NOT splurging at the trade deadline was a MASTERSTROKE!

[TomPatriot]

If a great player in the NFC became available and was a position of need, the Pats likely would have pulled the trigger.

Many of the trades that did happen originated from AFC teams and in most cases not really positions of need for the Pats.

I don’t think the Pats would have hesitated or worried about team chemistry if the situation was right.

Good point but I think we’re all overthinking the trade deadline. The Patriots (and many other teams) looked at the market and thought everything they wanted was overpriced.

 

[Joey007]

The message sent to the locker room by NOT trading for an expensive "fixer" or two will only further galvanize team unity. It's a ringing endorsement of the Diggs-coined battlecry, "We all we got! We all we need!"

Vrabel knows what he's doing in forging a winning culture for now and the long haul. By contrast, consider the Jete trashing team morale by shipping off their two star defenders while their star running back begged to be traded.

We also can’t help that the Titans care more about grudges than their own future success.

 

[KCSVEN]

Not sure if this was posted already but crazy if true

 

[Patsfan1645]

Not sure if this was posted already but crazy if true

Didnt she fire Vrabel???? If so why is she so....

 

[The Gr8est]

Not sure if this was posted already but crazy if true

Future headline.

“Titans deliberately lose to ensure the Pats got a tougher opponent in the playoffs.”

Imagine following a team whose owner doesn’t have the best interest of the team first and foremost.

 

[stinkypete]

The only realistic option I was interested in was Phillips, and Miami trading an established player in division was always going to be a longshot.

 

[VJCPatriot]

Not really. Here's Bill praising the JJM pick.

Here's Bill talking about Drake. He clearly doesn't love the pick, has some good things to say and some bad things.

More of Bill not gushing about Maye.


So, splitting hairs, did Bill actually SAY on the air that he advocated JJM over Maye specifically? No. After 20 some odd years of watching the man and listening to what what he says, can it be inferred that Bill would have taken JJM over Maye? I believe yes.

BB is literally glazing McCarthy on draft day. We all know in our heart of hearts if he was still in charge of the draft room he would have traded out of #3 and taken McCarthy instead of Maye.

BB is known for taking his binkies rather than listening to the scouts. That's how we got guys like N'Keal Harry taken in the 1st instead of much more deserving picks. I've also heard BB almost drafted Keion White in round 1 over Gonzalez and had to be talked out of it. Imagine what a disaster that would have been? His binkie was still available in round 2 and that's why the Keion White flop pick "only" cost us day 2 draft capital.

Article BB wanted White over Gonzalez: Report: Bill Belichick Wanted Patriots To Draft Keion White Over Christian Gonzalez

 

[VJCPatriot]

- A good coverage LB was a glaring need. I know everyone wants an Edge but when the QB is getting the ball out in record time with short passes, an Edge isn’t going to help nearly as much as an LB. In Vrabel I trust.

Wasn't Mapu drafted by BB to be that coverage LB/safety hybrid? He's considerably undersized for a traditional BB linebacker at 230 lbs.

It's his 3rd year now and he barely sees the field.

 

[signbabybrady]

BB is literally glazing McCarthy on draft day. We all know in our heart of hearts if he was still in charge of the draft room he would have traded out of #3 and taken McCarthy instead of Maye.

BB is known for taking his binkies rather than listening to the scouts. That's how we got guys like N'Keal Harry taken in the 1st instead of much more deserving picks. I've also heard BB almost drafted Keion White in round 1 over Gonzalez and had to be talked out of it. Imagine what a disaster that would have been? His binkie was still available in round 2 and that's why the Keion White flop pick "only" cost us day 2 draft capital.

Article BB wanted White over Gonzalez: Report: Bill Belichick Wanted Patriots To Draft Keion White Over Christian Gonzalez

This is why making assumptions based on one comment made as a commentator is absolutely pointless and indicates nothing.

You point out that Bill potentially wanted White but was convinced to go with Zo.

The same scouts and personnel guys that chose Drake would have been in Bill's ear all off-season leading up to the draft.

Drake was the best player on the board to assume Bill and the same scouts would have reached any other conclusion is just a bunch of biased BS.

 

[mike_usagisan]

Wasn't Mapu drafted by BB to be that coverage LB/safety hybrid? He's considerably undersized for a traditional BB linebacker at 230 lbs.

It's his 3rd year now and he barely sees the field.

Yep. Didn't work out, so now we're drafting guys for Vrabel's defense. It's very much a position of need.

 

[jdlboot14]

Ya, maybe RB or DE would be able to help this year, but most other positions of need would take too long to get up to speed to really be synchronized. So, may as well play this out and build true chemistry with core team.

 

[One-If-By-Sea]

yes, a 3rd is extreme unless you think that you are one of the 4-6 teams with a chance at the SB (or you have confidence of signing an extension.

But what about the rest?

You opened your post with utter nonsense in all caps. All caps means you are screaming at us. After screaming UTTER NONSENSE at us, you ask about the rest of the post? After people scream at me, I don't read the rest. Learn Internet etiquette.

