Randolph Charlotin's New England Patriots Fan Profile

Hours Before Kickoff: Preseason Four posted on 09/01/2010

When CB Terrence Wheatley walked off the Gillette Stadium field last Thursday with a couple of trainers, it crossed my mind it would be for the last time as a Patriot for Wheatley. But his chance of sticking around went up with CB Leigh Bodden going down.

As one of the handful of moves needed to get the roster down to the 75 player limit, Bodden was placed on injured reserve for the 2010 season with a shoulder injury. That takes away the secondary’s doyen from a unit that averages just 2.5 years experience without Bodden.

The back four was going to be under pressure to begin with this season. Playing behind a front seven that needs to blitz to pressure the quarterback will leave the secondary in a lot of one-on-one situations. Without blitzing, the secondary will have to cover receivers for five or more seconds as the passer stands in the pocket as if surrounded by a force field.

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Hours Before Kickoff: Preseason Three posted on 08/25/2010

It’s the most important preseason game – the dress rehearsal. The starters will play three quarters as the players and coaches prepared for the game as if it is a regular season game.

Enjoy it while you still can if the owners have their way. The greedy millionaires want to cash in two preseason games for two regular season games. They say it’s for the fans to give us better value. They say we don’t care for the preseason.

The truth is we don’t care for paying full price for practice games. Owners don’t like seeing their stadiums partially full, knowing they aren’t making every cent possible or even losing money on the night.

I’m one of the millions of fans that practically can’t get enough football. I tune daily in to the NFL Network just to see what’s on. NFL Replay is the greatest thing since sliced bread. I’ve DVRed the Patriots preseason games to watch a second time. And I’ve watched a bit of almost every preseason replay aired by the network.

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A Memory of Kevin Turner posted on 08/23/2010

Fullbacks rarely have moments to shine. If one is lucky, they have a signature play to be remembered by.

Think back to 1994. It’s week 11, a home game against the Minnesota Vikings. QB Drew Bledsoe’s coming out party. After falling behind 20-0, Bledsoe rallied the Pats in the second half to tie the game at 20 before leading an overtime drive that ended with a 14-yard game-winning touchdown.

Remember who was on the receiving end of that pass?

The player was Kevin Turner. He released from the backfield on a play action fake and caught the touch pass in the back corner of the endzone, just landing inbounds.

Known better for his hands than his blocking, Turner had a good eight year career. The former 1992 third round pick out of Alabama played three years for the Patriots before parlaying his 52-catch 741-yard 1994 season into a lucrative contract with the Philadelphia Eagles.

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Pick Six: Preseason Game Two posted on 08/20/2010

Thankfully the NFL Network aired a replay of Thursday’s preseason game on Friday afternoon. I might not get to the game on my DVR now:

1. It brings me no comfort knowing the two best running backs are also injury-prone. On just 17 carries, Fred Taylor and Sammy Morris combined for 106 of the Patriots’ 120 rushing yards. They also missed 14 games combined last year. Owner Robert Kraft’s decision to build Brigham and Women’s/Mass General Health Care Center as part of Patriot Place looks smarter by the day. Hopefully there’s an express lane just in case for Taylor and Morris.

2. On the other side of the ball, I don’t like the run defense, particularly the first unit. Two weeks in a row they gave up at least 50 yards on the ground by halftime. This could be the first sign of how much the defense will miss DE Ty Warren.

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Pick Six: Preseason Game 1 posted on 08/18/2010

Before the first preseason game, the Patriots held a ceremony to induct RB Sam “Bam” Cunningham into the Patriots Hall of Fame. He was joined on stage by owner Bob Kraft and fellow HoFers LB Andre Tippett, QB Steve Grogan, CB Michael Haynes, K-WR Gino Cappelletti, LB Steve Nelson, and G John Hannah. Not only was I there, but I was fortunate enough to shake Cunningham’s hand and say congratulations to the newest member while wearing his throwback jersey (thanks to Bob Hyldburg for making that opportunity happen).

While I don't like a runningback with 5,453 career rushing yards being a HoFer, I will pay my respects to the honoree. And when his peers heap praise upon him, I won’t argue with that. Grogan said if Cunningham was the primary ball carrier instead of part of a backfield committee, he would had run for double. That would mean 10,906 yards. That’s a number that impresses me.

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