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We all know what happened during Lebron’s one hour special called “The Decision”, yet what is it that got him to go to Miami? It was the other superstar he once played with during the Olympics telling him that they just needed a couple more pieces and they all could get some Championship rings. Dwyane Wade was behind the scenes making phone calls and trying to create a championship team overnight.
So what does this have to do with football? Richard Seymour could become this type of guy for the Raiders in the next offseason. A bevy of Patriots players will be in free agency next year, and who’s to say Seymour couldn’t convince them to join him in Oakland to turn this team around.
Seymour is a consummate professional, so there is no doubt in my mind he would be willing to make the calls and recruit for the Raiders, yet the major question is who would be on the other line?
I believe that he would call up the guys he tried to beat in practice every day, two guys who are on the other side of the line. Those players are Logan Mankins and Matt Light, two great offensive linemen who the Patriots seem fine with letting go.
Raider fans realize the offensive line is one of the most unstable components on the team, and I’m sure Al Davis and the Raiders realize that as well. Yet, if the Raiders were to get these two players then the line would be tremendously improved and could lead to a resurgence in the offense firepower the team formerly had.
Mankins has recently stated that he wishes to be traded and that the Patriots have lost him for good, so obviously he is not going back to the Patriots. Al Davis, despite the media hating it, loves to pay players who perform well. Mankins could realize this and realize that the Raiders are turning their team around and either demand to be traded to the team or wait until the offseason to be swooned by teams. Either way, if Mankins was on the team the offensive line talent would improve dramatically.
Matt Light is an older player, yet still has what it takes to be a great left tackle in this league. The Patriots probably won’t re-sign him mostly due to the fact that Tom Brady is up for a new contract in the same offseason. Brady will take the majority of the money and Light will take his walking papers. If Light were on the Raiders he would not only protect Campbell’s blindside, but also teach Bruce Campbell and Veldheer how to become great offensive linemen.
If Seymour could recruit these players to come to Oakland the offense would see a miraculous turnaround. Jason Campbell and his strong arm would have more time to find our speedy wide receivers streaking up the field and our running backs would have bigger holes to sprint through. The talent level on the line would be no question, the only question I have is would there be any offensive line with better beards then Gallery, Light, and Mankins?
Let me know what you think Raider Nation! Comments are always appreciated!
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Well, times are very interesting in the New England area for Patriots and their fans right now. And by “interesting” I mean “odd.” The Pats are coming off a 10-6 season, decent enough by most standards, but then were summarily dismissed by the visiting Ravens in the wild card round.
Former defensive coordinator Dean Pees became the scapegoat, let go after six seasons with the team. Bill Belichick has said he will take a larger role on defense. A game plan that would make better sense if he had an offensive coordinator in place whom he trusted. And on top of that, quarterbacks coach Bill O’ Brien might not be very well liked by much of the team, especially with Tom Brady after the play calling was rather stale in 2009.
So this means coach Belichick will head into the season without a true offensive or defensive coordinator, something that the Pats aren’t used to experiencing. This could be a season of confusion and the Pats could see their worst in the Belichick era since 2000 when they went 5-11.
Quarterbacks
Tom Brady is still going to be the great Tom Brady that we know and (most of us) love. From what it looks like so far, he could end up having another great season and remain as one of the league’s top quarterbacks. He looks even more confident now that he has a full season removed from his surgery to repair the ACL in his knee. Going against what many have been thinking, I don’t think his commitment to the team will be affected even though he’s married to one of the hottest ladies on the face of the earth. Basically what I’m saying to Patriots fans is to expect the same ol’ successful Tom Brady. Brian Hoyer remains the backup for Brady. There have been talks of the Pats bringing in another veteran QB just to be a third stringer and to warm the rest of the bench. Jeff Rowe and rookie Zac Robinson might not like that idea though because if the Pats do sign another guy to the mix, that’s just one more spot down the depth chart they both go.
Running Backs
The Patriots have recently been a team with an interesting corps of running backs. They have three guys in the group who are over the age of 33 (Fred Taylor, Kevin Faulk and Sammy Morris). This is also a group that have been injury prone with Morris and Taylor both getting hurt last year. Laurence Maroney is also a guy in the group who’s been wanting to prove that he’s not the draft bust that he’s been made out to be. He did a good job of trying to covering that out last year with his nine touchdown runs. In a perfect world, Maroney would be the first- and second-down back, Morris would get the short yards, and Fred Taylor would be the goal line back and Faulk, as always, would end up all over the field. The Pats didn’t add another running via the draft or free agency.