 

[Zuma]

Wasn't Mapu drafted by BB to be that coverage LB/safety hybrid? He's considerably undersized for a traditional BB linebacker at 230 lbs.

It's his 3rd year now and he barely sees the field.

He makes a play here and there but we should be getting much more out of that position. At some point you got to say it's time to move on or push him down the depth chart with better talent. I really wanted him to be productive at LB.

 

[VJCPatriot]

Didnt she fire Vrabel???? If so why is she so....

There's petty. There's spiteful. And then there's a woman scorned. The latter is by far the most scary beast of them all!

 

[mgteich]

Wasn't Mapu drafted by BB to be that coverage LB/safety hybrid? He's considerably undersized for a traditional BB linebacker at 230 lbs.

It's his 3rd year now and he barely sees the field.

mapu has succeeded as a Ster.

I see few if any need for him to have defensive reps, except in there is an injury (same as Austin).

 

[mgteich]

You opened your post with utter nonsense in all caps. All caps means you are screaming at us. After screaming UTTER NONSENSE at us, you ask about the rest of the post? After people scream at me, I don't read the rest. Learn Internet etiquette.

I apologize.

Shouting is indeed toward everyone. I should have been more firm in more directed comments

Perhaps, since the poster is a regular and usually a reasonable poster, I might have suggested that I must have surely misinterpreted his post. The first sentence was indeed "utter nonsense". There were many players that will help their teams acquired at less than a king's ransom. There are several playoff teams that happily improved their rosters. Mediots are just that, but these trades were analyzed and some got an A or B for both teams involved. For me, I am very happy that BUF didn't improve its WR roster.

Even some "minor trades" will help, such as the LAC getting an OT who is below average, but serviceable for a team in panic at the position.
I think that PIT acquiring Dugger falls in that category. LAC and PIT are marginally better teams at almost no cost.

"The NFL trade deadline = fool's gold, IMO. For anything making a tangible difference you have to pay a king's ransom."

 

[Hugepatsfan]

BB is literally glazing McCarthy on draft day. We all know in our heart of hearts if he was still in charge of the draft room he would have traded out of #3 and taken McCarthy instead of Maye.

BB is known for taking his binkies rather than listening to the scouts. That's how we got guys like N'Keal Harry taken in the 1st instead of much more deserving picks. I've also heard BB almost drafted Keion White in round 1 over Gonzalez and had to be talked out of it. Imagine what a disaster that would have been? His binkie was still available in round 2 and that's why the Keion White flop pick "only" cost us day 2 draft capital.

Article BB wanted White over Gonzalez: Report: Bill Belichick Wanted Patriots To Draft Keion White Over Christian Gonzalez

Don't disagree with you, but I also hate the way this is framed. You're never going to have full consensus on everything. Someone has to make the final say. It's ok that BB disagreed with his scouts sometimes. You cited an awful example in Harry where he whiffed, but same stories came out about Jamie Collins. Over the course of 25 years the decisions BB made - agreeing or disagreeing with his scouts - worked out pretty well. I wish we'd stop zeroing in on the bad, even though I understand there was way more bad than good at the end. It's more than balanced by the waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more good than bad over his time here though.

 

[n1997y]

I think you are reading too much into what the info is trying to do. The Patriots are less likely to give away draft capital because they need to build up more home-grown talent. Yeah, it is as of 9/1 because it's showing what Vrabel had coming into the job. The team is good but thin, the easiest way to maintain success will be through homegrown players added to depth. Drafted players reduce overall cap vs free agents and allow you to pay the players you need to while maintaining success. That's the point. Draft picks are more important to the Pats at this point than some other teams in contention.

I’m not disagreeing with what you just said. But it seems pretty clear to me what that infographic is trying to do. It’s trying to promote a slanted agenda, not to cultivate insight.

I agree that the Patriots should be less inclined to get rid of draft capital, contrary to the trade deadline uproar. That piece could have made a better contribution if it had been more positive I think. By focusing on the past it came across as steeped in our traditional negativity, and that’s what I didn’t like, because it’s incomplete.

If it had included the more recent developments and focused more on Vrabel’s improvements I think it would’ve been a lot better. It could still have used the same history and made the same points, but in a more positive and encouraging way by incorporating more recent information showing improvements.

I’m also considering the source. Bedard’s track record seems consistent with my view that he was digging deep for old muck to throw, more than shining a light to illuminate what’s happening with the team now. Thing is, I don’t view him as a good faith source. I’m skeptical that he really has any desire to show improvements, or promote improvements, because there’s good money to be made tearing things down. YMMV, that’s just my impression.

 

[Wozzy]

The inference is that we should have only considered GREAT players rather than looking for upgrades.

Trades only work when two parties can agree. Sometimes the best trade is the one you didn’t make. You’re assuming there was a smart deal to be made.

 

[mgteich]

Trades only work when two parties can agree. Sometimes the best trade is the one you didn’t make. You’re assuming there was a smart deal to be made.

Many teams were able to find trade partners, especially for minor deals. Perhaps Vrabel just wasn't very interested, especially after Jennings performed well last week.