SI.com article on the agents who try to negotiate with Patriots.

[jmt57]

Surface scratching article....never delving into the consequences achieved by frugal spending....aka ....quality depth ...that keeps NE in the win column later in seasons while injured marquis players on star-dependent teams teams speed up their death spiral.
No mention of NE's ranking in total cap spending.

Agreed.

The premise of the article is that the Patriots are cheap and spend less, but are able to do so because of Brady and the team's winning ways.

The absence of any mention that the Pats are then able to use that money on the middle and bottom of the roster is a considerable and important omission. That is a careless and lackadaisical exclusion that detracts from what could have been a fine insightful column.

 

[patfanken]

I disagree with most of you. While I found the article amusing, it told me nothing I didn't already know. It gave us a stereotypical view of the Pats as the "evil empire" and cheap. All the info was given to us by self serving " blood sucking agents" who will naturally put the Pats in a bad light since they are one team they can't browbeat into overpaying for raw talent. Plus the article is FILLED with misinformation and inuendo

First Brady IS paid like a top QB in the league. I read something this summer that over a period of the last 5 or so years (I can't remember the time frame), no QB has made more money than Brady. (note Rodgers will go by him in 2017). So the fact Brady is 27th in cap value this season is the result of how they constructed his contracts, not by how much they pay him. For the most part Brady gets his money up front, and they structure his contract so it be cap friendly at the end, rather than the way most teams do it. @Miguel can better explain the details, but he can confirm that Brady has never been underpaid.

And then there is the backhanded "cheating" inuendo with the TB12 business. Why am I not shocked to see that old chestnut thrown in.

What I read for the most part are the whinings of but hurt egotistical agents who couldn't get BB to cowtow to their demands and this writer gave them an outlet to get back at the team.

BTW- there were 2 truisms I got from this article and made it worth reading. One, the Pats aren't going to pay 50% more for a playe who might only be 10% better. The 2nd is that the Pats WILL pay top dollor for good players who are dependable, buy in, and are leaders.....and they ALWAYS have.

A point that they don't mention is how well the Pats treat their "middle class" players. They use Edelman as an example of the Pats lowballing him, but neglect to mention the fact that when he was a FA no one offerred him a better deal than the Pats. They fail to mention the reason they have one of the best RT's in the league at a team friendly contract is that they had the foresight to extend him when he was far from the best RT in the league.

You can't pay all your great players if you want to build a roster deep enough to absorb the attrition of an normal NFL season. If your backups arent any good your season can go down the toilet very quickly when highest paid players are on the sideline.

BTW- BB has never said come here to win a superbowl. He is saying "come here and every year you will have a CHANCE to win a superbowl. There's a difference.

In the end that article was just a C-

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Tough, but fair grade

 

[n1997y]

I was talking contractually.

I was including that. Point is, contract numbers aren't all there is to life. Consider that the difference between $20million and $25million is just about Chris Hogan. Lots of QBs maximize their personal compensation at the expense of team competitiveness. Once they've got enough to be set for life what's the point of being selfish and going for the jugular in contract negotiations?

 

[n1997y]

They're the perfect match and it would be a sin if they broke up with each other.

Seems likely Brady will retire before Belichick's. I expect Bill will enjoy continuing the dynasty with the heir to Brady's position, just to show his role surpassed Brady's. And it looks likely that either JG or Brisket will be able to do that.

 

[n1997y]

When Brady made that famous comment he had a pizza box under his arm. Really want to know the place and why they didn't capitalize off that.

Did Butler give him that pizza?

 

[The Brandon Five]

Agreed.

The premise of the article is that the Patriots are cheap and spend less, but are able to do so because of Brady and the team's winning ways.

The absence of any mention that the Pats are then able to use that money on the middle and bottom of the roster is a considerable and important omission. That is a careless and lackadaisical exclusion that detracts from what could have been a fine insightful column.

They would have a point if the Patriots were always massively under the cap, which they are not.

 

[long distance]

To me this is big part of the point (great early read by young Kraft!):

Shortly after the sale, Bob Kraft’s Harvard Business School-educated son, Jonathan, gave a speech before the 1776 Quarterback Club of New England—a prominent fan group that hosted an annual awards banquet—–and spelled out the family’s vision for a team that had won just 19 of 80 games from 1989-1993.

The new salary cap that had just been introduced, the younger Kraft explained, was one of the biggest reasons they purchased the club. He believed there were inefficiencies in the market and used a hypothetical to illustrate his point.

Player A makes $2 million per year and is 10% better than Player B, who makes $500,000. Too many teams, Kraft argued, were committing to the marginally better player at the higher price. The Patriots, he said, would prefer the cheaper player in nearly every instance.

_

The drooling over splashy plays and players, the fantasy and mocks of it all influence too many decision makers . and Pats are staying sober, taking advantage of the drunken league . and keep winning what seems like against all odds. But the odds are there - made clear in quoted paragraph.

 

[NormZauchin]

Were some of those agents spreading scurrilous lies about his work ethic?

Actually, I think Belichick pretended to go on vacation. Took the ferry over to Nantucket, took his boat Six Rings for a jaunt around the harbor, went back home and went to bed. Was at Gillette the next morning at 6 AM.