Wide Receivers
As many of you might remember, Wes Welker tore but his ACL and MCL during the Week 17 game last season. During the offseason, people were saying that they would be shocked if they saw Wes Walker play in another game before November of this year. Well, to those people I would like to say to them “Start practicing your shocked face!” To my knowledge, Wes Welker seemed to progress very well in the offseason and is starting to take hard hits in training camp. Many are starting to say that he could be ready to go by the first game of the season. But if he does happen to sit out the first few games, then they will need to count on aging veteran Randy Moss and young Julian Edelman that much more to carry this unit. Assuming Moss as the No. 1 and Edelman, seen as something of a Welker-in-the-making, as the No. 2, someone needs to step up as a viable No. 3, which is something the Patriots didn’t have much of last year. This is where Brandon Tate and rookie Taylor Price enter the mix. Oh, and there’s this other guy named Torry Holt who has been added as well. I hear he’s had a very successful career. The tight end is one position that the Pats don’t pay attention to often, but with the team grabbing Rob Gronkowski in the draft and Aaron Hernandez in the NFL Draft, that could change. Tom Brady has shown that he can handle a group of mediocre receivers, and right now that’s what this group is. Two players who have had stellar careers that are now starting to wind down and a host of others still learning the ropes of the offense.
Offensive Linemen
This is another group that is getting up there in age but is still a pretty solid group as well. They only gave up 18 sacks last year which is very impressive. I’m sure Tom Brady loved that after tearing up his leg in the first game of the season in 2008. Left tackle Matt Light will likely start the season in his usual spot, but Sebastian Vollmer, who impressed many last year as a rookie, could start at right tackle early. He could even challenge Matt Light for his spot. In the prime of his career at age 28, Logan Mankins is one of the best right guards in the game. But he’s been holding out of camp, so we’ll see what happens there. The more significant issues are at center and right guard. Dan Koppen always undersized, has been getting pushed off the ball more and more, and Stephen Neal very nearly called it a career. Dan Connolly is versatile and highly thought of in New England. He heads a young group of reserves with Mark LeVoir, Ryan Wendell, Rich Ohrnberger and Ted Larsen and Thomas Welch, who were picked up in the draft.
Defensive Linemen
The Patriots’ defensive success has always started with the O-line, so the fact that the defense struggled in 2009 can be traced back to a major hole on the line. Once Richard Seymour was moved to Oakland, the Pats didn’t have a player near his stature to put in place. Ty Warren and Vince Wilfork are both pretty good, but they won’t get a great deal of attention if another guy is brought in. Mike Wright has shown signs of promise, but he’s nothing like Richard Seymour. Ron Brace could be bumped outside after originally being a nose tackle. And given the personnel they have, the Patriots could play more 4-3 this year. But as the unit stands, the Pats will likely lack the ability to consistently push blockers back and close the pocket on the QB.
Linebackers
The wild card in this group is second-round draft pick Brandon Spikes. If Spikes can step in alongside Jerod Mayo at inside linebacker, the Pats could have the chance to move Gary Guyton to the outside, where the team is lacking depth. Guyton is very quick and very good in coverage but isn’t very strong against the run. This is the reasoning for putting him in the outside. 10-sack man Tully Banta Cain (one of my favorite names in the NFL), is the top returning pass-rusher statistically, though draftee Jermaine Cunningham could help and Pierre Woods, who got less playing time last year, can mix things up too. To sum up this whole picture, this unit is not as great on paper as it has been in the past. Unlike the D-Line, this is the weakness of the Patriots’ defense.
