The Patriots All-Franchise Team

[Ras-IR Dowling]

Eason didnt like to study or lift weights.

He held himself back.

Could’ve had Marino. Hell even the jets selected a better qb in O’Brien.

 

[Ras-IR Dowling]

Could’ve had Marino. Hell even the jets selected a better qb in O’Brien.

I think we panicked. Buffalo took our guy in kelly.

 

[maust]

Moss was only here for 3 years...

That is an asinine nitpick. Moss is second only to Rice as a WR in the modern era.
I didn't correct the articles choice of RB because I believe a fair case could be made for Nance, Cunningham, Martin, Dillon or Faulk.

 

[maust]

The mid to late 1980's teams were loaded with talent.
Did Tony Eason or the coaching staff hold them back?
(I hate to dump on any Patriot)

If you were ever going to Champagne Tony would be right up there as choices go. Guy was gutless behind solid lines which was particularly hard to stomach when you consider he was supposed to replace Grogan (the Chuck Norris of QB's) who himself had replaced Plunkett who routinely took worse beatings than Rocky F Balboa and never flinched. Man was that early 70's line bad.

To be honest the Sullivans empty wallets, injury and Eason all played a part in that team not doing all that it could have. Well that and the preseason game from hell against GB in '89

 

[lancerman]

That is an asinine nitpick. Moss is second only to Rice as a WR in the modern era.
I didn't correct the articles choice of RB because I believe a fair case could be made for Nance, Cunningham, Martin, Dillon or Faulk.

I mean Martin is definitely the best RB to be on this team.

 

[Ras-IR Dowling]

I mean Martin is definitely the best RB to be on this team.

While I agree that Martin is the best back to wear a pats uni, that statement is definitely debatable. Just a page over someone believes Dillon should be in over all of them. And you can make a case with Corey’s 2004 season. It was better than any of martins 3 here.

 

[maust]

I mean Martin is definitely the best RB to be on this team.

I would disagree with the 'definitely' part of that. What Martin did here at the beginning of his career Dillon managed to do at the end of his including the best season ever produced by a Patriot RB. Nance and Cunningham played in an era that demanded far more from a RB than it did from either Dillon or Martin, they had serious FB duties as well and Nance in particular did his work behind lines that would have left either Dillon or Martin curled up in a fetal position. I saw all of them play and I can't argue with the selection of any of them but your 'definitely' is woefully misplaced when you place Martin above all of them without having even a remote idea of what some of their games looked like.

 

[goheels22002]

So who's the quarterback? No time to click.

Michael Bishop

 

[patriot1136]

I wish I was old enough to have seen Sam Cunningham play. He sounds like a badass.

 

[DarrylS]

Never ending arguments, but will put in my 2 cents for Julius Adams who played 206 games for the Pats and made the Probowl in 1980. He was a guy who was a very good D Lineman who toiled in the trenches for 16 years... often on abysmal teams.

 

[Chuck Walden]

Never ending arguments, but will put in my 2 cents for Julius Adams who played 206 games for the Pats and made the Probowl in 1980. He was a guy who was a very good D Lineman who toiled in the trenches for 16 years... often on abysmal teams.

Adams was good, but who would you take off? The Pats have a ton of great linemen in their history

 

[patsfan13]

Tough to leave Welker or Edelman off.

Armstrong was a better LT then Light

So was Leon Gray for that matter.

 

[ralmat55]

I wish I was old enough to have seen Sam Cunningham play. He sounds like a badass.

He had a great nickname “Bam”, a ton of hype having played at USC, and a signature play in diving over the goal line. But, he was was just an average player. The Patriots of then we’re much like the Patriots of today using a committee of running backs. Cunningham along with Andy Johnson, Horace Ivory and Don Calhoun all gained a lot of yards on the ground. Of course, they had a fantastic OL to run behind led by John Hannah. Plus, the first All-world TE in Russ Francis.

If not for the great idea of playing beach football as an event at the Pro Bowl, Robert Edwards would have been the All Patriot RB.

 

[Pat the Pats Fan]

He had a great nickname “Bam”, a ton of hype having played at USC, and a signature play in diving over the goal line. But, he was was just an average player. The Patriots of then we’re much like the Patriots of today using a committee of running backs. Cunningham along with Andy Johnson, Horace Ivory and Don Calhoun all gained a lot of yards on the ground. Of course, they had a fantastic OL to run behind led by John Hannah. Plus, the first All-world TE in Russ Francis.

