Bad boys? Or BAD BOYS???

[TARHEEL38]

I was one of the first to want to see Dave Whiny-stat get the axe. And of all the possible replacement canidates, Saban was at the top of my list. I have loved his attitude and the way players seem to respond to him, although I have to admit it is still REALLY early. My question comes from how he was compared to the Pats braintrust. He was said to be commited to bringing in high quality players with a team first attitude.
Yet one of the first statements I heard Saban make was reguarding his willingness to let Ricky come back. Ricky, the drug smoking, team ditching, quitter. Then Saban drafts Roth, who is best known for his off-field antics, and bar fights, and Crowder who has a bit of a past as well. Saban is the only one who thought it was worth the risk to give Elam(a convicted rapest, if my memory serves me right) a second chance as well. This is by far the strangest, considering the very real chance he will not even make the team.
Now yesterday we resign Boston, who just got in trouble for punching a man at an airport. Don't get me wrong, I like most of you liked all of these signing as they came. I even liked Boston (mainly b/c of Madden 06) but when you look at the group as a whole I don't think anyone would consider it a group dripping with character. For a man who was supposed to be modeled after Belichick, these signings seem some what nomadic. Can anyone see ANY of these players on the Pats roster??
I don't think we have to have a squeeky clean team to win, the Raiders won a few SBs in the past with a bunch of thugs, but in todays system I wonder if it will work. I also wonder if this is what we all, or even Saban for that matter, had in mind. Just food for thought. What do you guys think??

 

[TARHEEL38]

Maybe Saban just got to see an early viewing of the new "Longest Yard", and thought if we didn't have a good year we could switch leagues.

 

[FinzManiac]

Or maybe after interviewing and talking to these young men he saw something in them that said "These guys look like they are my kind of players"

Saban has met with all of these people in question. If he thought they were going to be a problem he would have never given them a chance in the first place IMO...

In Saban I trust...it's too early to question much of anything right now...let the man work his magic...

 

[phinMikeDC]

Corey Dillon and Rodney Harrison had character concerns...sure they werent convicted of felony sexual battery, but if these players buy into Saban;s concept it wont matter. I'm concerned as well, but I'm always the optimist.

 

[Timmy54]

Why is it that nobody can make a mistake anymore and not pay his debt and resume his life??? The man paid his debt to society as deemed by the court of law. Yes, what he did is bad. But he also paid alot for it. Time in jail, lost a chance to graduate from college, lost alot of money in daft status (if he ever was thought of that highly), plus the embarressment of having to live with what he has done for years. I do believe in second chances. Do you put him on a short leash, of course, but you dont immediatly throw him out cause of one past incident. I am 30 years old and know of many things i wish i could go back and change, I am sure all of us have those items. So lets see if this new guy can live up to a changed life a play some ball, if not, then we get rid of him.

 

[Lazy1]

Just because Saban is compared to Belicheck doesnt mean he is Belicheck! He is going to do some things his own way and take certain risks. All of these "risks" he's taken are rather small the biggest risk was him drafting Crowder and i'm fine with that pick b/c crowder has superstar talent. The boston thing, the elam thing, and the ricky thing are all little risks and if they dont pan out they don't hurt our team in anyway... so why not take these risks?

 

[Timmy54]

Just because Saban is compared to Belicheck doesnt mean he is Belicheck! He is going to do some things his own way and take certain risks. All of these "risks" he's taken are rather small the biggest risk was him drafting Crowder and i'm fine with that pick b/c crowder has superstar talent. The boston thing, the elam thing, and the ricky thing are all little risks and if they dont pan out they don't hurt our team in anyway... so why not take these risks?

good point!!

