What realistically can be done for next year to contend for a ring?

[DW Toys]

Blaming the Pats for trying to sign "value" is unfair IMO. It is a salary cap league. When you are a winning franchise, as the Pats have been, your free agent player are in demand and attract higher offers on the open market. There's nothing you can do about that. It's the system.

It's easy to say this team did that or that team did this, but those teams have a different salary cap landscape that a veteran contending team. You could free up some cap room by moving Brady. You could free up cap room by letting Asante walk. You could free up some cap room by trading Seymour. These are all part of the structure of the NFL rules that make it difficult to for winning teams to keep it going indefinitely.

These are very good points Cousin, but let's think about this. It was o.k. to Draft and sign FA "value players" when you had the building blocks and more importantly, HEART< in place. We do not have that. We do not have strong leaders on this team other than Brady, Welker and Faulk that we had in the SB years. Perhaps our biggest mistake in 2009 was not signing a Brian Dawkins or a Ray Lewis just from the point of leadership. In my opinion, that is why Junior Seau was brought back. It wasn't enough.

I think the above worked just so far. Then the Pats started to outsmart themselves. The result is a "D" or "D-" overall in the last five years of Drafting (even Pioli was a blame). Our strength in the SB Teams (including 07) was not mostly from the Draft but top FA and trades that had HEART and made a difference. Rodney Harrison, Dillon, Moss, Wes Welker, Vrable, Colvin, Pfifer, Brian Cox, Keith Trailor, Ted Washington, Gaffney, Oitis Smith, Vinaterri, Antoine Smith, Andruzzi, Fauria, David Patten, Larry Izzo and more. Ironically these guys were known as "true Patriots" even though cast offs from other teams.

Now see if you can think of the Draft choice we made in that period in general that have helped us as much as these guys? Yes there is Brady, Bruschi, Law, Faulk, Seymour, Wilfork, Mankins, Samuels and a few more, but my point is BB and the FO are better trading and FA pickups than we are at the Draft. That could be remedied if we stop TRADING OUT OF OUR PICKS EVERY YEAR AND JUST DRAFT THE BEST PLAYERS. We probably have picks "stockpiled" until 2016. I have lost count. BB and Brady will be retired with Grand Kids and the "Stocked Picks" will still be there.
Look at the Drafts in the last 5 years. Look where the Pats have bailed out. Tell me that the players they passed on could not have been our core? It doesn't help either when you wiff every year when that ONE time you decide to keep a high pick:
Chad Jackson
Bethel Johnson
O'Connell
Wheatley
Hobbs
and to some extent
Maroney
Watson
Brace (look who we could have got around and after him)
and I am not sold on Merriweather.

We all hated Rodney when he was on the other team. He had HEART.He was a leader. We just lost too many leaders too fast. Would we have won at least one more game this year with Bruschi, Vrabel, Rodney and Seymour? Not with talent as even they admit it was less with years, but with HEART.

I don't care if we have 4 picks in the top 59 in the 2010 Draft. The odds are one will contribute right away, one down the line and the other two just JAGS or cut. Are we playing for 2014 or 2010 this year? We need to get some FAs with HEART. We hate them now but Keith Bullock, Merriman, Kampman, Terrance Newman, Owen Daniels, Sharper, Muhsin Mohammad (blocks) ....even a "I want to start now" 26 year old LenDale White (I have seen the dude lose his helmet and still run over people) and trade for Anquan Bolden who blocks, takes hits and will play hurt and the Pats are 50% better than the 2009 version. How many would trade Maroney for White even up right now without blinking an eye?

Other talent would be nice like Barret Ruud, Kirk Morrison and Malcom Floyd.
We can't get all of these but some would be a help. There is no reason not to go after these guys if there is no CAP.

Yes I have my Opinion that guys like Watson, Maroney and AD need to be moved. Maybe Light and Sanders can bring a pick. Then for Christmas sake, keep your picks and if anything trade your lower ones to go up and get some talented "I can help you now" guys, not developmental picks like we could do a few years ago. The philosophy needs to change.

You can buy experience and the Pats have been successful at that. I don't want to see 2010 a rebuilding year again...do you?
DW Toys

 

[IndyColtFan420]

Mabey you should go back to cheating, it worked out good for you before.

GO COLTS !!!!!!

Manning 4th MVP......All without cheating. lmao

 

[Kontradiction]

Mabey you should go back to cheating, it worked out good for you before.

GO COLTS !!!!!!

Manning 4th MVP......All without cheating. lmao

Funny that Dungy's staff was one of the first to implement the use of the video camera... according to Jimmy Johnson. Die in a fire. Take your family with you, too.

