at the line of scrimmage. After the Pats put Gilmore on Alshon Jeffrey the Eagle's WR's did squat in the second half, the only receiving weapon that did anything was Zach Ertz and that's because Chung broke him arm. Last I checked Butler didn't play SS.

He certainly owed his teammates more then trying to submarine them at the most crucial time of the year. I love the guy, but he was wrong and he knew it... that's why he was crying.

Sorry but whether Butler was good or not is not the point. Not every player on a roster that takes the field is good. And yes Butler was not good in 2017.

Question is whether Butler was better than Rowe, Bademosi and Jordan Richards, and whether he fit the team better so everyone didn’t have to switch their positions around. How the hell did Bademosi take snaps at corner ahead kf Butler but for non-football reasons. Come on!

We can debate how much impact this decision had. But it’s clear it was detrimental.

 

[Bourne Again Christian]

I remember it like it was yesterday.

One of the things that surprised me was the reaction of a couple of the guys in the room when the Pats took the lead late in the game. All of a sudden they started yelling at the Giants players, hoping for them to "break their legs." I never looked at them the same again and blame them for creating the bad karma that led to the sad ending.

Who were the guys?

 

[upstater1]

Without Brady the Game Manager we might not even make the playoffs

The Patriots offense scored a total of 26 points in the playoffs that year behind Brady. Clearly, that was a team whose defense shut down the opposition and gave up only 27 points in the 2 games that Brady played.

During the season, that defense got better, and in their last 12 games, they only gave up more than 20 points ONCE, and that was the regular season game against the Rams. During that 12 game streak, this is what the defense did: 10, 11, 24, 17, 16, 16, 9, 13, 6, 13, 17, 17. Prior to the defense gelling, they gave up 20+ in 4 out of the 6 games, and they gave up 30+ twice.

Clearly, the defense got us that Super Bowl. Brady was very good, but I hesitate to give him a lot of credit in a year in which he threw for 18 TDs and 12 INTs. That's not an elite performance. The defense on the other hand put together a performance for the ages.

 

[patsfanincleveland]

Sensible reason to fire BB- you believe his way of drafting and coaching, while it worked in the past no longer works that well in 2021 and it’s time for the Patriots to adopt a new and fresh way of thinking at all levels of the football ops.

Bad reason to fire BB- you’re mad because Brady isn’t here and Bill is.

An excellent point.

Many may not know this but in terms of letting star QB's go, this is not Belichick's first rodeo. "incleveland" Bernie Kosar is every bit the sports icon as anybody anywhere. Even today, Bernie still does all the commercials.

When Belichick cut Bernie there was a borderline insurrection. Later, Bernie did admit that was the correct decision and when the Browns came back in 1999, Bernie petitioned Lerner to hire him back.

It also appears that the can't stay awake crowd missed 2014. After our 4th game in KC, the media wanted Brady's head. Has Belichick made it personnel, he could have moved on. Instead, we now have the phrase, "We are onto Cincinnati. Likewise, during Deflategate, who sold out and who went "My Cousin Vinny"?

It's not personal.

It's one thing to simply not understand the situation. It's another for fanboi's to not simply understand where we are but to take it so personal.

 

[bresna]

Asante's beef is directly attributed to BB slapping the franchise tag on him after the 2006 season. He was going to hold out and it took BB to commit to not applying the tag again after the 07 season.

Everything else is noise.

And that Franchise Tag contract ended up making Asante the highest paid Patriot during the 2007 season where Brady & Moss set NFL records. And then he fails to earn that big contract by whiffing on a (possible) Super Bowl winning INT. Top 11 cap hits that year:

Asante Samuel	$7,790,000​
Tom Brady	$7,345,160​
Richard Seymour	$6,706,720​
Rosevelt Colvin (IR)	$6,433,160​
Kyle Eckel	$5,856,752​
Matt Light	$4,758,887​
Mike Vrabel	$4,084,340​
Adalius Thomas	$3,406,720​
Kevin Faulk	$3,003,720​
Randy Moss	$3,001,560​

Screw you Asante.

 

[PatsWSB47]

Highly relevant. We were a losing team and Parcells was on his way out the door. There's a reason Kraft tried to hire Belichick right after the 1996 season. Because he understood, as did most real fans, that Belichick was the guy who turned everything around. And when the team went all the way in his second year as head coach, it was his coaching that won us those games.

So 1996 as an assistant he instantly saved the Patriots from their horrendous 5-11 season the year before. How does that square with his 5-11 season as the actual head coach in 2000? I'm not bashing Belichick just exposing you

 

[1960Pats]

Who were the guys?

What do you want to know, their names and addresses?
My guess is that they weren't athletes. One was a musician and the other an electrician.

 

[203Pat]

Wow team Bill is now giving him credit for things that happened as an assistant coach? Flat out embarrassing.

 

[Wozzy]

Sorry but whether Butler was good or not is not the point. Not every player on a roster that takes the field is good. And yes Butler was not good in 2017.

Question is whether Butler was better than Rowe, Bademosi and Jordan Richards, and whether he fit the team better so everyone didn’t have to switch their positions around. How the hell did Bademosi take snaps at corner ahead kf Butler but for non-football reasons. Come on!

We can debate how much impact this decision had. But it’s clear it was detrimental.

Whether Butler was good or bad doesn’t matter... in what world?

Once Gilmore was manned up on Alshon Jeffrey, Rowe and Bademosi played well, especially considering a defensive front with no Branch and Hightower could get no pressure on Foles.

Jordan Richards was playing in the second half because Chung got hurt, why would Butler be playing strong safety?

