New England Patriots

Apro io la sezione sui CAMPIONI 2004.

(Feb. 7, 2005) -- Well, the Super Bowl is over and the discussions about the New England dynasty can continue for the entire offseason. Bill Belichick built his team to last, and that's what they have done since the 2001 season.

Can they keep it going for years to come? Is there a team that can dethrone them? What will be the effect of the loss of the coordinators? What did we learn about the Eagles? Can Philadelphia return to the Super Bowl spotlight in the near future? Who was my MVP?

I stayed in Alltel Stadium past midnight following the game, did a radio show for Sirius and then sat around and discussed these very subjects with people who follow the NFL very closely. Here are some of my thoughts on the questions posed.

THE NEW ENGLAND DYNASTY ISSUE
The Patriots could slip and fall back to the pack, and you still would have to consider the achievements of this franchise a dynasty. The Bill Belichick-Tom Brady combination still has NEVER lost a playoff game.

In the nine consecutive playoff victories, they have a plus-18 turnover ratio -- or plus-2 per game. Teams that win turnover battles by plus-2 in Super Bowls are now 32-7 in the big game. New England does not beat itself, and that means its opponents have to play a perfect game to beat them.

New England used 40 different starters in games this season and just kept on winning. By the second half of the Super Bowl, they were down to three backups in the secondary yet they held the Eagles to 14 points. Not many teams have the roster DEPTH the Patriots have and most teams just don't get the backups ready like New England does year in and year out -- to say nothing of the number of players who are cross-trained to contribute on the other side of the ball.

As for the most important player to any football team, the quarterback, New England has the guy who plays the best in the most important games. Tom Brady is a big reason the Patriots win the turnover battle despite playing with receivers most observers consider good, but not great, players. Brady will play for another 10 years, barring a major injury, and that spells PROBABILITY for the growth of the dynasty.

www.superbowl.com/news/story/8173436

The NFL is a very competitive league. There are a few teams capable of preventing the Patriots from going to the Super Bowl in the AFC, plus a few from the NFC that could beat them in the Super Bowl. But I don't think there is a franchise on the horizon presently constructed to replicate New England's achievements of the past four years.

The Eagles learned a lot by playing this Super Bowl. When they look closely at some of the issues that surfaced in this game, they will take the proper measures to remedy all of them.

A solid, big back for first and second downs like Corey Dillon will go a long way toward balancing the offense. Their fantastic salary-cap situation and extra draft picks from the A.J. Feeley and John Welbourn trades has given them the leverage to pursue a quality back like Travis Henry or buy a back like LaMont Jordan.

After the 2003 season, they realized they needed a big time receiver and a pass rusher, so they went out and signed Terrell Owens and Jevon Kearse. When you gain only 2.6 yards per carry in the Super Bowl, you need a big-time runner. There are 30 other ways to get the ball in Brian Westbrook's hands during the game.

If the Colts get a run-stopping defensive tackle and a cover corner, and their running game doesn't slip, they can challenge but they need to play close to a perfect game. If Roethlisberger continues to develop, the Steelers have the defense and running game to give it a shot. The Jets have a chance to slow down the Patriots machine but Pennington, like Manning and McNabb, have to rise up in the big game and match Tom Brady's usually flawless performances.

There is no doubt there will be an adjustment period with the loss of Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel, but the organization has been planning for their departure for over a year.

The first thing Belichick and I spoke about this summer at the first day of summer camp was that he would probably lose his coordinators at the end of the season. Bob Kraft added they had the time to prepare for their inevitable departures. Once again, I got the feeling the Patriots had another dilemma covered just like they covered up for the loss of practically the whole secondary.

The defense will not miss a beat if Eric Mangini takes over as coordinator, and it seems Jeff Davidson will manage the offense. The truth is: Brady is so wired to what has to be done on the field that he's ready for some more responsibility.

To me, the only ways the coordinator departures can hurt New England is if they loss Mangini and any other of the offensive coaches. The reality is: The Patriots stand a better chance of falling from within rather than from another team overtaking them during the season.

The loss of personnel man Scott Pioli would be very damaging, but I suspect it will be 2006 before he sets off on his own to turn his own franchise around, so in the meantime New England can nurture Pioli's replacement over the next 12 months.

secondo me il doppio colpo Weis-Crennel sarà duro da assorbire.
la striscia dei pats finisce qui.

www.patscap.com/


According to my figures the Patriots are $1,330,168 UNDER their 2004 adjusted cap figure of $80,573,255 with 61 players (53 active, 8 IR) and a 7-man practice squad. I have the Patriots' 2004 cap figure as $79,243,087.

