BB in damage control mode regarding Brady's departure

[1960Pats]

Were you going to strap him down and hold a gun to his to make him sign so he could forfeit his right to be a free agent?

They could have paid him what he was worth. How many HOF players are we going to let go? All of them?

 

[Ring 6]

They could have paid him what he was worth. How many HOF players are we going to let go? All of them?

It was best for both sides.

 

[Biffins]

Were you going to strap him down and hold a gun to his to make him sign so he could forfeit his right to be a free agent?

I would have given him the $25-30m per year 2 year extension he wanted and then traded him if we liked some kid in the draft that much

 

[VectorPrime]

What I find frustrating as hell are the insinuations that the criticisms of Bill, including mine, are just meant to sh.it on him at all levels. Like I try and make it clear that I still believe that Bill Belichick is on the very short list of greatest football minds of all time. As a coach? I don’t think there is anyone, at least in the modern era, better at diagnosing any play on either side of the ball. He understands so much of the game through both his obsession with its history and his incredibly deep pool of experience that Xs and Os wise there’s basically nothing anyone can do to surprise him. My criticisms stem from my belief that he has been far less capable as de facto GM and his choices regarding who he wants to fill out the team and the coaching staff betray how the game beyond understanding the plays themselves is passing him by.

 

[Ring 6]

I would have given him the $25-30m per year 2 year extension he wanted and then traded him if we liked some kid in the draft that much

Good Madden playing strategy.

 

[Ring 6]

What I find frustrating as hell are the insinuations that the criticisms of Bill, including mine, are just meant to sh.it on him at all levels. Like I try and make it clear that I still believe that Bill Belichick is on the very short list of greatest football minds of all time. As a coach? I don’t think there is anyone, at least in the modern era, better at diagnosing any play on either side of the ball. He understands so much of the game through both his obsession with its history and his incredibly deep pool of experience that Xs and Os wise there’s basically nothing anyone can do to surprise him. My criticisms stem from my belief that he has been far less capable as de facto GM and his choices regarding who he wants to fill out the team and the coaching staff betray how the game beyond understanding the plays themselves is passing him by.

Who has done better?
They played in 8 consecutive AFCCG, won 5 of them and 3 SBs.
This was followed up by his QB leaving, in his 40s after a season that started 10-1 and crashed when that qb was injured and playing the worst football of his career, one down year eating that dead money, dealing with the cap fallout of staying on top and having 9 players opt out, then building a playoff team by replacing 45% of the snaps played around a rookie QB. He was just, rightfully, voted Executive of the Year, and people want to crap all over that because evidently they think it was their fandom that created the greatest, longest run in the history of the sport, and the guy making all the decisions to produce it was just along for the ride. You should be frustrated at yourself.


Answer yourself these questions.

With 9 opt outs, zero cap room and cam freaking newton all you have at QB what is a reasonable expectation.

With 45% roster turnover, and a rookie QB starting every game, the 5th rookie qb picked, what was your expectation.

Of the top teams, if you had flipped their QB with the Patriots rookie QB last year, which ones would have still done better? (Meaning how do the “other 52” compare?)

 

[VectorPrime]

Why was the roster in such a decrepit situation going into 2020? 5 years of disastrous drafting. Who runs the draft board?

 

[Boomer B]

In my opinion these are all true:

1) Bill is the best coach in the modern era

2) Bill should have given Brady the deal he wanted (2 years $25m per) and then kept him going on 2 year deals

3) Kraft should have guaranteed Brady retired a Patriot. He is probably regretting the decision to not give Tom a 2 year deal

4) Poor drafting over a number of years has hurt the club

Tom has more than proven he was well worth that 2 year deal. Kraft should have stepped in and made sure Tom never left here. Biggest mistake of Kraft’s career. The team is now in the NFL wilderness. Middle of the pack roster while other AFC teams have jumped ahead. As the Rams and others have shown the cap can be manipulated. We should have rode with Brady until he retires, and do what the Rams have done and restock through trades and free agency. Maybe could have squeezed out another ring.