 

[Patspsycho]

Mabey you should go back to cheating, it worked out good for you before.

GO COLTS !!!!!!

Manning 4th MVP......All without cheating. lmao

The thing here is to guess which mod is going to zap you. It's a fun game.

 

[Brady_12]

Mabey you should go back to cheating, it worked out good for you before.

GO COLTS !!!!!!

Manning 4th MVP......All without cheating. lmao

Have fun with the 4 MVPs.

Idiots like you make the 3 SB wins that much sweeter.

 

[chevss454]

Mabey you should go back to cheating, it worked out good for you before.

GO COLTS !!!!!!

Manning 4th MVP......All without cheating. lmao

BTW, whatifsports gives the Ravens a better chance to win the SB than the Colts. ROFLMAO

:spygate:

 

[patsfan-1982]

will if there is no cap next year then they need to sign back all of there own key players

sign wilfork, to a long term contract. not a tag so we don't have to see him sit out half season and come back at the last sec only so he can be a FA the next year

same with mankins, bring back neal, or sign or draft some one to play RG cause i don't think that any of the G's other the mankins and neal can play in the NFL and i think they need a upgrad at C.

resign Leigh Bodden, with him and butler, at CB Brandon Meriweather, at S the pats may have one of the better secondarys in the NFL for the next few years


TBC became only the 2th player in the BB era to have 10 sacks in a season but the rest of the team only had 21 there needs to be a big upgrad at OLB they need to bring in shawne marriman, and draft at lest one OLB that can play

the seymour trade not only hurt the pass rush but left a big hole in the run D they need to bring in a big body FA vet and draft at lest two 3-4 DE's

guyton was a undrafted FA and for most of the year out played a top 10 pick in mayo, but he is to small to be a ILB in the 3-4 he is better off as a OLB or a 3rd down pass rusher there is a list of about 7 or 8 realy good ILB that will be FA next year i am sure that at lest half of them will get the tag. but that will still leve 3 or 4 for the pats to pick from

wes welker, is now a big ? will he be back at the start of the season or mid season and when he dose come back will he ever be the same player he was again. and even with welker, back at 100% they still need a upgrade at WR they need to sign some one like Antonio Bryant, Terrell Owens, Steve Breaston, or Kevin Walter, and draft at lest one WR


the TE needs to be used more if they don't resign watson, or if he is not the guy then they need to get a pass catching TE Owen Daniels is a FA but he had a ACL injury if he could get back to where he was he would be a big time target for brady,


the RB spot need a big upgrade Fred Taylor, like springs was a waste of a roster spot if he had any thing left in the tank the jags would not have cut him. Sammy Morris, at one point was a ok back up RB but now he will be 33 and needs to be cut Laurence Maroney, there is no reason to even talk about him cause they are just not going to give him the ball. Kevin Faulk, may retire and even if he dose come back he is only a 3rd down back. BenJarvus Green-Ellis, is just a ST player they need to draft a RB or sign a big time FA


the fact is moss, only has one maybe 2 more good years left in him brady, 3 more at best the time to win is now. the signing of 4 and 5 over the hill player every year needs to stop they just eat of roster spots and they can't get on the field. Fred Taylor, Shawn Springs, joey galloway, burgess, all could have been one T.J. Houshmandzadeh, or Keith Brooking, or Larry Foote any one of dose guys would have had a much biger impact on the season then the 4 guys they signed and traded for


the bottom line is i think they are only a top pass rusher and a good WR away from being a 12 or 13 win team again as far as winning a SB its not that easy to just say lets load up and win a SB there are still 15 teams that have never won a super bowl in there history and 6 teams that have never even been to a SB it's hard to win a SB and what the pats did over the last 10 years was amazing. and who knows if we are lucky brady may just have one more SB win left in him

 

[DW Toys]

Mabey you should go back to cheating, it worked out good for you before.

GO COLTS !!!!!!

Manning 4th MVP......All without cheating. lmao

I agree with you about cheating, like turning up the volume in your dome for the other teams to have difficulty (already verified by a facility employee....sorry you loose on that one) and heat, or having your GM change the rules to fit the Colts after every Pats loss every year and no one else on the NFL competition committee having the balls to say something? How about the "Polian Fear" of the refs? Do we need to rehash the 06 Championship game (and we had an apology from the league on those gafs) and the Colts/Steelers Championship game when the refs tried so hard for you. It's good your team did not have the guts to go for a 16-0 season because there should be an asterisk on the 4th and 2 play that everyone in the world other than in INDY or in the NFL officials ear from corporate, saw that it was good by a large margin. The ref couldn't even see the ball. Isn't that cheating? ...Oh yes..the Colts don't cheat.

