Bill Belichick Press Conference 7:30am (1/8/24)

[vicspats]

Where is that Kraft quote? If Kraft said he wouldn't pay Brady as a top QB, that would have been a major story in this town. I mean as big as Brady leaving. And Kraft would never say that because Kraft is way too concerned about his image and would never say publicly that he wouldn't pay the greatest QB of all time coming off his sixth Super Bowl win with the team top QB money. Would never happen.

You are either misinterpreting what he said or just hearing what you want to hear. Kraft has many times talked about the value of having a starting QB on his rookie deal and how gives you cap flexibility, but I am positive he has never said he wouldn't pay Brady top dollar because of cap ramifications. Even if he didn't give a top contract because of cap ramifications, Kraft would never say that publicly because it would put him and the team in a bad light. And Kraft is way too media savvy for that.

I am basing things on what has been reported. Not imaginary quotes that would have been talk show fodder for years, but the talk shows seem to have completely ignored. Felger and Mazz alone would have talked about a comment like this for years.

But I will give you credit. Unlike me, you make a claim of something Kraft said and you provided a link to a story backing it up. Thank you for posting the link to Kraft saying he wouldn't pay Brady top dollar on itisallmadeupinmyhead.com.

Now that’s funny …

 

[vicspats]

O

Again, you are assuming that Belichick refused to trade Brady because he didn't want to give him up and not because, as reported, he was ordered to keep him. We probably never know the truth. It doesn't matter the timeline.

And again, I am not talking about whether or not Belichick tried to get Brady talent in 2019. All I was talking about is the relationship between the two men. In fact, if Belichick felt he did try everything to get Brady talent and Brady was complaining, that would probably sour Belichick on Brady even more.

Or if Brady went behind Bills back and went direct to Kraft. Three ego maniacs pointing fingers. Never ends well.

 

[upstater1]

Ok, I looked at the Lynch quote. Belichick told Lynch for F-off about both QBs. He said that he called for Garoppolo and was quickly was told he wasn't up for a trade and then he claimed he figured he take a shot at asking for Brady and was then hung up on. It was at a time that neither QB was up for a trade and based on Lynch's comments, I don't even know how serious the ask was or taken.

So if timelines are so important, then you are talking about a time before Belichick was willing to let either guy go.

Here is Lynch's quote:

PMT: Did you ask for Tom Brady?

Lynch: I’m not supposed to talk about that.

[laughter]

Lynch: Yeah, we were calling about Jimmy, and we did have that conversation and got quickly rebuffed. I figured, ‘You know, what the heck, you’ve got to take your shot, right? You can’t score if you don’t shoot.’ So I had to summon up the courage — and yeah, Bill laughed at me. He basically hung up on me, but hey, I took my shot.

John Lynch confirms he asked Bill Belichick about a trade for Tom Brady

John Lynch has done an admirable job since taking over as the general manger of the wayward San Francisco 49ers, but his shining achievement thus far is engineering the trade for Jimmy Garoppolo. The Patriots held tightly to their backup quarterback -- pegged as the heir to…

patriotswire.usatoday.com

This is the October phone call.

He wasn't rebuffed on Garoppolo.

The Spring 2017 phone call was also about both QBs. That's the one that was rebuffed on both.

But the reason I'm emphasizing that one is that Belichick could've even entertained or listened to what Lynch had to offer, but he didn't even let him make an offer.

You'd figure that if Belichick wanted to move on from Brady (as Wickersham claimed) then he'd at least listen to offers. But he didn't. Wickersham claims Kraft put his foot down sometime after meeting with Brady in October. So it could've happened sometime that month. But that is long after Belichick refused to listen to offers for Brady, so there was no moment when Kraft put his foot down before the offseason refusal to trade Brady

 

[RIpats88]

Bill basically put the ball in krafts court and said “go ahead and fire me, I want to be here I’ll give up GM duties!”

Now Kraft probably all nervous about how he will look if he both let Brady leave and then outright fired Bill at the end. Sadly not how I expected the end of the dynasty to go

Actually a smart shrewd move by Bill.

