#FreeKendrickBourne -- Should Kendrick Bourne start against Steelers in Week2?

[Bill Lee]

Not sure where you see me saying that Bill is evil, lol.

Bourne is listening to Slater. They have a personal relationship (prob. through religion). He's keeping his head down and saying all the right things. It's not complicated.

The way I read your posts is that you are choosing to make an assumption that he's just posturing about his role on the team, and not posturing when it comes to his views on religion. What is even less complicated is to presume he's being consistent, understands the punishment, and is just going to get on with things when given his opportunity. Yet that doesn't generate media clicks, so here we are...

 

[venecol]

Yeah, I got the years and per reversed. Instead of $3 for 5, it's $5 for 3. Still, points stands. And I got Gage wrong too, got him confused with Christian Kirk, who is at $18m a year. Look, I couldn't tell you the difference between Kirk, Bourne or Gage a year ago. It's clear though other teams are playing a premium for marginal WRs. Were you even aware Kirk was an $18m receiver in this league?

Yes, I was aware of Kirk's contract since he was one of the first WRs signed. BTW, Kirk had 117 receiving yards last week.

Pretty much everyone was excited that last years skilled player FAs (Henry, Jonnu, Bourne, Agholor) should have a bump in efficiency this season along with 2nd year improvements by Mac.

Looking at the top 6 receivers (WR, TE, RB) last season, Bourne was:

Receiving %: #1 (79%)
Receptions: #2
Targets: #3
Receiving Yards: #2 (14.5)
YDS/Gm: #2
YDS/Rec: #1
YAC: #2
TDs: #2
FD: #3

NVM about his efficiency stats with Mac which were top of the league.

I get that we brought in Parker to be WR#1 and he needs to play to develop chemistry with Mac, but limiting Bourne to 2 snaps is fking insane. I guaran-fking-tee you that the players were not onboard with this decision. It was stupid.

 

[borg]

You are standing on a cloud of supposition from Tom Curran. We don't know who decided on the Bourne discipline. Tom Curran says he doesn't know. Yet you know exactly what went down.

To quote the man himself (BB): "Ultimately, it’s my responsibility, like it always is. So if it doesn’t go well, blame me."

 

[PScottman]

Throw in some 4 WR sets. Get him 10-25 snaps at least.

The OL's protection ability has really shown this to be a stellar idea if they want to get their QB killed.

 

[PScottman]

There’s not one other team in the nfl who would hire Patricia after his mega collapse in Detroit

Yeah, NFL teams never hire failed HCs who go back to coordinating.







Las Vegas weirdly hired another coordinator who had failed spectacularly in his first HC gig.

 

[captain stone]

Every time I see Uche in shorts I am very impressed. Once the games start, he disappears.

Why is that?

Maybe he is not a player.

Dude is simply too small for what he wants to do: rush the QB.

He should've been trained in the finer arts of coverage, stacking & shedding, open-field tackling etc...

Billy, Nicky & Nike actually traded UP for this turd, ahead of Jeremy Chinn, Kristian Fulton, Logan Wilson et al... More likely than not he would've been available at #71 anyway...

Clowns.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

Yeah, NFL teams never hire failed HCs who go back to coordinating.







Las Vegas weirdly hired another coordinator who had failed spectacularly in his first HC gig.

Mcdaniels admitted his errors and changed his personality and coaching style.

Patricia is far too egotistical and arrogant to do that

 

[Deus Irae]

wow that was a really crappy simile at the end.

I didm't vote at all, I just don't know how tf we're all so worked up about the employee says x (and not much of that,) the employer says y, and not much of that, the media says x, y, z, p, d, and q.... and alll we reallly know is that an okay rece8iver wasn't out there when we lost. It;s just the drama du jour. He's a guy that added up to an efficient 800 yards and 5 TD aa year ago. What is he here? He's "the best offensive player on the team," a reason for people to lose their ****, attack each other... etc. It ain't worth it, it's a nontroversy. And man that last line I don't even want to go there, I think that was to indicate the scarciity that 11% represents or something but it came out I'm gonna say problematic.

And all over Kendrick Bourne.

It's such a non-thing that you can't stop posting about it...

 

[Deus Irae]

Outside speed or the lack thereof has been hampering this offense for years.

We finally addressed it this year with our second round pick, that skinny kid from Baylor.

We need both him and Bourne on the field…at the same time…to give the opposing defense something to worry about deep.

Get well, Thornton. Is that the kid’s name?

Agholor was supposed to help with this problem. Unfortunately, all too often, Agholor is Agholor.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

Agholor was supposed to help with this problem. Unfortunately, all too often, Agholor is Agholor.

Gross Overpay

patriots head WR scout should be fired

 

[Wozzy]

The thing is…it was about 5 weeks ago. I think it was a mistake to bench him.

Benching a player in a preseason game has no teeth… he was late to a meeting. He leapt into a fight during the Carolina joint practices. He has been a little too showboaty all off-season. You need to keep guys in check.

 

[Zuma]

Benching a player in a preseason game has no teeth… he was late to a meeting. He leapt into a fight during the Carolina joint practices. He has been a little too showboaty all off-season. You need to keep guys in check.

I get it but keeping guys in check 6 weeks later after the late pre-meeting at the expense of winning games is a terrible precedent…oh wait.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

It is Belichick fault? Another former Bills figure, Rex Ryan, insists it is.

"Don’t complain about the weapons. You chose those weapons, All these moves that you made, you have no weapons. One of the reasons is because you can’t evaluate them. You’ve done a poor job evaluating the weapons.”

