Where does ESPN dig these guys up..

[Kdo5]

But was the 3rd best receiver on our team. And also had the 3rd most production on our team as well. Receiving is a lot more than catches. Look at yards and TDs, those are way more important.

Chambers also has butter fingers.

 

[zippo59]

His only strength is running 6 yard slant routes to bail the QB out on blitzes. I've herd knocks on Ginn for running only a few routes, Welker runs far fewer routes than Ginn.

Well I don't know if that is true, but if it is, we didn't draft Welker with the ninth overall pick to be a franchise wide receiver. What we need him for is exactly what you mentioned. Provide a saftey outlet for quick passes and make catches over the middle to extend drives.

 

[Aqua4Ever04]

Well I don't know if that is true, but if it is, we didn't draft Welker with the ninth overall pick to be a franchise wide receiver. What we need him for is exactly what you mentioned. Provide a saftey outlet for quick passes and make catches over the middle to extend drives.

Don't get me wrong, Welker is a good player. He's just no where near the caliber some here make him out to be and he was also not worth a 2nd round pick. (And a 7th.)

 

[biffman]

"Tennessee wide receiver David Givens, whom New England didn't re-sign after the 2005 season, supported that point last season, when he admitted that he heard a lot of grumbling among the Patriots after the Branch trade went down and New England's offense stumbled at the start of last year."

The guy wasn't even on the team at the time so forgive me if I take that with a grain of salt.

 

[sebman2112]

That article was a complete joke. Oh, and who the heck is that guy?

Anyways, NE wanted to keep Branch and offered him a fair contract, he just wanted what is now top 5 WR money, and while he was good in NE's offense he was never top 5 good.

None of the WR's NE has signed this offseason are making that kind of money this season, and Stallworth who came into the league at the same time as Deion has better production, and NE got a first rounder (used on Meriweather) for him.

I like how he makes it sound like the franchise tag is keeping Samuel from making big money, when he will be guaranteed $7.79M for one season with that franchise tag.

Some of the other things this writer said make him sound completely uninformed, and biased. If you read that entire article it smacks of someone who is hoping for the worst.

I will not bother going into some details he seems to have forgetten, and some details he has wrong because the entire article was completely pathetic.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Whatever the Pats decided about Welker, they seem to have decided it in earnest. His deal out of all of them seems most designed to leave them on the hook all 5 years, at #3 money ($1.7M this year against the cap, big bonuses, smaller salaries; max of $4.5M against the cap in yr. 5.)

Everybody else seems to have an "audition year" in 07 (Stallworth, Moss, Washington.)

So, at his price, BB seems to think Welker is a "blue chip" addition. Quite possibly it's the versatility that brings him to that conclusion. It's not like we're Miami, and we have to use him as the go-to guy.

on 5'9" receivers - I'm pretty sure that's what Steve Smith is. QED.

On "woulda coulda shoulda" rear-view analysis: Didn't. End of story.

I was sad that Branch left. I am happy that the ragtag bunch that filled in did so well enough. I am very happy that the team is so stacked at present, and still $6.75M under the cap, with another $2.5M coming on 6/2, as "dead money" for Dillon's salary disappears. (Thanks to Miguel for his informative page, and as always, no reflection on same for any use I make of his #s.)

Finally, on what young Patriots such as Samuel see observing the Branch situation: They should see that when dealing with the Pats FO, you need to be sure your self-evaluation is realistic, and understand that it can be realistic from your own POV and that of another team, but may be in disagreement with the evaluation by the Foxboro brass. That's business. You may get to laugh about it (Vinatieri, for example, got what he wanted, plus a ring with the Colts,) or more likely, you will slip downward toward the hinterlands of the league. Make sure you factor that in.

Your replacements do just that.

PFnV

 

[sebman2112]

The writer is completely uninformed. Branch is one of the top five highest paid WRs in the league while the players they have brought in are playing for peanuts and are better (Moss at least.)

And the truth is that every player they have signed has taken less to come here. Whereas Branch wanted to be paid the absolute maximum he could get.

I like it when I see these idiots talking about NE "throwing money around". AD signed for less to play for NE, and when you look at his contract they got a good deal. Moss is getting paid less than a lot of receivers with average ability, Stallworth is getting paid decently, but nothing like Branch and Stallworth has more production in the same time frame. Welker is getting paid fairly for what he can add to the team. Sammy Morris, Kyle Brady, and Tory James aren't getting overpaid either. Basically they signed a bunch of FA but they didn't spend to much for any of them. NE actually paid less for most of them, than what other teams would have.