 

[festy1986]

Bill basically put the ball in krafts court and said “go ahead and fire me, I want to be here I’ll give up GM duties!”

Now Kraft probably all nervous about how he will look if he both let Brady leave and then outright fired Bill at the end. Sadly not how I expected the end of the dynasty to go

Actually a smart shrewd move by Bill.

Bill gave him the perfect out.

Most of us would accept a new GM and retaining Bill.

 

[Rob0729]

This is the October phone call.

He wasn't rebuffed on Garoppolo.

The Spring 2017 phone call was also about both QBs. That's the one that was rebuffed on both.

But the reason I'm emphasizing that one is that Belichick could've even entertained or listened to what Lynch had to offer, but he didn't even let him make an offer.

You'd figure that if Belichick wanted to move on from Brady (as Wickersham claimed) then he'd at least listen to offers. But he didn't. Wickersham claims Kraft put his foot down sometime after meeting with Brady in October. So it could've happened sometime that month. But that is long after Belichick refused to listen to offers for Brady, so there was no moment when Kraft put his foot down before the offseason refusal to trade Brady

Read the article. Lynch said he called during the offseason of 2017 when all the other teams were trying to get Garoppolo and the Pats said they wouldn't trade Garoppolo for "four first round picks". Here is what it said:

That phone call actually took place early in the 2017 offseason, before the NFL Draft, when the Patriots were still unwilling to hear any trade offers for Garoppolo. However Lynch and 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan kept the young QB on their radar.

Wickersham shares more intriguing Brady-Belichick details from new book

ESPN’s Seth Wickersham joined NBC Sports Boston on Wednesday to discuss notable topics from his new book, which includes details about the conflict between Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft at One Patriot Place.

www.nbcsportsboston.com

And I think Wickersham said Belichick wanted to move on from Brady after the 2017 season. I don't think Belichick had any intention to move on from either QB until after the season until Kraft told Belichick to trade Garoppolo. But the fact is, Lynch doesn't contradict Wickersham. The Pats were just coming off a Super Bowl in the spring of 2017. They weren't going to let Brady go at that point. Didn't mean that Belichick wasn't going to move on after the 2017 season if the Pats didn't win back to back.

 

[RIpats88]

Bill gave him the perfect out.

Most of us would accept a new GM and retaining Bill.

He did, but also if Kraft fires him now he’s basically saying my well I wanted to stay. Now pay me my $25million.

No other reason to mention the contract.

 

[festy1986]

He did, but also if Kraft fires him now he’s basically saying my well I wanted to stay. Now pay me my $25million.

No other reason to mention the contract.

We ain't gonna find out today anyway. The NFL isn't gonna step on the college football championship with major news like this and Kraft isn't gonna send Bill out black Monday with the rest of the bums.

 

[upstater1]

Bill gave him the perfect out.

Most of us would accept a new GM and retaining Bill.

There's literally no difference between a new GM and Bill. Every GM in the league confers with coaches as to schemes and preferred players. Only the Commanders do it otherwise, and look where it got them.

Why do you think it was so easy for Belichick to say that? He doesn't watch scouting tape. He knows that when it comes to players, the head personnel/GM will always put a heavy heavy weight on his preferences.

 

[Kdo5]

Taking this to the next logical conclusion, Bill's daring shows he either knows or has concluded that the Krafts are not going to fire him.

Otherwise IMO he'd be setting up for a graceful exit instead of "moving on to next season".

Agreed. Bill knows Robert well. Robert places a lot of importance on his reputation and being well regarded.

I believe that Bill was being very calculated with his press conference this morning. He expressed a desire to remain and vocalized that he would make concessions in his authority in order to stay. That puts Robert in an even more difficult position. It would’ve been easier to cut ties if Bill grumbled during the press conference and showed inflexibility.

The Krafts seem pretty indecisive and I assume Bill recognizes that weakness and will use it to his advantage. We shall see.

