Naturally the pessimists jumped to the conclusion that something is wrong with QB Tom Brady's recovery from his knee surgeries. A report said because of the infection, it sets Brady back to the point he might miss the 2009 season. If that's the case, then slapping a franchise tag on Cassel is insurance if Brady can't return for '09.

Then again, there's the other report that states Brady's recovery is ahead of schedule. If that is true, then the Pats control the destiny of the top free agent passer of the off-season. Ultimately New England could do whatever they want with him, whether they sign him or trade him.

Cassel is a very attractive trade chip to dangle. He will be 27 next season and entering his fifth year. And over the course of 15 starts, the league watched Cassel develop from a take care of the ball role into a passer that can come from behind and win under pressure.

Continue reading "Tag Youre Going Nowhere"

Just look at their history. '08 had no one major join our team. Just a bunch of journeyman corners, RB LaMont Jordan, and S Tank Williams, who was hurt in the preseason and was placed on injured reserve.

That wasn't the case in '07 as we nabbed the premiere free agent LB in Adalius Thomas. Also joining him was WR Donte' Stallworth, RB Sammy Morris, and two trades for receivers that played beyond the price paid, Wes Welker and Randy Moss.

2006 was another visit to the bargain bin that yielded just WR Jabar Gaffney and a out of retirement LB Junior Seau.

 That was proceeded by a quantity over quality crop with hits (WR Tim Dwight, QB Doug Fluite) and misses (LB Monty Beisel, WR David Terrell). That was a break in the alternating pattern, but the year before they went high end.

Continue reading "The Bi-annual Free Agency Splash"

On Monday, three teams fired their head coaches, with two of the head men out of work have Patriots ties. Rod Marinelli was canned after a 0-16 season with Detroit, snitch Eric Mangini was let go by the Jets for missing the playoffs two out of three years, and Cleveland had enough of Romeo Crennel after 40 losses in four seasons. Crennel and Mangini were both former defensive coordinators for the Patriots.

The day before the Browns served Romeo his pink slip, they fired general manager Phil Savage. Wasting no time, the Browns asked an received permission to talk to New England vice president of player personnel Scott Pioli about a position with Cleveland.

Continue reading "Wanna Trade Cleveland"

The last time the Pats missed the playoffs, QB Brett Favre and the New York Jets were involved. The difference in 2002 was the Jets won the season finale over a Green Bay Packers team that had their playoff spot locked up. So G.B. mailed it in, allowing New York to get the playoff spot New England had their eyes on.

It was said long ago to keep friends close and your enemies even closer. That's the wrong approach in sports. Don't give divisional foes the opportunity to hang around or they'll come back and bite you. That's what happened to the Patriots. They were duped by Miami's Wildcat and they couldn't put the Jets away on a Thursday night game. Those losses came back to haunt New England.

Continue reading "The Drive in 09"

While it's nothing new to the team, I'm going to repeat head coach Bill Belichick's mantra that worked so well in the past and this season:

Do Your Job.

It's as simple as it sounds. Everyone has their role. Perform yours to the best of your ability.

Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. You'll be put in position to play to your strength. That means Green, who in the past was used in passing situations, needs to become the effective pass rusher he used to be. Remember that guy that subbed for Seymour in the 2003 AFC Championship and picked up 2.5 sacks against the Indianapolis Colts? If you can find that Green within you for one game, now would a great time to bring him out to play. It would make up for your zero-sack season thus far.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff Week 17"

But that doesn't take away from what this team accomplished.

How many teams in this league would completely fall apart playing without their starting quarterback? When you're talking about an All-Pro MVP passer like Tom Brady, the other top notch teams would be playing for pride. Would the New York Giants be in position to defend their title with David Carr in place of Eli Manning? Hell no!

Would the Indianapolis Colts had extended their streak of consecutive 10-win seasons led by Jim Sorgi with Peyton Manning giving him tips from the sideline? Absolutely not.

Continue reading "Hats Off"

Go Jets.

 Ugh! I'm gonna need a shower.

As much as I despise New York and their teams (the Yankees once again came through with more than $400 million reasons to hate them more this off-season), for once, I want the Jets to win.

I know I'm not the sole Patriots fan in the Jets' corner for one Sunday afternoon game. But in order for New England to win the AFC East and secure a playoff spot, two things must happen, including a Jets win.

It really sucks to be dependent on the results of other teams, but that's how it is this year.

Winning the division isn't the only way to get in. The Pats could sneak in as a Wild Card, but I highly doubt Baltimore will lose to Jacksonville.

Continue reading "Sacreligious"

Assistance wasn't provided last night as Dallas gave away their final game at Texas Stadium to visiting Baltimore. And how the Ravens won was unbelievable. Two consecutive runs gained 159 yards and two touchdowns. The Cowboys looked more like security detail clearing the way through the paparazzi than defenders going in for the tackle.

So thanks to the 'Boys feeling generous during the holidays, the Pats are now in a corner with very slim chances of getting into the playoffs.

At least the conditions are in New England's favor today. Some Arizona players might feel like they stepped onto the surface of Saturn when they walk onto the field. It probably has been years since some of those Cardinals players played in the snow. For sure, with thinned blood from playing in near tropical conditions at home, they will be cold. More than anything, they have to slow down because traction will be terrible. There isn't a better way to cool off a hot offense.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff Week 16"

The Patriots defense allowed points scored, either touchdowns or field goals, the last 41 times the opponents entered the red zone. Arizona is the second highest scoring team in the league that features receivers 6-0 Steve Breaston, 6-1 Anquan Boldin, and 6-3 Larry Fitzgerald. New England's cornerbacks measure 5-9 Ellis Hobbs, 5-11 Jonathan Wilhite, and 5-11 Deltha O'Neal.

Thankfully, it looks like Boldin will not play Sunday. But even without him, the Pats' secondary are at a disadvantage.

Arizona probably will go after New England's weak secondary with their second-ranked passing offense. Quarterback Kurt Warner should feel comfortable in the pocket behind an offensive line that allowed 24 sacks all year. And because New England's pass rush isn't much of a threat with just 26 sacks, Warner could have all day to pick the secondary apart.

Continue reading "Goal to Grow"

Quit? You kidding me? The Patriots know first hand that anything can happen in the playoffs. What if this streak New England is on carries the team all the way to the Super Bowl? It happened before. I'd take any chance at the championship as opposed to no chance.

Besides, how much more valuable is a top half first round draft pick instead of a late first round pick? How much of a better player would the Pats draft if they tanked instead of being a one-and-done playoff team?

Let's speculate. To be generous, I'll rewind the clock to just after the loss to the Steelers. If the Pats lost the rest of the games, they would be 7-9. On the other side, I'll go with my prediction of a 10-6 season.

Continue reading "Playoffs or Draft"