Also, while this is the most big name FA additions NE has brought in during one offseason they have brought in other big names in the past. Colvin (Was almost like that years AD), Harrison, Dillon, Hays, Starks, and some others. They also paid out Ty Law's good sized contract, and resigned Brady, and Seymour to large contracts. NE will spend money when they believe it's called for. Also, they've been conservative in terms of contract offers, but they've never been conservative in terms of total money spent (they are usually close to the cap by seasons end). Their bringing in Moss shouldn't be viewed as a complete shift in tactics either, since they've brought in Dillon, Harrison, Cox, and some others who had the bad guy label.

 

[sebman2112]

Don't get me wrong, Welker is a good player. He's just no where near the caliber some here make him out to be and he was also not worth a 2nd round pick. (And a 7th.)

You're probably one of the Miami fans who was chearing for Welker and calling him the man, but now that NE has him he suddenly isn't anything special. Go check youtube, or the archive on the ESPN forums. Welker was among Miami fans favorite offensive players last year, and a number of them talked about how good his hands were, then talked about Chambers being overrated because he droppes the ball to much. Anyways, the point is that you're likely only downgrading what he can add to NE's offense, because he's not on your team anymore. Oh, and he'll have better kick return yards in NE, since he'll actually get some blocking on his kick returns, and he was a good punt returner in Miami's crappy special teams unit.

 

[miDeuce]

Can the season get here any quicker? It's been one week and I am already burned out on this. Cleary there was no lack of players wanting to come to NE after the whole Branch situation this off-season. Players come here to WIN and they take less money to do it. I have no problem that the Pats did not cave to Branch's desire for them to rip up his rookie contract and pay him as a top five receiver. Clearly every move the Patriots have made in the past year have equated into greater VALUE. An offer was on the table for him, he and Chayut didn't even counter it.

If there's one team that can actually live up to all the hype it will be the Pats because you know Belichick will not let them think for a second that they are any kind of favorite to win anything. I just want the season to get here already so we can start hanging some ass-whoppings on people and put a stop to the endless speculation of there being a philosophy change, gearing up for one last run, etc.

 

[Fixit]

His only strength is running 6 yard slant routes to bail the QB out on blitzes.

Not in the games I saw...it looked like he was very difficult to cover. The guy was almost always open, and when he wasn't he didn't drop anything.

Regarding this article: I can't believe how many professional writers fail to acknowledge that Branch was still under contract. It blows my mind.

 

[PatsMyBoyz!]

The author intimates that it took Stallworth,Welker and Moss to replace Branch. Deion=1 man army,apparently.
He's so misinformed about everything it's a shame this even got printed. First of all he obviously forgot about 05. He also missed the fact the Pats' interest in Moss actually dated as far back as 2 years.
He also must have missed the part of the AFCC where we blew a 21-3 lead. Offenses don't blow 21-3 leads unless they throw INT's all day.
Yes I think Deion may have helped last year no doubt about it because we may have won some of those early games when our entire offense was struggling, perhaps rendering the Jets game unnecessary among other things. Who knows and quite frankly who cares anymore. Going forward,I like what I see for 07,and I'm not buying the notion that the Pats signed this WR corps because they're still scrambling to replace Deion. If that's the case then look out for The Seattle Branches.
He also makes a point about the Branch situation deterring young players but obviously that's untrue,at least so far. We have so many players we don't know what to do with them all and our PS looks solid enough that it could hold games of it's own.
:woohoo:

 

[miDeuce]

One more thing regarding this "article"...

"I really wouldn't have a problem with this if we were talking about another NFL team. But the Patriots have ridden that team-first company line for so long that it's impossible to not criticize them for how they've handled their business over the last nine months."

I think he fails to realize that a "team first" concept must be embraced by the player as well. Expecting an over-the-top contract that will handcuff the team from signing more quality players is not a "team first" attitude. It's a two way street and includes not only the front office and coaches but the palyers as well. I'm sure Bruschi could've gotten a ton more money somewhere else. He's just one guy who understands what we're trying to do and values being on a succesful team over owning six Escalades. I find it maddening that a professional sports franchise who doesn't overpay it's athletes is a target for criticism because of it.

 

[PatsMyBoyz!]

One more thing regarding this "article"...

"I really wouldn't have a problem with this if we were talking about another NFL team. But the Patriots have ridden that team-first company line for so long that it's impossible to not criticize them for how they've handled their business over the last nine months."

I think he fails to realize that a "team first" concept must be embraced by the player as well. Expecting an over-the-top contract that will handcuff the team from signing more quality players is not a "team first" attitude. It's a two way street and includes not only the front office and coaches but the palyers as well. I'm sure Bruschi could've gotten a ton more money somewhere else. He's just one guy who understands what we're trying to do and values being on a succesful team over owning six Escalades. I find it maddening that a professional sports franchise who doesn't overpay it's athletes is a target for criticism because of it.

Excellent point,especially the last statement. You'd think the refusal to overpay would be considered a plus,especially when you look at the greater scheme of things.