Defensive Backs
The success of the secondary will mostly depend on the success of the front seven. If the front seven isn’t doing its job, the secondary will struggle. Leigh Bodden is coming off his best seasons under Romeo Crennel when they were both in Cleveland; Crennel’s system is very similar to Beilchick’s, and Bodden should show even more confidence this season after a five-interception perfomance last year. Second-year cornerback Darius Butler will likely start opposite Bodden, with Jonathan Wilhite and rookie Devin McCourty in the mix at the nickel position. Terrence Wheatley is considered by some in the organization to have more talent than Wilhite, but he was in a strange sort of exile last year and played just five games. Brandon Meriweather has been making a lot of progress, and ever-steady free safety James Sanders keeps the unit on the same page.
Special Teams
The punting has been lacking over the years for the Patriots. But with the addition of former Michigan Wolverine Zoltan Mesko, that could change. Many say that he has a good personality. If his attitude is as good as his punts, the punting situations will work out great for the Pats. Stephen Gostkowski is one of the best kickers in the league for his combination of field goal and long kickoffs. Tate is expected to be the primary kick returner after a record-breaking college career.
Final Thoughts
Belichick has always found ways to get it done in New England, but this season could be a bit tougher with all the questions looming around the organization. Nobody thought that there would be coaching staff issues with this team, but there are. The questions on the field involve what the wide receivers’ depth chart will look like and how this defense will be shuffled around. With the Jets and Dolphins making quite a few moves in the offseason via the draft and free agency, it’s looking like things could be tough in New England. When it’s all over, they could find themselves as low as third place in the division.
Could you imagine the NFL Playoffs without the New England Patriots? It could happen.
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Under head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady, the New England Patriots were able to return atop the AFC East in 2009, despite winning one fewer game than they did in 2008 when they failed to make the postseason.
The Patriots, however, were not good enough to make a deep run into the postseason, as they were beat bad at home in round one by the Baltimore Ravens. This year the Patriots will have a tough challenge at winning the division with the improvements both the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins have made. Here is a look at what the Patriots will send on to the field on both sides of the ball in 2010, plus my prediction on where they finish the year in the division.
Offense: The Patriots appear content at letting Tom Brady air it out nearly every snap of the game, and while Brady has excelled, he will have a big challenge ahead of him without Wes Welker for the majority of the season, as Welker hauled in a team high 123 catches for 1,348 yards.
The Patriots still have a huge deep threat with Randy Moss, and added veteran Torry Holt to give Brady a solid No.2 target. The team also added veteran tight end Alge Crumpler to help in the blocking packages, and drafted two rookie tight ends in Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski. The key will be how well second year slot receiver Julian Edelman plays in the place of Welker.
The Patriots did nothing this offseason to improve a running game that did little to nothing last year. Laurence Maroney will likely be the feature back for the Patriots, but he has never lived up to the expectations everyone had when he came out of college. The Patriots use a number of backs over the course of a seasons, but are really hoping they can get more out of veteran Fred Taylor.
The offensive line remains intact and should be solid again in 2010. They are set on the left side with tackle Matt Light and guard Logan Mankins, as Mankins has really developed into a very good guard in the NFL. This unit has to stay healthy, as they are the key to keeping Brady healthy and throwing the football.
Defense: This unit missed the veteran leadership that was lost last offseason, but ended up putting together a pretty respectable season. The Patriots were able to bring back nose tackle Vince Wilfork, and that was huge for this team, as Wilfork is the key to the Pats 3-4 scheme. The Pats brought in free agent Gerard Warren to play opposite of Ty Warren at defensive end.
The Patriots have two very solid players at linebacker in outside backer Tully Banta-Cain, who led the team with 10 sacks in 2009, and inside linebacker Jerod Mayo. Gary Guyton returns to play alongside Mayo in the middle, while newcomer Pierre Woods appears to have the edge at the other outside spot, but should get plenty of competition from Rob Ninkovich and rookie Jermaine Cunningham. The Patriots also landed inside linebacker Brandon Spikes in the second round of the draft.
The Patriots secondary really struggled to come up with big stops against the better passers in the NFL, and that led to them taking Devin McCourty with their first round selection. McCourty figures to play in nickel packages to start, as Leigh Bodden and Jonathan Wilhite return to start at the two corner spots. Brandon Meriweather continues to get better at safety, and free safety Brandon McGowan was solid in his first year with the Pats in 2009.
Prediction – 1st AFC East: I feel like this is still the team to beat in the East, and I look for a monster season from Tom Brady and the Patriots offense this season despite the loss of Welker.