As it turns out, Troy Brown was not talking about retiring from football. He was talking about retiring from the Patriots defense. According to sources close to the 12-year veteran, Brown wants to continue his NFL career as a receiver first and a defensive back a distant second. In other words, as much as Brown thrived as the Pats' slot corner, he wants to return to the side of the ball where he made his bones. ''Troy is always going to do whatever the team asks, because that's what he does,'' a source said. ''But playing cornerback is not how he's made his living in the past and it's not how he sees himself making his living in the future. He's a receiver.'' Brown has one season left on his contract, but that was added as a ''dummy year'' to provide the Pats temporary cap relief last season. Brown is due a $2.5 million roster bonus and a $2.5 million salary in 2005, neither of which he'll ever see. Brown will either become a free agent, or he'll rip up his current deal and sign a new one with the Pats.

Posted February 8, by Ben Maller

pure Traylor continua... almeno un altro anno

Patriots CB Ty Law comes to mind. His $12.5 million cap number is unlikely to be kept on the books, even with the cap going up about $5 million to $85 million next season. Law is willing to renegotiate if the actual dollars aren't reduced. He is scheduled to earn about $10 million between salary and bonuses. "We're all ears," said Law's agent, Carl Poston. "Ty's preference is to stay with New England." A similar decision could be made on Tyrone Poole, who has a $2.4 million cap number and $2 million in compensation for next season.



Posted February 8, by Ben Maller

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Scritto da: The Snake 12 08/02/2005 15.16
secondo me il doppio colpo Weis-Crennel sarà duro da assorbire.
la striscia dei pats finisce qui.

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D'accordo, subentrerà anche un po' di appagamento...sarà dura.

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Scritto da: 59er 08/02/2005 20.12


D'accordo, subentrerà anche un po' di appagamento...sarà dura.

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Non penso avranno cali di tensione, potranno avere altri problemi, ma quello no, non con l'attitudine dimostrata e pretesa dall'aalenatore fino ad ora. La squadra sa di essere al top solo perchè squadra. Questa convinzione non cambierà.

ragazzi, festeggiate a più non posso perchè il lardo è finito...;)

il coach delle secondarie dei pats, Eric Mangini, potrebbe essere promosso a DC... (fonte benmaller.com)

Ok, non saranno certo le preoccupazioni per il futuro a frmare la festa, ma da qui a dire già che è tutto finito....aspetterei a dirlo, la forza di NE è sempre (in the kraft time off course) stata quella di sapere scegliere gli uomini giusti e metterli al posto giusto.

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Scritto da: The Snake 12 09/02/2005 9.29
il coach delle secondarie dei pats, Eric Mangini, potrebbe essere promosso a DC... (fonte benmaller.com)

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Le voci sono quelle, ma al momento il paisà (deduco dal cognome) è FA. Ci sono voci che lo danno DC a Miami

[Modificato da lpoddighe 09/02/2005 9.32]

il coach delle secondarie dei pats, Eric Mangini, potrebbe essere promosso a DC... (fonte benmaller.com)
questo solo se Pees lascia e va a Miami...
se no molto probabilmente o segue Crannel ai Browns oppure a Miami al posto di JimBates visto che e' corteggiato dai MiamiDolphins!!!!!!

[Modificato da dolfanitalia 09/02/2005 9.50]

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Scritto da: The Snake 12 08/02/2005 15.16
secondo me il doppio colpo Weis-Crennel sarà duro da assorbire.
la striscia dei pats finisce qui.

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Sai che hai ragione?

Secondo me peserà soprattutto la dipartenza di Ciccio Romeo.

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Scritto da: lpoddighe 09/02/2005 9.31


Le voci sono quelle, ma al momento il paisà (deduco dal cognome) è FA. Ci sono voci che lo danno DC a Miami

[Modificato da lpoddighe 09/02/2005 9.32]

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Mi sa che il Mancio farebbe meglio a New England di quanto sta facendo a Milano!:D

boh, vedremo...
di certo quella di Crennel è una perdita "pesante" :D :D :D

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Scritto da: josef-issels 09/02/2005 10.55


Sai che hai ragione?

Secondo me peserà soprattutto la dipartenza di Ciccio Romeo.

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