If not for the great idea of playing beach football as an event at the Pro Bowl, Robert Edwards would have been the All Patriot RB.

He had potential....

 

[ralmat55]

Tony Eason got a bad rap as a Patriots QB. Compared to Steve Grogan, any QB would be seen as soft plus having the nickname “Champagne Tony” from playing at the U of Illinois didn’t help. The Patriots OL went to hell in the late 80s and pass protection and their running game ceased to exist.

 

[stinkypete]

That is an asinine nitpick. Moss is second only to Rice as a WR in the modern era.
I didn't correct the articles choice of RB because I believe a fair case could be made for Nance, Cunningham, Martin, Dillon or Faulk.

My problem with the pick is this: when you select the all time Vikings team, who is going to start at WR alongside Moss? Great players are associated with one team. Moss may have had the greatest WR season of all time here, but he was a Viking first and foremost.

For similar reasons I would keep Curtis Martin off of my all time team. He's a Jet. Mike Haynes is borderline. He's more associated with the Raiders because he won a Super Bowl there, but he had some of his best seasons here.

Rodney is a different animal. He played more years in San Diego and was probably more dominant there, but he was such a part of the Patriot lore that everyone outside of Chargers fans sees him as a Patriots.

 

[maust]

Tony Eason got a bad rap as a Patriots QB. Compared to Steve Grogan, any QB would be seen as soft plus having the nickname “Champagne Tony” from playing at the U of Illinois didn’t help. The Patriots OL went to hell in the late 80s and pass protection and their running game ceased to exist.

Duck n cover Eason was riding the pine before the wheels came off the wagon and not even here when the line bottomed out.

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

I wish I was old enough to have seen Sam Cunningham play. He sounds like a badass.

Sam Bam was a badass.

Never ending arguments, but will put in my 2 cents for Julius Adams who played 206 games for the Pats and made the Probowl in 1980. He was a guy who was a very good D Lineman who toiled in the trenches for 16 years... often on abysmal teams.

Only five losing seasons for Julius, in 16 seasons.

That's the "Jewel" on the sidelines prior to the TD...One of the major reasons we underachieved in '78 was Julius' season-ending injury in Week 1. Hometown boy Ray Clayborn doing his thing the next series.

Ignorant people, including, obviously. most on the Hall of Fame Committee, do not know or appreciate anything about Adams, or Fairbanks, or Francis, or Gray. If they know anything at all, it's a brief, famous pregame speech in the send off rally prior to ripping the Lolphins' faces off in breaking the jinx and winning the AFC title in Miami. This is the same stupidity that people think M.L. Carr just waved a towel from the bench, and later tanked in a failed attempt to land Tim Duncan. The fact is, the Celtics may very well have not won either title in '81 or '84 without Carr. M.L. was one of the cornerstones of the rebuilt modern Celtics, along with new majority owner Harry Mangurian, head coach Bill Fitch and rookie forward Larry Bird.

As for Julius, he played - and conducted himself off the field - like a champion, one of the NFL all-time iron men, all for the Patriots, having one Super Bowl ring stolen in 1976. He is everything and more that Tedy Bruschi is considered to be as a Patriots player and representative of the franchise. Since Gil Santos' passing, I've been trying to reach out to the team to do something about his now vacant spot on that committee. So far, (Surprise!), that hasn't led anywhere, but you know as long as I breathe I will never, ever give up on Julius Adams.

He never gave up on us.

 

[p8ryts]

New England Patriots All-Franchise Team - Last Word on Pro Football

Can't believe Kliff Kingsbury missed the cut, but no list is ever perfect.

Randy Moss will never be considered anything all Patriots in my mind.
I like other safeties from the past over McCourty, Fred Marion, Tim Fox to name two.
While I consider Gino Mr. Patriot, Edelman, Welker and others are superior WR’s.

Because Jim Nance was special and because I still haven’t forgiven Sam Bam for stepping out of bounds in the 76 playoff game, I go with Jim. Tony Collins was pretty good also.

Oops forgot Curtis Martin definitely the best.

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

I still haven’t forgiven Sam Bam for stepping out of bounds in the 76 playoff game

It wasn't his fault.

The NFL in the 1970s

Oakland Raiders Vault: Raiders vs. Patriots, 1976 Divisional Playoffs

The sideline official moved the marker at the last minute, and the spot - just like later on - was bad, in favor of the home team.

What a sick mess.

Every year, guys on this team are passing away...unrecognized, dishonored.

To say that pisses me off is like saying the sun is rather warm.