Find out where I have the rest of the teams finishing up the year in our 2010 NFL predictions . If you plan on betting the NFL this season, than I strongly recommend checking out our live NFL odds page each and every week to ensure you the best chance at a winning season.
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Over the offseason, I have seen countless articles and comments stating that the Patriots are on the decline, which is a false statement, to say the least.
While I’m not saying that we are a lock for the Super Bowl—which is crazy to say this early about any team—we are certainly not on the decline after adding depth and youth to the team over the past two seasons.
The secondary has been revamped with players like Darius Butler , Leigh Bodden , Devin McCourty , Patrick Chung , and Jonathan Wilhite . There was also improved play by Brandon Meriweather last season; he has become somewhat of a ball hawk and should have another good season this year.
The secondary’s speed has improved and game recaps will not be showing as much Patriot CB’s getting burned down the field as when Ellis Hobbs II was with the team.
I have seen comments about how linebacker Jerod Mayo did not play well coming back from injury last season, which is another false statement. Mayo still finished the year with over 100 tackles, 1.5 sacks, one interception, and one forced fumble.
A lot of Patriots haters have been nagging us about how slow linebacker Brandon Spikes is and that he will be below average. Spikes may not be fast, but neither was Tedy Bruschi . I’m not saying that Spikes will have a career like Bruschi did, but when I look at these two players, they have a lot of intangibles that are similar.
Sure, Spikes ran one of the worst 40-yard dash times I’ve seen for a linebacker, but speed isn’t everything—just ask New York Jets OLB/DE Vernon Gholston . Like Bruschi, Spikes always seems to make plays on the ball and ball carrier despite lacking speed. Spikes has good instincts that will make up for his lack of speed.
Tully Banta-Cain is the only sure pass rusher on the team and Derrick Burgess is a band-aid until Jermaine Cunningham can learn the defense. Burgess is still capable of getting sacks, though it won’t be as much as we would like.
Gary Guyton has good coverage skills and should be replaced to stuff the run with Spikes or veteran linebacker Tyrone Mckenzie.
As for the offense, there are plently of options for Tom Brady to throw to this year that could make a big impact.
Rookies Rob Gronkowski , Taylor Price , and Aaron Hernandez could all surprise other teams this year. Gronkowski, at 6’6″ and 265lbs, will be a nightmare matchup problem for any defense; he is more than capable of blocking and has good speed for his size.
Hernandez won’t be a blocking tight end, but he is elusive and has good speed. Hernandez was Tim Tebow’s favorite target in college and it resulted in a lot of touchdowns.
Price will be a slot receiver and is a clone of Julian Edelman . Price has the speed to be a deep threat and runs excellent routes. Edelman showed last season that he is tough and very hard to cover in the slot, much like the injured Wes Welker.
In the playoff loss to the Ravens last season, Edelman was the only weapon that could produce against the Ravens defense, resulting in two touchdowns.
Receiver Brandon Tate has been injured the past two seasons, but he is healthy now and Brady has already stated that Tate is one of his favorite targets. Tate has the speed to be a deep threat and could play opposite Randy Moss .
Moss is old, but has showed no signs of losing a step. Sure, he takes plays off now and then, but in a contract year, that is a highly unlikely thing for him to do. I find it very interesting that Moss was the only receiver last season to escape off of “Revis Island .”
Receiver Torry Holt has surely lost a step over his career, but he is still one of the best route running receivers in the game.
The year has finally come where running back Lawrence Maroney will be released if he has another bad season. Maroney may have never lived up to how high he was selected in the draft, but when he is not tap dancing at the line of scrimmage and actually runs through the gap, it makes me think twice about him.
Veteran running backs Sammy Morris and Fred Taylor still have something left in the tank and are hard to bring down. Veteran running back Kevin Faulk is still one of the best third down backs in the league despite some questionable calls last season, where the referees did not call it a first down.
My favorite running back on the team, BenJarvus Green-Ellis , aka “Lawfirm ,” needs to see more playing time because he runs the ball hard through the gaps without hesitation and is hard to take down.
Offensive tackle Sebastian Vollmer is an up and coming player. He played well last season and even held defensive end Dwight Freeney to zero sacks last season in a game where offensive tackle Matt Light was injured.