 

[borg]

To quote the man himself (BB): "Ultimately, it’s my responsibility, like it always is. So if it doesn’t go well, blame me."

Albert Breer has been ruminating about the underpinnings behind BB's 2022 offensive (no pun intended) coaching decisions, essentially saying BB prefers play-calling continuity vs one year Band-Aids:

"And ultimately, Bill Belichick didn't want to bring Bill O'Brien back because he was afraid he might lose him after a year."

'But what about Caley, who is one of the longest-tenured offensive coaches in New England (hired in 2015)?
"He's been the one who has had to explain the offense and essentially teach the offense to a lot of people inside that building," Breer noted of Caley. "But he doesn't have a contract past this year. In fact, my understanding is that one of the reasons he didn't sign an extension is because he couldn't get clarity on his role."'

Albert Breer: Why Patriots passed on Bill O'Brien, Nick Caley for offensive coordinator job

Why is Matt Patricia calling plays for the Patriots this season instead of Bill O'Brien or Nick Caley? Albert Breer broke it all down Sunday on Patriots Pregame Live.

www.yahoo.com

So, much to unpack based on these suppositions...

1) Based on BB's aversion to one-and done coaching hires and his desire for play calling continuity, simple logic compels me to conclude Patricia will be the DeFacto OC once again in '23. (yippy)

2) Breer's quote..."one of the reasons he (Caley-the one guy capable of teaching the offense) didn't sign an extension is because he couldn't get clarity on his role"'...puzzles me to no end.
What are BB's concerns regarding Caley?
If BB's concerns center around the belief Caley is not up to the challenge of the offensive coordinator...then OK.
But if his concerns stem from his fear Caley might bolt even after promotion, does BB believe another coach from his consistently failed "coaching tree" will dazzle in his new OC role and suddenly get head coaching job offers after year 1?
Seems a bit unrealistic and frankly compulsively paranoid.
Better to have Fat Matt manning the switches? (sarcasm)

Breer has also been taking a whack at how NE is currently perceived by outside coaches who might seek new employment, and unsurprisingly, he concludes that NE has lost its luster as a destination for cutting-edge football.
Personal note: The Cam Newton QB Sneak offense was a step back in time to the leather helmet era, IMHO.

So let's examine The Outside Looking In realities here at Gillette: a Friends & Family destination...

1) Belichick does not designate Head Coordinators.
Number of current named defensive coordinators: 0
Number of current named offensive coordinators: 0

2) Path for promotion is clogged with Friends & Family place holders
On defense, clearly marked 'Closed" signs surround Nepotism Boulevard with a swarm of entrenched Belichicks patiently parked and waiting to ascend the up-ramp.
On offense, only ring kissers, knee benders, and those beholden to the All-Powerful One gain access, qualifications optional. "Continuity" is the rallying cry from the F & F inner sanctum.
Can't manage a new scheme installation, no worries.
Can't coach up a WR who demonstrated previous success, no problem, isolate the player and wait for genuflection.

3) Belichick has shown time and time again he will contractually squash any jail-break attempts by lower level coaches to break free from Patriots obligations

4) Job titles dictate NFL salaries and BB has shown time and time again he despises titles (how convenient)

5) Then there's the current state of the roster which is less likely to excite young coaches who may have multiple suitors

The tide has turned at Gillette, once described as the epicenter for football PHD's.
Now, Gillette seems more like a destination for high school equivalency test takers....who happened to be related or beholden to BB

The good news, I have to believe there's plenty of D3 undergrads ready to fill Bill's coaching pipeline.
Maybe they will know how to coach the spread offense.

 

[Deus Irae]

It is Belichick fault? Another former Bills figure, Rex Ryan, insists it is.

"Don’t complain about the weapons. You chose those weapons, All these moves that you made, you have no weapons. One of the reasons is because you can’t evaluate them. You’ve done a poor job evaluating the weapons.”

They're ok in some areas. They'd be fine at WR if they had a WR1, because the rest could slot in behind that. The bellcow RBs are fine. Henry is fine.


The problems come in with the rest. The OL is a problem. Opponents don't need to fear the WRs, because they can overmatch (CB1 is defending a WR2, and so forth). Smith is, at least to this point, a huge disappointment who's still getting forced into the offense as a key cog. And they're now without a 3rd down RB.

 

[venecol]

Patricia is now selecting the cheerleaders. Lol, WTF.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

It's such a non-thing that you can't stop posting about it...

nut uh you

 

[Froob]

Gross Overpay

patriots head WR scout should be fired

Combination of huge overpay and not a great fit. Even the biggest of homers have to look at what the going rate was and have to say we overpaid given what other guys got.

Agholor isn't really an intermediate and YAC guy. Not sure why you'd pay him so much to do that.

Similar situation with Jonnu. They paid him and want him to be a conventional tight end but he's really just a YAC gadget guy.

 

[Wozzy]

I get it but keeping guys in check 6 weeks later after the late pre-meeting at the expense of winning games is a terrible precedent…oh wait.

What guarantees do we have we would have won had Bourne played? None.

We turned the ball over three times and made a few untimely mistakes. Beyond that the offense moved the ball pretty well.

 

[upstater1]

It is Belichick fault? Another former Bills figure, Rex Ryan, insists it is.

"Don’t complain about the weapons. You chose those weapons, All these moves that you made, you have no weapons. One of the reasons is because you can’t evaluate them. You’ve done a poor job evaluating the weapons.”

I'd ask Ryan, who complained about the weapons?

To quote Welker, Hey Ryan, take the foot out of your mouth when you speak.