 

[1960Pats]

It was best for both sides.

I really don't care about both sides. I'm a Pats fan and letting the GOAT QB (by a mile btw) was as dumb as it gets to me.

 

[1960Pats]

I would have given him the $25-30m per year 2 year extension he wanted and then traded him if we liked some kid in the draft that much

It may not have taken that much but B&B offered him half that 30 for one year. I think he wanted to stay here.

 

[Boomer B]

At least we got a 1st rounder for Seymour. We got nothing for letting Brady walk. We could have signed Brady for $30m or $35m per year and then traded him if we wanted. Arians is saying he wants 5 #1s for Brady.

Top QBs always have no trade clauses. They would have to ok a trade for it to happen. Both Matt Ryan and Russel Wilson waived the no trade clause to move to a team of their choosing.

 

[Biffins]

Who has done better?
They played in 8 consecutive AFCCG, won 5 of them and 3 SBs.
This was followed up by his QB leaving, in his 40s after a season that started 10-1 and crashed when that qb was injured and playing the worst football of his career, one down year eating that dead money, dealing with the cap fallout of staying on top and having 9 players opt out, then building a playoff team by replacing 45% of the snaps played around a rookie QB. He was just, rightfully, voted Executive of the Year, and people want to crap all over that because evidently they think it was their fandom that created the greatest, longest run in the history of the sport, and the guy making all the decisions to produce it was just along for the ride. You should be frustrated at yourself.


Answer yourself these questions.

With 9 opt outs, zero cap room and cam freaking newton all you have at QB what is a reasonable expectation.

With 45% roster turnover, and a rookie QB starting every game, the 5th rookie qb picked, what was your expectation.

Of the top teams, if you had flipped their QB with the Patriots rookie QB last year, which ones would have still done better? (Meaning how do the “other 52” compare?)

However you want to spin it, letting Brady walk was just monumental stupidity. Brady threw for 82 TDs for $25m per year......... the best bang for the buck in the league....... by a mile. It was utter stupidity. Brady won the SB won year, and had a MVP season the year after. To say the Pats were IN ANY WAY better off from letting Brady walk defies common sense. Sorry, but you're wrong.

Now the fact that Belichick did recognized the pickle he was in and spent a gargantuan $154m in guaranteed money, the highest for any team in history in free agency, and managed to secure a measly THREE more wins than the season before for it, enough to get into the playoffs and enough to win the NFL Executive of the Year award shouldn't fool anyone about the dire situation we're in. Teams often manage to buy a few wins by being the Free Agency winner but next year comes the hangover. The albatross contracts are still around, after a bunch of free agents didn't pan out, and you're unable to hold on to the talent you want to or secure additional ones. We'd be lucky to get the same wins as last year.

Your whole spin on the situation reeks of BB fandom.

 

[1960Pats]

However you want to spin it, letting Brady walk was just monumental stupidity. Brady threw for 82 TDs for $25m per year......... the best bang for the buck in the league....... by a mile. It was utter stupidity. Brady won the SB won year, and had a MVP season the year after. To say the Pats were IN ANY WAY better off from letting Brady walk defies common sense. Sorry, but you're wrong.

Now the fact that Belichick did recognized the pickle he was in and spent a gargantuan $154m in guaranteed money, the highest for any team in history in free agency, and managed to secure a measly THREE more wins than the season before for it, enough to get into the playoffs and enough to win the NFL Executive of the Year award shouldn't fool anyone about the dire situation we're in. Teams often manage to buy a few wins by being the Free Agency winner but next year comes the hangover. The albatross contracts are still around, after a bunch of free agents didn't pan out, and you're unable to hold on to the talent you want to or secure additional ones. We'd be lucky to get the same wins as last year.

Your whole spin on the situation reeks of BB fandom.