 

[long distance]

The absence of any mention that the Pats are then able to use that money on the middle and bottom of the roster is a considerable and important omission. That is a careless and lackadaisical exclusion that detracts from what could have been a fine insightful column.

A point that they don't mention is how well the Pats treat their "middle class" players.

While partly true . the Pats paying middle class mantra is a bit overblown as well. Most teams do that as well. Below is a good overview of the salary structure across the league noting Pats are around average in every category (top contracts, middle and low). They are slightly above average in the 5-10M range and this is where Brady's cca. $10M less cap hit (due to discount and smart restructures) comes into play (Pats are maybe the only team that doesn't have a single 15+M cap hit over last five years)

Its more about who they pay and how well they use what they have to offer. While Pats financial vision and discipline are fascinating . the good old coaching should get the credit it deserves ..

 

[1960Pats]

I was including that. Point is, contract numbers aren't all there is to life. Consider that the difference between $20million and $25million is just about Chris Hogan. Lots of QBs maximize their personal compensation at the expense of team competitiveness. Once they've got enough to be set for life what's the point of being selfish and going for the jugular in contract negotiations?

I think there have been plenty of players who were 'set for life' that still wanted top dollar. There's probably many on the other side of that coin too.

The Pats are in a unique position. They can tell a potential player that the team gives them the best shot at a title and they wouldn't be lying.

 

[Lavictoire]

They really misfired on Ochocinco unfortunately.

 

[convertedpatsfan]

“My response is, that’s a lot of conversation coming from a team an agent that just lost another game contract negotiation.” - Bill Belichick (kind of).

This just reeks of sour grapes from agents who promised the moon, then couldn't deliver to their clients.

This team has consistently shown that they have values on guys, and more often than not, they've been proven correct. At the same time, if they absolutely value a guy, he gets paid. Look at McCourty's deal. BB knew how valuable he was, and he over-extended himself to keep him.

At the same time, he knew Welker was overvalued by himself, his agent, and the media, and stood firm. And if you ask Welker's agent off the record about the negotiation, he can either say:

a) I ****ed it up royally, or
b) BB is an ******* and here's why

This is like high school gossip girl-style ******** from a bunch of supposedly grown men. Grow some balls and man up or shut the **** up.

 

[shmessy]

Geez, that last part about Butler's agent......I had no idea. Wow. That will be an interesting dynamic.

Great piece by Klemko. That was jam packed with great insight I had never seen.

 

[Miguel]

I tweeted at Robert Klemko about how Brady was once the league's highest player in 2010 and how other Patriots have been made the highest players at their position. He was very defensive. Mentioned the absolute lack of interest in Edelman in free agency. No response. I shared @patfanken 's take on the article.

Mentions the Boston Globe article but does not share the quotes from the NFL and the NFLPA about their quotes on the arrangement.

"The NFL has raised no such concerns, telling the Globe in a statement, “We are aware of the arrangement and have not determined that there is any violation of the CBA [collective bargaining agreement].’’

The NFL Players Association said the arrangement between the Patriots and Brady’s center “has no implication on the salary cap.’’

The union and the NFL declined to discuss the matter in detail."

 

[Miguel]

How does one write an article about Tom Brady and the Patriots salary cap and

1. NOT mention Gisele?
2. NOT mention Gisele?
3. NOT mention Gisele?
4. NOT mention that the Patriots have typically extended Brady with two years left on his deal so he has never come close to hitting true free agency.

 

[shmessy]

When Brady made that famous comment he had a pizza box under his arm. Really want to know the place and why they didn't capitalize off that.

Stop an Shop - frozen section.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

How does one write an article about Tom Brady and the Patriots salary cap and

1. NOT mention Gisele?
2. NOT mention Gisele?
3. NOT mention Gisele?
4. NOT mention that the Patriots have typically extended Brady with two years left on his deal so he has never come close to hitting true free agency.

I just hope Miguel's lovely wife does not know about his obsession with Gisele.

 

[patfanken]

I tweeted at Robert Klemko about how Brady was once the league's highest player in 2010 and how other Patriots have been made the highest players at their position. He was very defensive. Mentioned the absolute lack of interest in Edelman in free agency. No response. I shared @patfanken 's take on the article.

Mentions the Boston Globe article but does not share the quotes from the NFL and the NFLPA about their quotes on the arrangement.

"The NFL has raised no such concerns, telling the Globe in a statement, “We are aware of the arrangement and have not determined that there is any violation of the CBA [collective bargaining agreement].’’

The NFL Players Association said the arrangement between the Patriots and Brady’s center “has no implication on the salary cap.’’

The union and the NFL declined to discuss the matter in detail."

....amd yet ANOTHER udeserved cheating inuendo get published into a world that is alsready prone to think the Pats cheat. GOD it's frustrating.

The problem is that I bet 99% of the meida who have done any studying on deflategate KNOW that the Pats were hosed by Goodell, BUT by saying flat out that that's what happened, ruins all the future story lines. The Evil empire goes away. You stop feeding the hater audience. That's a big audience that needs to be feed, so the inuendo get thrown in, DESPITE the complete lack of substance. It's just SO unfair.

 

[borisman]

Other teams will employ this negotiating strategy. It will then follow by collusion talk and the Pats will be accused of starting this trend. $1M fine and loss of draft pick.