 

[GoPats]

The writer just doesn't understand that Branch was NOT a free agent. He had one more year left on his contract. The Patriots were willing to give him the $$$ and extend his contract for over $6mil per, just not for that last year. If the Patriots ripped up the last year of that contract, then they would have had to deal with every player whose contract is not up looking for more money. In Seymour's case, on the last year of the his contract, they bumped him up a few $mil and then gave him the new contract after the season. In fact, they had to wait to sign the new contract since they needed to wait a year between contracts (NFL rules). It's not that the Patriots weren't willing or want to pay Branch, just that they don't rip up contracts with time remaining. The only way the Pats could rectify the situation was to trade him so he wouldn't be a distraction holding out until the 10th game.

 

[Crazy Patriot Guy]

That's true. But you just never know how things could've been differnt with him in the lineup. He would've been hands down your best receiver. Maybe if he was in the lineup throughout the regular season you guys would've been playing the Colts at home.

I think most feel that if not for the offensive pass interference call on Brown (correct call but rarely called in the playoffs) when we were up 21-3 and driving deep, the game might have turned out different.

It's easy to say things might have been different if Branch was there but I've said the same things with several draft picks that did little for us outside of a few critical moments.

Most would consider Bethel Johnson a bust. He did however return a kockoff with no time left in the 1st half against the Colts in 2003 which turned out to be critical points in a game that gave us homefield advantage, and he scored an early TD against the Titans in the playoffs which turned into a defensive battle.

In 2000, we drafted DB Antwan Harris two picks before Mike Anderson. Clearly Anderson has been more productive in his career. However, would he have been there in the 2001 AFC Championship to take the lateral from Troy Brown on the blocked FG and take it for a TD? He certainly wouldn't have forced the Ricky Phroel fumble right before halftime of Super Bowl 36 that we turned into a 14-3 lead.

Beyond the money Branch would have taken that we've used on multiple players, I think he would have hurt us more than helped. He is a good to pretty good WR. He wanted to be payed among the elite. If we gave in to it, then IMO Asante Samuel is as good as gone no matter what along with Ty Warren and others in the upcoming years. Giving Branch top 5 money would have forced the prices WAAAYYY up on other free agents.

 

[Patriotic Fervor]

Not in the games I saw...it looked like he was very difficult to cover. The guy was almost always open, and when he wasn't he didn't drop anything.

Regarding this article: I can't believe how many professional writers fail to acknowledge that Branch was still under contract. It blows my mind.

Let's set the record straight. Wes Welker runs excellent routes. Not physically overpowering, he uses savvy, guile and cunning to achieve what all receivers strive for, but that many have difficulty with - getting separation.

The evidence of his sure hands is punctuated by his return skills. This may be a prime reason the Pats were willing to pay what they did for him.

Given this, was there anyone in the second round (or the 7th, for that matter) who could, who would, bring all this to the table for the Pats?

I think not.

"Robbed" is pure hyperbole exercised by an avid, but not very observant, Miami homer fan who thinks the shallow depths of his "viewpoints" will carry some weight with the hoi polloi over here.

Wes Welker is an exceptional addition to this team. If anyone got "robbed" in this transaction, it was the Miami Dolphins.

 

[DaBruinz]

Yeah but how far would you have gone with him?

Unless you have the ability to see alternate realities, there is no way to even guess how the Pats would have done.

Also, had you actually WATCHED the Denver play-off game, you'd have seen both Branch and Givens make critical drops.

 

[DaBruinz]

You forgot to mention that you got robbed for Welker. 2nd round pick there was well worth it for the Dolphins. Also, I'll be shocked if Kelly Washington does anything for you guys.

How did the Pats get ROBBED for Welker? He was, by far, the best receiver on the Phins last year. Just because you slam him now that he's gone doesn't change that fact.

BTW, its not like Miami knows what to do with draft picks. You used a frigging 1st rounder on a player who runs terrible routes and is basically a glorified punt returner. Or are you on his jock, now, after you nearly died of embarrassment on Draft Saturday?

 

[sebman2112]

Unless you have the ability to see alternate realities, there is no way to even guess how the Pats would have done.

Also, had you actually WATCHED the Denver play-off game, you'd have seen both Branch and Givens make critical drops.

The one Givens dropped pissed me off.

 

[DaBruinz]

Welker was a UDFA. He is a 3rd WR and an average return man. I'll take a 2nd round pick for that any day.

Now we have Ginn who will be twice the receiver Welker can ever dream of being.

BS. Ginn is a lousy receiver.

Welker was "only an average return man" because of the garbage special teams blocking that Miami has.

OH, and Welker was still the Phins best receiver last year. But you'd rather slam him than admit the truth.

Typical chump welcher move.