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Genius, mastermind, and guru—all three are words of strong association to those at the peak of their game when associated with the world of sports.
Only the highest of NFL coaches and general managers are assumed to assess the athletes of their sport at the highest level, and subsequently gain the best of their abilities out of them.
However, oftentimes these labels continue, even after success turns to failure, even when the future is anything but bright.
New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is someone who has outlived his almighty, “In Bill We Trust” reputation.
The Patriots, having won three Super Bowl Championships between 2001-2004, were seen as a pure example of how to win in the salary cap era.
The Patriots were the league’s model franchise, whether it was superstar quarterback Tom Brady accepting a reduced salary so the team could sign more players and gain a better shot at winning, or former lineman Richard Seymour’s endless movement around positions to fit the needs of the Pats, or former running back Corey Dillon’s ability to remove his selfish past when joining as a free agent in 2004 en route to another Super Bowl title.
All-around, these moves were construed as ideas of “no respect” from the media and general public, created by Belicheck’s staff working towards enticing the older veterans, and creating a nucleus which was destined to succeed. Belichick was seen as a coach who could unite all of those under his belt in an effort to create glory.
But Belichick’s problems have compounded since 2004.
True, the Patriots have made the playoffs the past two seasons, however, they are far from the elite team they were back in the early part of the 2000s.
In 2005, they could not break through the AFC Divisional playoff game, losing to the Jake Plummer—led Denver Broncos, and blew a huge lead in 2006 against their biggest rivals of the decade, the Indianapolis Colts.
While 2007 was seen as that “championship moment” again for the Pats, with their 16-0 regular season, and an incredible offense paced by Tom Brady’s MVP year, the New York Giants stole that moment away from the Pats with their stunning Super Bowl win.
The 2009 season was again a moment when ESPN pundits claimed people should “watch out” for the Patriots come playoff time. However, Ray Rice and the Baltimore Ravens didn’t get that memo, and absolutely ran though an old New England team that just wasn’t ready.
Certainly, the genius Belichick has been able to make some great free-agency pickups in the past few years that can account for wins in New England, just as Dillon did at the end of the dynasty.
Thirty-five million dollar man Adalius Thomas was seen as a player who could play any position on the field, and a man with high character—a “perfect fit” for the scheme in both professional ability, and personality for New England.
However, this “perfect fit” was returned only three years later, regarded as being an injury-prone player with major character concerns, especially on days when it’s snowing in New England.
Trades are where the “football guru” Belichick has succeeded in working toward future glory, right?
Randy Moss made a huge splash in 2007 after being acquired from the Oakland Raiders for next to nothing, breaking records for touchdowns, and greatly assisting in Brady’s MVP campaign and Super Bowl run.
However, Moss has seemingly diminished into his former self, taking games off, and lacking the leadership qualities that have tarnished his career. At 33, his production is only going to continue to decline, thus increasing the problem that his large salary poses.
So, Belichick has had major problems in free-agency and trades, but the football virtuoso certainly has succeeded in the draft, right?
Brady, Vince Wilfork, Seymour, and Matt Light are players that Belichick selected, and truly can be identified as draft board home runs. However, these were all selected during the team’s glory years, and there has been a major drop-off since then.
Ellis Hobbs, James Sanders, and Nick Kazcur from the 2005 draft are more infamous picks than famous stars in their own right.
Then came 2006, an utter debacle of football standards, when the Pats took Lawrence Maroney over superstar Deangelo Williams, and then following it up with a bunch of practice squad players, and a kicker.
Then the 2007 class has shown to be a bust, with Brandon Meriweather having one above-average season, and the rest of the players not even currently on the team in a starting position.
Finally, 2008 brought the Pats dime-a-dozen middle linebacker Jarod Mayo and several afterthoughts, followed by a 2009 class that brought absolutely nothing to team last season.
So, is Belichick to blame for the recent fallout in New England? The answer is unequivocally, yes.
His decisions have been poor both on the field, and in critical situations, be it through free agency, trades, and especially the draft.
His team has gotten old, his defensive strategies are not what they used to be, and he continually has been out-coached in the past few years.
It’s time to stop fearing the New England Patriots, and it’s certainly time to stop calling someone in which the game has passed by a genius.
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