Oh yes, let us remember that Peyton is the face of the NFL. What will Polian pull next year in competition. A special Colts rule that if they don't have to play they can just not go and that will no longer hurt their record?

Good luck with that no cheating crap.

All I can say is here chicky chicky chicky!

MVP's are very nice..Super Bowls are much better
DW Toys

 

[JR4]

Long time lurker first time poster. The numbers are the problems the Pats have and the letters underneath are the solutions in no particular order (in my opinion)

Offense
1. Offensive playcalling (yes that's a pun)
a. New OC
b. More running
c. Varied formations
d. Trick plays to keep defenses honest

2. Offensive Line Play
a. Draft big guard who can move people in the run game (Vlad Ducasse out of UMass with 2nd rounder)
b. Let Matt Light walk
c. Run the ball (it's easy for opponents rushers to t off when they know it's going to be a pass)

3. QB Play
a. Run the ball (balance will keep the heat off Brady)
b. Change offense so that it isn't based on the staring down Welker's option Route or Moss go
c. Go back to a progression offense where Brady looks at all his reads

4. Running back play
a. Vary running formations (When we ran the ball we were in obvious run formations and the same is true of the pass.
b. Draft running back (Gerhart, Best or Dwyer with a second round pick)

5. Wide Reciever play
a. Draft a wideout (Benn,G. Tate, Decker, Shipley)
b. Sign a wideout
c. Give B. Tate a chance
d. More screens for Moss, more playaction to free him deep
e. Watch Edelman grow into top notch wr

Defense
1. Defensive back play
a. Draft DB (Hayden if he slips to our 1st, Mays if he slips to our second, Ghee with our late 2nd.
b. Look for veteran presence to solidify back end think what Sharper did for the Saints.

2. Linebacker play
a. See what you have in McKenzie and Crable
b. Look for experienced Vet that can run the complicated defenses Belichick prefers
c. Pass rushing specialist out of the draft (if Jerry Hughes is available with our pick in the first round and we don't take him I will break something in my house)
d. Pass rushing specialist in free agency, I know the Julius Peppers rumors were flying last year, let's pick him up for large money in an uncapped year.
e. Adalius needs to go

3. Defensive Line play
a. Run stuffer in case Wilfork walks, or to help Wilfork stuff middle in 4-3 (Cody has been slipping to the second rounds in some mocks)
b. See if Brace or Pryor develop.
C. Get power pass rush DL for passing situations.

Special Teams
1. Punting
a. Find a new Punter
2. Kicking
a. Resign the ghost
3. Return game
a. Get returner in free agency or draft
4. Kickoff game
a. resign arrington

We could easily shore up 4 different needs within the first two rounds, if we can do that, get a new oc and sign a vet or 2 I think we are Super Bowl contenders again next year.

I think I agree with about 90% of what your wrote. Nicely presented PRR.

My 3 additions:
1. fix the Coaching
2. fix the Coaching
3. fix the Coaching

sorry but besides player needs, this is the area that most concerns me.
As Rodney pointed out in a post Ravens game interview
"Patriots were not prepared".
It starts with the HC getting his head on straight.

 

[HEY BRO! WHAT UP?]

Draft better, aside from the trades to get Moss and Welker in '07, their drafts from '06-'09 have been horrible. Also, they need to open up the check book in FA and lay off the retreads. Last but not least, they need to hire actual coaches, not guys that were promoted from within.

 

[PowerRunRevival]

I think I agree with about 90% of what your wrote. Nicely presented PRR.

My 3 additions:
1. fix the Coaching
2. fix the Coaching
3. fix the Coaching

sorry but besides player needs, this is the area that most concerns me.
As Rodney pointed out in a post Ravens game interview
"Patriots were not prepared".
It starts with the HC getting his head on straight.

Thank you. I should have stated this more strongly but I think it essential that we get a new offensive co ordinator. I'm suggesting an entire new offensive game plan and changes like this don't usually come with an entire new offensive coaching team.

In the past the oc has taken care of the offense and Bill has taken care of the defense. This year the oc was terrible and the defensive players were too in experienced to run the comlex defense Belichick likes. Both these need to change next year.

 

[Disco Volante]

Draft better, aside from the trades to get Moss and Welker in '07, their drafts from '06-'09 have been horrible.

You can't say "aside from Moss and Welker".

That's like saying "aside from the PC and XBox, Bill Gates hasn't done much."

 

[ausbacker]

Mabey you should go back to cheating, it worked out good for you before.

