The loss of Blount, Bennett, and Long is going to hurt us

[DarrylS]

When Lawyer Milloy was let go... we were doomed.
When Richard Seymour was traded... the end of the earth was near.
When Logan Mankins was traded... the O line would crumble.
When Mike Vrabel and Cassell were traded... we lost the heart and soul of this team.
When Chandler Jones was traded.. we were losing the best pass rusher of all time.
When Jamie Collins was traded.. the Pats would not recover..
Etc., Etc., Etc....

Come on now fans, we all know better than if a one player or several players leave there is a plan. Do not fall in love with the veterans..

 

[Bruins29]

The more I think

That's the problem

 

[Tunescribe]

When Lawyer Milloy was let go... we were doomed.
When Richard Seymour was traded... the end of the earth was near.
When Logan Mankins was traded... the O line would crumble.
When Mike Vrabel and Cassell were traded... we lost the heart and soul of this team.
When Chandler Jones was traded.. we were losing the best pass rusher of all time.
When Jamie Collins was traded.. the Pats would not recover..
Etc., Etc., Etc....

Come on now fans, we all know better than if a one player or several players leave there is a plan. Do not fall in love with the veterans..

This is not a case of "come on now fans." It's a case of shuddup you moron.

 

[Fixit]

Came to see how the unplayed 2017 season being a disaster is Gilmore's fault. Was not disappointed.

 

[Bruins29]

I think this board has become some kind of weird echo chamber where people have totally unrealistic ideas about the upcoming season, which to my eyes is shaping up to be more like '02 than anything.

Are these the fans who root for the team that has been in 11 of the past 16 AFC championship games (including the last 6) and has been in 7 SBs in that same time period and has won 5?

Because if it is you are a colossal moron.

 

[A Defiant Goose]

Given that it's a physical impossibility for him not to be less effective in that role, your concern isn't relevant. Where your take comes in handy is in whether or not the size part of the equation will matter.

 

[Triumph]

No love for Revis?

We lost him too. Blount, Revis, Long, Collins and Bennet. Oh, ya and Randy Moss.

 

[Triumph]

This team has never recovered losing Charlie Weis.

NEMs letters to Bob Kraft finally drove him out of NE.

 

[TennisBallHead]

The Pats have never fully recovered from the loss of Tully Banta-Cain

 

[TruthSeeker]

The more I think about this the more pessimistic I am. I think this board has become some kind of weird echo chamber where people have totally unrealistic ideas about the upcoming season, which to my eyes is shaping up to be more like '02 than anything.

You have a soul brother in Rob Parker. Of course, he was on this bandwagon back on 2012 (saying Brady would never win another Super Bowl) and has reiterated these thoughts frequently since then (most recently predicting the 2017 Patriots with a washed-up Tom Brady at QB would not make the playoffs which reminds us of 2002, the only year TB hasn't made the playoffs as the starting QB).

But Rob's been pretty lonely looking out from the top of the cliff at the imminent, precipitous drop about to take place. You, sir, can show us all the light as the best time to sell is when everyone is buying. This prediction of yours can be seen as a sign of genius! (or, like Rob Parker, of stupidity)

 

[Tony2046]

So many fans here seem to buy into the ESPN narrative that football is about getting a bunch of people as fast and strong as possible - who have "talent" - and letting them win. But that' just can't be done consistently. Every team tries to get these players.

They win through two things, things which are clear from the all-22 and some analyses out there:

1. They use much sophisticated schemes on offense, and I think on defense, than any other teams.

2. Their players execute with far fewer mistakes than other teams.

3. Their players have the drive and ability to make the kinds of plays that don't show up on their stat lines, their salaries or to casual fans.

That's how they win. Look at say the week 14 Baltimore game, where they won defensively with the constant pre-snap defensive shifts and multiple fake blitzes, with Butler blitzing at one point e.g. Or all the micro presnap adjustments they did on multiple TDs. Or e.g. Edelman's blocking, which led to if I recall three key scoring plays in SBLI. Receivers don't even have blocking stats, at least no one pays for them, but Edelman had multiple key blocks winning SBLI.

Items 1 and 2 require intelligence. The Patriots players have to be smarter than players on other teams - otherwise those players could execute their own complex schemes, and maybe anticipate the Patriots.

Item 3 requires chemistry. You have to find a bunch of guys willing to sacrifice a lot: salary, recognition, sometimes health - just to help the team.

So having smart players on the team is very helpful for (1) and (2). And having players with some wit and deftness is helpful for (3).

The more I think about this the more pessimistic I am. I think this board has become some kind of weird echo chamber where people have totally unrealistic ideas about the upcoming season, which to my eyes is shaping up to be more like '02 than anything. (In fact, if this Gilmore thing doesn't work out, this could be the end of the whole dynasty).

The players I named in my thread seemed to me to be the kind of players who, like Brady, make the other players function better. They help make the 2016 the most intelligent and most selfless team I've ever seen.

Your post is accurate up until the potential dynasty ending pessimistic stuff.

I'm not sure how you attribute "heart and soul" of a team to guys who only played here one season. Bennett and Long were here one season.

I will miss Blount and his minutemen celebrations but I also miss Troy Brown and his game changing magic as well but they still kept on winning and new guys stepped up. That's the magic BB creates with the way he runs his team. Every guy, no matter where they came from or what their draft status was, has a chance to play.

Gilmore is too good to be a "dynasty" ender. Will he be an elite shutdown CB? I don't know but he will be and has been one of the top CB's in the league. We'll see how good he is but he's definitely a good addition to the team.

Gillislee - If you truly have watched the all 22, you should have seen the difference between he and Blount. Gillislee's acceleration at the line of scrimmage is at a whole other level than Blount's. He seems to be a Blount/Lewis hybrid type RB. He cuts hard, has explosive acceleration and is big enough to lower his shoulder to get an extra yard or two . I can't wait to see how that looks on gameday. If he can catch out of the backfield.......OMG.

Btw: Please keep in mind that the team we see in September is not the same team we will see in January. Players change, injuries happen and the team's continuity will be much improved. This happens every season.

 

[BaconGrundleCandy]

In terms of value/production you're right.

 

[Gronkowski123]

chris long stinks.

 

[Bruins29]

In terms of value/production you're right.

Really? You have seen the stats from the end of this year?

 

[Tony2046]

For every time he lowered his shoulder and successfully trucked people there are two other times where he got stopped before the line of scrimmage because he couldn't do much on his own until a hole formed right in front of him.

Once he was past the LOS he was a great back, no question.

That's fair. One thing I want to look at is his running approach when needing 1 yard for a first down or a TD versus first and ten.

 

[Tony2046]

Really? You have seen the stats from the end of this year?

I think he's talking about Blount's value/production.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Losing vet Andrew Hawkins is the fatal blow

 

[BlacknGold77]

sad how they have never recovered from losing Earthwind Moreland

 

[patriot1136]

We still need Adam Seward

 

[Fixit]

Just imagine what could've been if we didn't miss out on Tim Duncan!