Amendola apparently bitter about time in New England:

[Family]

I believe it was Tony Gonzalez or some big time former NFL player that said the biggest myth in pro sports is that players want to "win". I believe him.

Tom Brady wants to win!

 

[Chevy]

If you look at it from Amendola’s point of view it’s a fair point he makes. A lot of key Patriots took pay cuts or below market contracts including Amendola, Brady, Bruschi, Edelman, Moss, and more. Amendola continuously took paycuts but delivered in huge spots. Brady at the end was taking 1 year prove it incentive deals. All the while Bill is paid almost double what the other highest paid coaches are. It’s human nature to look at it and say you get paid double what other coaches in your profession do but you want many of your top guys to take pay cuts or bargain deals.

At the time DA signed everyone knew that BB would not break the bank on first rank players, firmly believing that higher-end Tier 2 and 3 players leads to more flexibility throughout the season. Subs are less of a drop-off, overall play is more consistent. He took the hometown discount knowing this.

 

[SVN]

DA is an idiot. First he says Brady is the system and coaches dont make catches or throws. Then turns around and says BB is great just he is a difficult GM to deal with and thats what he meant. How are those to equal?

 

[NG Pats Fan]

Stop low balling players!

 

[Guts]

DA was super clutch and had many memorable moments. He took pay cuts and when he wanted to get paid the amount he thought was fair BB the GM said no. Business is business but damn I wouldn't want to be co workers with a lot of you the way you bashing a Patriots playoff hero

 

[venecol]

I don't think it was so much the 3 yrs in a row of paycuts he's bitter about, but what Bill told him right before Danny walked out the door:

"O Danny Boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling
From glen to glen and down the mountainside.
The summer's gone and all the roses falling.
'Tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide.
But come ye back when summer's in the meadow,
Or all the valley's hushed and white with snow.
'Tis I'll be here in sunshine or in shadow

 

[SVN]

BB has been ruthless before and will be after. He cut lawyer milloy . DA is much easier decision for him. He wasnt going to give him miami money. If DA things he put rings on BB, he can do that with flores or whoever too.

 

[thecore762]

I appreciate what Amendola has done for this franchise, he came up big in the playoffs for us.

 

[Shed83]

Tom Brady wants to win!

he certainly does......but it’s easy to put winning over Dollars when your family is worth over $1bn.

Most players will put their family ahead of rings. It’s entirely each players prerogative and as long as they play to their contract then it doesn’t really matter what their motivation is.

I’m genuinely not motivated by money.....I could have earned much more money for a guy in his late 30s than the below national average I’ve earned for most of my work life, but I put
low-stress and better family/social life ahead of numbers. I may pay for that later in life or I may not. It’s a decision we all have to make.

 

[carmelo15]

He is still playing at a fairly high level at 35. From 2018-20, he averaged about 600 yards and earned about $4.5M per year. Another three years too early is better than a year to late outcome for a team with the worst group of skill players in the NFL.

So before everyone calls out Amendola, let's remember this goes both ways. He took paycuts to remain in New England to win championships, play with Brady, and build a winning legacy, and the team then kicked him to the curb despite that he was still affordable and productive.

But I don't kow why he's negotating a contract by himself...get an agent.

Don’t matter to some how they treated him after taking payouts and still performing than dumb him like that aka Brady style

 

[carmelo15]

Agree - a lot of players felt betrayed. And no evidence Bill ever addressed it with the team. Some players moved on from it, some did not.

I would’ve had to restrained in the locker room after that gutless display by Bill

 

[carmelo15]

DA was super clutch and had many memorable moments. He took pay cuts and when he wanted to get paid the amount he thought was fair BB the GM said no. Business is business but damn I wouldn't want to be co workers with a lot of you the way you bashing a Patriots playoff hero

you should’ve known this back in March when Brady went toTampa and was treated like trash by some in here

 

[JMC00]

but perhaps Bill made his bed and now he has to lie in it.

No. Amendola made that bed by continuing his "injury prone" status and by Julian Edelman just being a helluva lot better player.

Best reliability is availability and Amendola had to be managed on a snap count for that. If Amendola could have played 75-80% of the snaps he never would have been asked to rework deals. Instead he never played more than 50%. Then you add in the fact that Amendola's first year was the year Edelman emerged and was clearly a better option and played 80% of the snaps in '13 and '14. The year Edelman missed Amendola only played 50%. So even with Edelman completely out Amendola still was played like a 4th or 5th option and that was down to getting him through the season without a lingering injury. In 2014 Brandon LaFell played 80% of the snaps. In 2016 Chris Hogan played 74% of the snaps. In 2017 Brandin Cooks played 92% of the snaps. Those were 3 WRs in their 1st year in the system. Amendola never managed to play more than 50%

The contract Amendola signed was for $28m. He ended up getting $18m. Given how he never played more than 50% of the snaps, i'd say he was paid fairly. No one was pressuring him into staying if he didn't want to stay and take a paycut except maybe Brady. Plain and simple Bill needed a younger Welker-type player, signed him and then Edelman in 2013 showed him he already had a better one on the roster.

Appreciate his clutch catches in the playoffs but I think he was fairly paid and he really shouldn't be complaining years after about stuff he agreed to. Just makes it comes off like if this is Team TB12 sticking the knives into Belichick . Not saying that's what it is but does kind of come off like that.

 

[sb1]

As someone already pointed out, Amendola does being up an interesting point and makes me think about it. When you have a coach who is GM how do you as a player feel when there's no separation of what your coach thinks of you vs the business side of creating a team. I think it can get complicated for sure.

Tbh I don't think it's the worst thing for Bill to take a small step back a bit from buying all the groceries. He should have some input but the reason why he is a stone cold hard lock for Canton is as a head coach. Not as a team builder. Losing Coach Bill would be a total catastrophe in every possible way but losing GM Bill? Eh. They'll still survive and thrive.

 

[RIpats88]

Amendola was fastly underpaid his last 2 seasons. But people forget he was vastly overpaid his first 2 seasons in new england. He essentially took a pay cut to his value.

People on this forum looked at amendola like they look at Nkeal harry. I remember people calling for him to get cut and what a bad signing it was. I wish I could find those threads.

Then that all changed in the playoffs in 2014 when he became a clutch performer and helped us win 2 Superbowls and almost a 3rd. I guess I can see both sides.

He probably was going to have to take less in free agency if he got cut.

 

[sb1]

Danny Amendola Appreciation Thread | New England Patriots Forums - PatsFans.com Patriots Fan Messageboard

DA did come up big in big games over the years.

 

[borg]

Danny is salty for so many reasons.

Christian McCaffrey agrees

 

[1960Pats]

I believe it was Tony Gonzalez or some big time former NFL player that said the biggest myth in pro sports is that players want to "win". I believe him.

I believe that Gonzalez and other players don't care as much about winning. That probably helps explain why they he don't.

Apparently there are players like Brady and Amendola who renegotiate to have a better chance at winning. That probably helps explain why they do.

 

[1960Pats]

You're soon finding out that everyone loves Brady and everyone hates BB. And while they were married, noone spewed trash about BB. Now they they are divorced and everyone has to pick a side (you always have to pick a side in a divorce) they are all picking Brady. And BB is going to get trashed by everyone one by one. Gronk and DA are just the start. They'll start coming out of the woodwork now. And Brady himself will deliver the final deathknell after BB blows up badly for another season.

Matt Light picked Belichick over Brady. I'm sure there are others who would.

 

[Spiral]

He should compare those rings he won with the Patriots to those other rings he won with....oh wait.