Seriously. Anyone trying to defend Bill's idiotic decision to dump Brady or Bob's decision to go along with it are blind. The Pats obviously messed up big time. I like the argument that Bill has won 6 rings so he's right, totally ignoring his poor record without Brady, both with the Pats and overall.

So odd that the same player that was the greatest decision by the Pats is now the worst decision. Letting him walk for nothing and with nothing to replace him was a big mistake. If any other HC in the NYFL made that blunder the main forum would explode with ridicule, like they did for Arians until Brady led his team to a SB.

 

[Ring 6]

However you want to spin it, letting Brady walk was just monumental stupidity. Brady threw for 82 TDs for $25m per year......... the best bang for the buck in the league....... by a mile. It was utter stupidity. Brady won the SB won year, and had a MVP season the year after. To say the Pats were IN ANY WAY better off from letting Brady walk defies common sense. Sorry, but you're wrong.

Now the fact that Belichick did recognized the pickle he was in and spent a gargantuan $154m in guaranteed money, the highest for any team in history in free agency, and managed to secure a measly THREE more wins than the season before for it, enough to get into the playoffs and enough to win the NFL Executive of the Year award shouldn't fool anyone about the dire situation we're in. Teams often manage to buy a few wins by being the Free Agency winner but next year comes the hangover. The albatross contracts are still around, after a bunch of free agents didn't pan out, and you're unable to hold on to the talent you want to or secure additional ones. We'd be lucky to get the same wins as last year.

Your whole spin on the situation reeks of BB fandom.

No, actually, what is happening is that since I have no agenda, my honest assessment conflicts with your clear agenda.
I completely and totally recognize both belichick and Brady as the GOAT of their respective jobs. Only a fool wouldn’t.
I am objective enough to see that after doing what it took to stay on top so long, to go to 8 AFCCGs in a row, win 5 of them and win 3 SBs, it could not be sustained. In 2019 they were 10-1 and the biggest drop off from there was the passing game. I’ve posted the numbers, which we less than mediocre.
There was no cap space to do anything to improve the team in 2020 much less even retain their own free agents. 2020 was a big step backward whether brady stayed or not.
Brady leaving allowed the cap space to be available to rebuild. Had he stayed 70 mill would have been less than 20 mill and the rebuild could not have happened.
So had Brady stayed, we would STILL be trying to rebuild, with little cap space around a 45 year old QB.
No one in their right mind plans to keep the 43 year old qb through 2 lean years so they can rebuild around him at 45.

As it is we built a team that made the playoffs and was 2 games from a 1 seed, while playing a rookie Qb

Sure, emotionally, it would have been great for Brady to stay, but in terms of what is best for the franchise as a whole, it surely worked out better this way.

 

[Ring 6]

Seriously. Anyone trying to defend Bill's idiotic decision to dump Brady or Bob's decision to go along with it are blind. The Pats obviously messed up big time. I like the argument that Bill has won 6 rings so he's right, totally ignoring his poor record without Brady, both with the Pats and overall.

So odd that the same player that was the greatest decision by the Pats is now the worst decision. Letting him walk for nothing and with nothing to replace him was a big mistake. If any other HC in the NYFL made that blunder the main forum would explode with ridicule, like they did for Arians until Brady led his team to a SB.

How do you propose the 2020 Pats with negative cap room after keeping Brady could have improved on the 2019 team that wasn’t good enough?
How do they rebuild the roster that replaced 45% of the snaps played in 2021 with $50 million less to spend in cap room than they did.
They didn’t “let him walk for nothing”, he chose to walk, and the consequence was the team that needed to rebuild was therefore able to do it much faster and more completely.
From 2020 to 2021 they turned over 45% of the team by having $70,000,000 to spend. They couldn’t have come close to that of Brady had taken up over 50 mill of it between 20 and 21.