 

[upstater1]

Read the article. Lynch said he called during the offseason of 2017 when all the other teams were trying to get Garoppolo and the Pats said they wouldn't trade Garoppolo for "four first round picks". Here is what it said:

That phone call actually took place early in the 2017 offseason, before the NFL Draft, when the Patriots were still unwilling to hear any trade offers for Garoppolo. However Lynch and 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan kept the young QB on their radar.

Wickersham shares more intriguing Brady-Belichick details from new book

ESPN’s Seth Wickersham joined NBC Sports Boston on Wednesday to discuss notable topics from his new book, which includes details about the conflict between Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft at One Patriot Place.

www.nbcsportsboston.com

And I think Wickersham said Belichick wanted to move on from Brady after the 2017 season. I don't think Belichick had any intention to move on from either QB until after the season until Kraft told Belichick to trade Garoppolo. But the fact is, Lynch doesn't contradict Wickersham. The Pats were just coming off a Super Bowl in the spring of 2017. They weren't going to let Brady go at that point. Didn't mean that Belichick wasn't going to move on after the 2017 season if the Pats didn't win back to back.

I just cannot understand how you come to your conclusions when the timeline totally contradicts them.

They called on Brady in that spring and were told no.

So there's no way Belichick even considered a trade since he wouldn't even hear an offer. It definitely wasn't because Kraft put his foot down, as Wickersham claimed happened in October.

So there's no way Belichick responded with a no to Lynch based on Kraft's insistence.

Garoppolo was moving on no matter what since he was out of contract. People here were discussing the franchise tag for him.

A huge number of the members of this board thought that any trade value we'd get for him was less valuable than having him as insurance in case of a Brady injury.

But it's clear that Belichick at no time wanted to trade Brady, either before Kraft weighed in, nor after.

 

[upstater1]

Agreed. Bill knows Robert well. Robert places a lot of importance on his reputation and being well regarded.

I believe that Bill was being very calculated with his press conference this morning. He expressed a desire to remain and vocalized that he would make concessions in his authority in order to stay. That puts Robert in an even more difficult position. It would’ve been easier to cut ties if Bill grumbled during the press conference and showed inflexibility.

The Krafts seem pretty indecisive and I assume Bill can see that weakness and use it to his advantage. We shall see.

Kraft is risking everything here for an extra $10m. I've always defended the guy, and I thought accusations against him were ugly due to ethnicity, but here I'm thinking the opposite. Every team eats a coach's contract, and in this regard, the money is a lot less than what most coaches are owed.

McDaniels was guaranteed $60m for 6 seasons, which dwarfs the remainder of Belichick's deal.

What the heck is Kraft doing?

This is going to soil his reputation.

 

[Love The Drake]

r

Kraft is risking everything here for an extra $10m. I've always defended the guy, and I thought accusations against him were ugly due to ethnicity, but here I'm thinking the opposite. Every team eats a coach's contract, and in this regard, the money is a lot less than what most coaches are owed.

McDaniels was guaranteed $60m for 6 seasons, which dwarfs the remainder of Belichick's deal.

What the heck is Kraft doing?

This is going to soil his reputation.

6 and 11 next season things are looking up.

 

[dliverey44]

I gotta be honest I have a hard time believing that Bill will just give up GM duties when he would not allow BoB to bring in more than 1 offensive coach. Bill has always made moves that he believes are in the teams best interest and now that is being put to the test ,hypocrisy is not a good look on him.

 

[festy1986]

There's literally no difference between a new GM and Bill. Every GM in the league confers with coaches as to schemes and preferred players. Only the Commanders do it otherwise, and look where it got them.

Why do you think it was so easy for Belichick to say that? He doesn't watch scouting tape. He knows that when it comes to players, the head personnel/GM will always put a heavy heavy weight on his preferences.

We know how it looks when Bill has final say.

Let's see what happens when someone else picks Nacua when we're in desperate need of offensive help instead.

 

[TommyD4207]

Bill basically put the ball in krafts court and said “go ahead and fire me, I want to be here I’ll give up GM duties!”

Now Kraft probably all nervous about how he will look if he both let Brady leave and then outright fired Bill at the end. Sadly not how I expected the end of the dynasty to go

Actually a smart shrewd move by Bill.