The Eagles offensive line and TE’s manhandled the Pats D. The Pats D was missing 350 pound Alan Branch and Donta. Football is won in the trenches. The Pats won a Super Bowl with Troy Brown starting at nickel corner... the 2017 game was lost at the line of scrimmage. Butler is a red herring by the BB haters and otherwise clueless fans.

 

[venecol]

Wow team Bill is now giving him credit for things that happened as an assistant coach? Flat out embarrassing.

I'm convinced we may have found the Belichick mole.

@Steve:Section 102 you're off the hook. Lol

 

[Steve102]

I'm convinced we may have found the Belichick mole.

@Steve:Section 102 you're off the hook. Lol

LOL. deflection. Ok, Ernie.

 

[Wozzy]

Wow team Bill is now giving him credit for things that happened as an assistant coach? Flat out embarrassing.

Bill Parcells had a 500 record with both the Giants and Pats, within one season of Belichick becoming his defensive coordinator they were in a Super Bowl... coincidence I’m sure.

 

[upstater1]

So 1996 as an assistant he instantly saved the Patriots from their horrendous 5-11 season the year before. How does that square with his 5-11 season as the actual head coach in 2000? I'm not bashing Belichick just exposing you

Easy. In 1996, we didn't turn over the roster. We brought in one FA, Willie Clay. In 2000, we overhauled the roster. In both cases, we went from 5-11 to the Super Bowl. In the first instance, we did it with the same personnel. In the second, we did it with a transformed roster. Now you're exposed.

 

[everlong]

All this tells me is he is the furthest thing from what we should be looking for a as a locker room guy.
I never liked his style of play.
Wouldn’t wrap up went for helmet to helmet and I swear he dropped that Int In the superbowl on purpose now that I hear this crap.
Would anyone doubt he dropped that to screw bill?
He doesn’t care About the team what a DB.

There's no way he drops an interception on purpose. The guy is obsessed with himself and his pick numbers. As much as he might like to pork Bill being able to say he closed out the perfect season would be a feather in his cap and another thing he could shove in Bill's face.

 

[203Pat]

Bill Parcells had a 500 record with both the Giants and Pats, within one season of Belichick becoming his defensive coordinator they were in a Super Bowl... coincidence I’m sure.

I’m sure Belichick had something to do with it but to credit him with rings as an assistant is laughable.

 

[upstater1]

Wow team Bill is now giving him credit for things that happened as an assistant coach? Flat out embarrassing.

Q: how long have you been a fan of the Patriots?

 

[upstater1]

Bill Parcells had a 500 record with both the Giants and Pats, within one season of Belichick becoming his defensive coordinator they were in a Super Bowl... coincidence I’m sure.

Patriots defense 1995: Gave up 30+ points 4 times. 25th ranked defense.

Patriots defense 1996: Gave up 30+ points 2 times. 14th ranked defense.

In the AFC playoffs, our defense gave up 3 points and 6 points. Both of the opposing QBs became forever known for crying after that: Kordell Stewart and Mark Brunell.

The BB haters don't want us to believe it was BB. Maybe they are right--maybe it was the only FA added to the defense who changed everything, Willie Clay.

 

[Boomer B]

Butler was disgruntled over his contract and did some childish crap leading up to the game. Once Gilmore manned up Alston Jeffrey their WR’s did nothing. We know the “reason why” even if it hasn’t been spelled out for you.

Butler was a liability all season, why was he suddenly going to be good in the final game? Because he played five snaps and made the most memorable singular play in Super Bowl history? That doesn’t make him a consistent game changing player. He wasn’t good in 2017, he hasn’t been all that good since getting paid. The Titans had buyer’s remorse immediately after signing him.

BB not playing Butler being the reason they lost is a BB hater dog whistle.

What childish crap did he do? Please be specific.

 

[1960Pats]

An excellent point.

Many may not know this but in terms of letting star QB's go, this is not Belichick's first rodeo. "incleveland" Bernie Kosar is every bit the sports icon as anybody anywhere. Even today, Bernie still does all the commercials.

When Belichick cut Bernie there was a borderline insurrection. Later, Bernie did admit that was the correct decision and when the Browns came back in 1999, Bernie petitioned Lerner to hire him back.

It also appears that the can't stay awake crowd missed 2014. After our 4th game in KC, the media wanted Brady's head. Has Belichick made it personnel, he could have moved on. Instead, we now have the phrase, "We are onto Cincinnati. Likewise, during Deflategate, who sold out and who went "My Cousin Vinny"?

It's not personal.

It's one thing to simply not understand the situation. It's another for fanboi's to not simply understand where we are but to take it so personal.

I went to Belichick's first game back in 2000 in Cleveland. I was astounded at the hatred the Browns' fans had for him at the time, mainly because he let Bernie go. It wasn't as bad the next time I went to Cleveland for a Pats game but it was still there. The Pats lost both games.

 

[Simpelton]

If Assante did his job, the Patriots would have had a 19-0 perfect season. He needs to shut up.

The throw was too high. Asante got some decent air and it glanced off his fingertips. It wasn't a rainbow throw either where he could have taken another step back. He would have never both caught that ball and stayed inbounds.

Not catchable. Super close, but not quite in range. No matter how much I wish it was. Samuel positioned himself well, got some good air on his jump, and the throw was just barely out of his range. It would have taken a Superman leap to bring that thing down.

Anyway. there's a HUGE difference between "bounced off his hands" and "glanced off his fingertips." The throw Samuel jumped for glanced off his fingertips. Samuel actually made a very good play for the ball, it just wasn't to be.