GO COLTS !!!!!!

Manning 4th MVP......All without cheating. lmao

Have you still not had a lifetime ban applied to you? Nothing like reasonable and rational posting from an opposing fan to endear yourself to another fanbase.

****wads like you make it difficult to appreciate the play of Peyton Manning.

 

[Jangles]

But when you have a limited ceiling with an all-time great QB, take advantage of it, don't build for 2025.

My thoughts exactly

The way things look to me is that by the time the Pats have the team they've been looking for Brady is going to retire

they need to capitalize with him now. Not spend the next 2-3 years rebuilding

 

[carolinatony]

Long time lurker first time poster. The numbers are the problems the Pats have and the letters underneath are the solutions in no particular order (in my opinion)

Offense
1. Offensive playcalling (yes that's a pun)
a. New OC
b. More running
c. Varied formations
d. Trick plays to keep defenses honest

2. Offensive Line Play
a. Draft big guard who can move people in the run game (Vlad Ducasse out of UMass with 2nd rounder)
b. Let Matt Light walk
c. Run the ball (it's easy for opponents rushers to t off when they know it's going to be a pass)

3. QB Play
a. Run the ball (balance will keep the heat off Brady)
b. Change offense so that it isn't based on the staring down Welker's option Route or Moss go
c. Go back to a progression offense where Brady looks at all his reads

4. Running back play
a. Vary running formations (When we ran the ball we were in obvious run formations and the same is true of the pass.
b. Draft running back (Gerhart, Best or Dwyer with a second round pick)

5. Wide Reciever play
a. Draft a wideout (Benn,G. Tate, Decker, Shipley)
b. Sign a wideout
c. Give B. Tate a chance
d. More screens for Moss, more playaction to free him deep
e. Watch Edelman grow into top notch wr

Defense
1. Defensive back play
a. Draft DB (Hayden if he slips to our 1st, Mays if he slips to our second, Ghee with our late 2nd.
b. Look for veteran presence to solidify back end think what Sharper did for the Saints.

2. Linebacker play
a. See what you have in McKenzie and Crable
b. Look for experienced Vet that can run the complicated defenses Belichick prefers
c. Pass rushing specialist out of the draft (if Jerry Hughes is available with our pick in the first round and we don't take him I will break something in my house)
d. Pass rushing specialist in free agency, I know the Julius Peppers rumors were flying last year, let's pick him up for large money in an uncapped year.
e. Adalius needs to go

3. Defensive Line play
a. Run stuffer in case Wilfork walks, or to help Wilfork stuff middle in 4-3 (Cody has been slipping to the second rounds in some mocks)
b. See if Brace or Pryor develop.
C. Get power pass rush DL for passing situations.

Special Teams
1. Punting
a. Find a new Punter
2. Kicking
a. Resign the ghost
3. Return game
a. Get returner in free agency or draft
4. Kickoff game
a. resign arrington

We could easily shore up 4 different needs within the first two rounds, if we can do that, get a new oc and sign a vet or 2 I think we are Super Bowl contenders again next year.

Love your post. Your hired;...... now tell BB this.

 

[ramon]

A couple of off the wall ideas:

1. Bring in Brian Billick as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator
2. Let Ben Watson walk and pick up a real pass catching TE
3. Tell Randy he is not going to be the focus of the offense next year. He will be one of 3 or 4 options on each passing play
4. Bye Bye to Dean Pees, Let BB work his magic and innovate..something truly new and unexpected which will pressure the QB..if a dummy like Buddy Ryan can come up with 467 defense..I bet BB can innovate
5. Dump out the bad seeds..Shawn Springs, Adalius Thomas etc.
6. Help Crable and tyrone Mckenzie to make it to pfield to provide depth

 

[ATippett56]

Don't get fleeced by Al Davis by trading a 3rd and 5th round draft pick for Derrick Burgess, who incidently turns 32 at the start of the 2010 NFL Season. I wish the Patriots could have those two draft picks back for the 2010 NFL Draft. Anyone remember Duane Starks?

 

[nashvillepatsfan]

He will be long gone before the time we pick.

and we cant trade up by using the 80 picks we have?

 

[IronSheik]

I don't think anybody has said this but the key for the Pats next year is gonna be the other teams in the AFC East. Since 2003 none of the other 3 teams in the AFC East have been in the Pats class at all. The Dolphins and Jets have years where they looked like they were on the way up only to fall the next year.

But this year its look like in 2010 the Jets and Dolphins have teams that a closer to the Pats in talent at any time since 2002. And both may look like they have found young QB who have the potential to be future star QB's.