Checkers/Chess.

 

[varjao]

Kraft will handle this poorly, I mean no actions so far I shouldn't use future tense

Next season starts today

 

[vicspats]

Chuckleheads or people who are thinking logically and understand another season of Belichick cannot work?

Hey if it’s ovah its ovah.. Love the fact Bill ain’t goin down without a fight thou… And by chuckleheads I mean ,… “when in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout”…Wouk

 

[VJCPatriot]

I was specific. You're not specific. Which means there's no substance about what you're saying.

It's just the things radio guys put in your head and which you repeat like a little sheep.

If you want to write something with substance, go ahead.

You can also be specifically wrong in your blind support for Belichick.

Please cite a single instance where I mention a "radio guy" in support of a single one of my conclusions and you can't because I haven't.

Specificity doesn't mean right, it just means a more narrow scope of discussion.

Let's discuss a few specific points.

This year the Patriots offense scored a historic low 13.9 points per season. For historic comparison purposes you have to go all the way back to 1938 to find the NFL on average scoring less than that at 13.4 points per team. Meanwhile in 1940 the league averaged 15.2 points per team. This puts the Patriots offensive comparable squarely in the DINOSAUR age of football.

The Patriots AWFUL drafting decisions under Belichick over a decade of poor drafts, gave us general deficiencies on offense that resulted in the disaster of the recently completed 2023/24 season. To explain it simply - many specific mistakes, accumulated over a long period of time eventually add up to a talent drain which makes your team unable to compete on offense.

For discussion of the draft, there are countless FAILS by BB but let's limit ourselves to 3 specific examples for the sake of brevity: N'Keal Harry, Cole Strange, Tyquan Thornton. All taken early and representing significant draft capital.

Harry - a dinosaur of a pick who couldn't create any separation and had no speed - but to BB's eyes seemed like a good pick because he was tall, strong, could potentially end up a good blocker with his strength, and more importantly to BB nailed the interview. Harry ended up an awful pick for obvious production, ability, and attitude reasons.

Cole Strange - picking a GUARD in the 1st round is beyond awful in terms of modern draft value. But of course BB chose to go old school and FAILED. If you pick a guard in Round 1 at the very least they need to turn out all-pro caliber like Logan Mankins but he's not. He looks decidedly mediocre. A waste of early draft capital and another missed opportunity.

Tyquan Thornton - the second invisible man BB drafted to play WR. This was an Al Davis era pick - just take a really fast guy who can't run routes or get himself open. Again another huge swing and a miss using dinosaur age type evaluation methods.

BB's accumulation of errors and blunders in drafting discussed above, picking the coaching staffing - do we need to remind you specifically of Patricia/Judge fiasco, the mismanagement of Mac Jones development, and free agency - not adding a starting caliber OT, taking JuJu Schuster-Smith and letting Jakobi Meyers walk well it all adds up to the stinking poop pile that was the Patriots 2023-24 season.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to convince you or trying to get a dinosaur to change its stripes.

But there needs to be some pushback when people blindly advocate for holding onto the past for outdated or for purely sentimental reasons.

To state that Belichick's roster construction methods are still good in the modern NFL flies in the face of logic. It ignores recent evidence, goes against current day football metrics and analytics, and is simply FALSE.

BB needs to be kept FAR AWAY from any future Patriots drafting or roster decisions for the GOOD of the franchise.

We can't afford to mess up this upcoming draft where we hold top 3 picks in each round and we can't afford to mess up the impending free agent period where we might have up to 100 million available to spend. That could set back the franchise for YEARS!

Obviously no decision has been made or announced yet concerning BB's future, but I can clearly see reasons ownership might want to move beyond the age of dinosaurs and look for a coach who can win in the modern NFL.

I specifically mentioned Jim Harbaugh as a top candidate and I don't think many in this forum would disagree that he might be a worthy successor if the Patriots can convince him to join and finally decides to move on from dinosaur Bill.

 

[ahmed]

When your offense is 3-and-out repeatedly, and turning the ball over, scoring Defense will suffer.

Yes which is why I said they were good instead of average.