NEW ARTICLE: 2024 Patriots Season Prediction: A Surprising 9-Win Season With a Dramatic Finish

[Ian]

The relationship was irreparable by the time Billy O came back. Mac didn't trust bill, bill didn't trust Mac. The HC/QB relationship has to be there. In order for there to be some type of fluency that permeates to success. I agree with you. But I tend to lean more on the side the bill/Mac relationship. That was the undoing. Not to rehash as we all lived it unfortunately.

I'm with you Ian, I feel great about maye, and I believe he's special. For some reason I just get the feeling that wolf will always do the best job at identifying talent and trying to pay guys. As we know alot of this has to do with being what 29th or something in spending?

I don't think it was that Mac didn't trust Bill. I think there was that need to try and get back on his good side, and things were irreparable unless, by some miracle, Jones turned into an unbelievable player. As you said, that HC/QB relationship needed to be there and it was too far gone at that point. Albeit, how Belichick handled the situation in 2022 when Zappe was in there didn't help the situation. He didn't back the kid after he got hurt merely three games in, creating a controversy.

That then set up that horrendous situation against Chicago, which, to me, was the turning point. Bill should have said, "Mac's our quarterback, and when he's healthy, he'll play. Until then, Zappe will continue to be out there, and he's done a great job for us." That would have let Zappe garner some more experience, and Mac would have had a couple of more weeks to get his ankle back to 100%. At least then, if there was going to be any "controversy", it would have come after Mac was fully healthy and Zappe had played a couple of more games.

The whole thing was handled badly, and I'm pretty sure Bill would admit that. But, again, it is what it is. We're on to the next chapter.

 

[Real fan 02]

I don't think it was that Mac didn't trust Bill. I think there was that need to try and get back on his good side, and things were irreparable unless, by some miracle, Jones turned into an unbelievable player. As you said, that HC/QB relationship needed to be there and it was too far gone at that point. Albeit, how Belichick handled the situation in 2022 when Zappe was in there didn't help the situation. He didn't back the kid after he got hurt merely three games in, creating a controversy.

That then set up that horrendous situation against Chicago, which, to me, was the turning point. Bill should have said, "Mac's our quarterback, and when he's healthy, he'll play. Until then, Zappe will continue to be out there, and he's done a great job for us." That would have let Zappe garner some more experience, and Mac would have had a couple of more weeks to get his ankle back to 100%. At least then, if there was going to be any "controversy", it would have come after Mac was fully healthy and Zappe had played a couple of more games.

The whole thing was handled badly, and I'm pretty sure Bill would admit that. But, again, it is what it is. We're on to the next chapter.

To clarify, I meant Mac didn't trust bill in a sense that he wasn't put in the best situations. Curran even mentioned this countless times on NBC sports Boston. But everything you've posted I agree with. I believe we're both making the same points just relaying it differently. Mac rushed back not being 100% that season as well. I remember Mac telling his team don't count him out to play that next week in GB. I believe he rushed back worrying about job security.

The 2022 coaching decisions, the 4-13 -season and the last few drafts all are culminating reasons why we have Drake and coach mayo.

 

[Boomer B]

Once you start getting injury issues and you’re an older player it's never a good thing. People have in thier minds the Rodgers in green bay. He didn't look that great in NY before he got hurt. Coming off an injury going against our front I don't think Saleh has him dropping back to often.

We were 27th in the league in sacks last year. When did “our front” all of a sudden become the ‘85 Bears?

 

[Real fan 02]

We were 27th in the league in sacks last year. When did “our front” all of a sudden become the ‘85 Bears?

Who said anything about the 85 bears? In 2024 NFL standards we have top 5 defense.. sacks don't tell the whole story it's about pressures as well.

 

[Boomer B]

Who said anything about the 85 bears? In 2024 NFL standards we have top 5 defense.. sacks don't tell the whole story it's about pressures as well.

We were 24th in pressure rate.

 

[Real fan 02]

We were 24th in pressure rate.

Ok. We were missing our 2 best players. Watching them last season they looked pretty dam good to the naked eye. How'd our offense look last season?

 

[Boomer B]

Ok. We were missing our 2 best players. Watching them last season they looked pretty dam good to the naked eye. How'd our offense look last season?

Like ****

 

[reflexblue]

More like LSD is a hell of a drug, because Ian must be trippin. Although anything can happen

 

[Ian]

We were 27th in the league in sacks last year. When did “our front” all of a sudden become the ‘85 Bears?

I believe they were among the best in the league through the first four weeks prior to Judon going down. Don’t forget, he went down in Week 4 and already had 4 sacks and 9 QB hits.

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They had 10 sacks total as a team at that point and 20 Qb hits. They finished the remaining 13 games with just 26 sacks and 58 QB hits, and Barmore was responsible for 7.5 sacks, and he had 15 of those hits while Bentley had 4.5 sacks and 10 QB hits, so those two were responsible for almost half of that QB hit total.

Judon’s loss (and Ekuale’s too given the start he had) was big. They likely would have had a pretty good year overall if they hadn’t gone down.

 

[Ian]

More like LSD is a hell of a drug, because Ian must be trippin. Although anything can happen

Again, looking at the overall picture, it’s tough. But when you go week-by-week, it feels different.

Just like during the season. For most of the year, save for a couple of tough opponents, it never felt like they didn’t have a shot. Even as negative as some people can be at times, I don’t think anyone has their chances at slim to none heading into a given week during the season.

Although, as I mentioned, this is under the assumption they improve week-to-week and nothing horrific happens. I’d like to think the mess we saw the last two years is behind them, but we’ll see.

 

[Real fan 02]

Like ****

**** looked better.