 

[gobesmug]

No, actually, what is happening is that since I have no agenda, my honest assessment conflicts with your clear agenda.
I completely and totally recognize both belichick and Brady as the GOAT of their respective jobs. Only a fool wouldn’t.
I am objective enough to see that after doing what it took to stay on top so long, to go to 8 AFCCGs in a row, win 5 of them and win 3 SBs, it could not be sustained. In 2019 they were 10-1 and the biggest drop off from there was the passing game. I’ve posted the numbers, which we less than mediocre.
There was no cap space to do anything to improve the team in 2020 much less even retain their own free agents. 2020 was a big step backward whether brady stayed or not.
Brady leaving allowed the cap space to be available to rebuild. Had he stayed 70 mill would have been less than 20 mill and the rebuild could not have happened.
So had Brady stayed, we would STILL be trying to rebuild, with little cap space around a 45 year old QB.
No one in their right mind plans to keep the 43 year old qb through 2 lean years so they can rebuild around him at 45.

As it is we built a team that made the playoffs and was 2 games from a 1 seed, while playing a rookie Qb

Sure, emotionally, it would have been great for Brady to stay, but in terms of what is best for the franchise as a whole, it surely worked out better this way.

The cap issue for 2020 is such a BS excuse.

The Pats had a ton of future cap space, so much that they used 154mil in FA the following year.

The Pats FO could of opened up tons of cap space in 2020 by extending/restructuring contracts.

In fact, in 2020 Brady had a huge dead cap space built into his contract, I believe it was 18mil, that would have been easily pushed down the road.

Brady wanted a guaranteed contract, more respect from his HC, and to have some input in receiving weapons. As you said, the passing game fell off a cliff once Brady lost Gordon and teams could double Edelman and White every snap.

If Mac builds upon his rookie season then it's luck, not foresight that led to him. He wasn't on the roster when Brady left or even in that draft class.

No need to make excuses and just call a spade a spade. The organization allowed the GOAT QB who is still on top to leave without a succession plan

 

[gobesmug]

How do you propose the 2020 Pats with negative cap room after keeping Brady could have improved on the 2019 team that wasn’t good enough?
How do they rebuild the roster that replaced 45% of the snaps played in 2021 with $50 million less to spend in cap room than they did.
They didn’t “let him walk for nothing”, he chose to walk, and the consequence was the team that needed to rebuild was therefore able to do it much faster and more completely.
From 2020 to 2021 they turned over 45% of the team by having $70,000,000 to spend. They couldn’t have come close to that of Brady had taken up over 50 mill of it between 20 and 21.

Clearly your understanding of how the NFL salary cap works is lacking.

They could have used future option years to spread the cap out, like many teams do. The cap is very flexible if ownership is willing to spend future capital today

 

[Ring 6]

Clearly your understanding of how the NFL salary cap works is lacking.

They could have used future option years to spread the cap out, like many teams do. The cap is very flexible if ownership is willing to spend future capital today

You have a fantasy view of the reality they faced.

 

[Ring 6]

The cap issue for 2020 is such a BS excuse.

The Pats had a ton of future cap space, so much that they used 154mil in FA the following year.

The Pats FO could of opened up tons of cap space in 2020 by extending/restructuring contracts.

In fact, in 2020 Brady had a huge dead cap space built into his contract, I believe it was 18mil, that would have been easily pushed down the road.

Brady wanted a guaranteed contract, more respect from his HC, and to have some input in receiving weapons. As you said, the passing game fell off a cliff once Brady lost Gordon and teams could double Edelman and White every snap.

If Mac builds upon his rookie season then it's luck, not foresight that led to him. He wasn't on the roster when Brady left or even in that draft class.

No need to make excuses and just call a spade a spade. The organization allowed the GOAT QB who is still on top to leave without a succession plan

It’s fact. Having kept Brady would have made no moves possible to improve the team from 19 to 20 and eliminated the majority of what they used to rebuild the team in 21.
I realize for emotional reasons you want to pretend otherwise but that’s the case.

 

[TheRainMaker]

Trading for Sanu was the nail in the coffin of the dying dynasty. Then releasing him less than a year later.

Wow, was that bad.