 

[LarryFinFan]

I was one of the first to want to see Dave Whiny-stat get the axe. And of all the possible replacement canidates, Saban was at the top of my list. I have loved his attitude and the way players seem to respond to him, although I have to admit it is still REALLY early. My question comes from how he was compared to the Pats braintrust. He was said to be commited to bringing in high quality players with a team first attitude.
Yet one of the first statements I heard Saban make was reguarding his willingness to let Ricky come back. Ricky, the drug smoking, team ditching, quitter. Then Saban drafts Roth, who is best known for his off-field antics, and bar fights, and Crowder who has a bit of a past as well. Saban is the only one who thought it was worth the risk to give Elam(a convicted rapest, if my memory serves me right) a second chance as well. This is by far the strangest, considering the very real chance he will not even make the team.
Now yesterday we resign Boston, who just got in trouble for punching a man at an airport. Don't get me wrong, I like most of you liked all of these signing as they came. I even liked Boston (mainly b/c of Madden 06) but when you look at the group as a whole I don't think anyone would consider it a group dripping with character. For a man who was supposed to be modeled after Belichick, these signings seem some what nomadic. Can anyone see ANY of these players on the Pats roster??
I don't think we have to have a squeeky clean team to win, the Raiders won a few SBs in the past with a bunch of thugs, but in todays system I wonder if it will work. I also wonder if this is what we all, or even Saban for that matter, had in mind. Just food for thought. What do you guys think??

Well, Roth may be known for his off-field antics..but ask most OL that played Iowa what they remember about him...it won't be the bar fight...Besides the upside is tremendous on this guy.

Ricky, the drug-smoking, team quitter HAS to come back due to his other responsibilities..(child support times 3 and the arbitrator's $8.6 mil judgement). IF he returns, it will be to appease that debt, not really because he LOVES the game anymore...Besides, isn't it a smarter move to allow him back and let him regain some lost respect around the league in the chance that his trade value might be a little better than what it is now ?? Isn't it smarter (business-wise) to get some value for him ?

Crowder's main issue was injuries, not his off-field stuff, although he isn't a saint either. But again, there is the upside on this guy...if he can stay healthy he could be an integral cog in Saban's D...

Elam is NOT a convicted rapist...he is a convicted sexual offender...he was acquitted of the more serious rape charges...He is also a long shot to make the team, but an interesting talent none-the-less. Besides, the articles I have read on the case pretty much all say that this was more of an alcohol induced, mistake of youth...I am NOT condoning his action and he will continue to and has been paying for that mistake...but Saban and the NFL have apparently done background checks and interviews with former coaches and that must have set their minds a ease about him...besides, the onus is on him to not do anything to screw up this opportunity...

Boston...still has issues, but again...to me, it seems as though these are calculated risks the Saban is taking. He cost us over $3 mil last year to rehab his knee..why not try and get something out of him...At worst, he gets injured again...at best, he is part of a deadly WR duo/trio in Linehan's offense. For the vet min. contract, it was worth a shot, to me.

So, yes, he has somewhat veered away from that opening statement he made regarding the team. But we have yet to see how things will shake out. We haven't even played a game yet. I don't know all the personal stories about the Pats players, but I'm sure they are not all squeaky clean as you stated...I know that Wilfork was not exactly a homebody while at the U...and Vrabel is the second dirtiest player in the league next to Romo...Harrison has been fined quite a few times by the league for illegal hits...Obviously, those are not character issues necessarily, but no team in the NFL is that squeaky clean...

Another thought....how much of this publicity about the players backgrounds is rhetoric brought about by and amplified by the local press. Its a known fact that there are several local radio and newspaper guys that have a hard-on for Saban because of his media "lockout". I'm sure that other players in the league have had or have issues and we hardly hear about them. But I could be off base, it was just a thought...

 

[fishfan34]

Well, Roth may be known for his off-field antics..but ask most OL that played Iowa what they remember about him...it won't be the bar fight...Besides the upside is tremendous on this guy.

Ricky, the drug-smoking, team quitter HAS to come back due to his other responsibilities..(child support times 3 and the arbitrator's $8.6 mil judgement). IF he returns, it will be to appease that debt, not really because he LOVES the game anymore...Besides, isn't it a smarter move to allow him back and let him regain some lost respect around the league in the chance that his trade value might be a little better than what it is now ?? Isn't it smarter (business-wise) to get some value for him ?

Crowder's main issue was injuries, not his off-field stuff, although he isn't a saint either. But again, there is the upside on this guy...if he can stay healthy he could be an integral cog in Saban's D...

Elam is NOT a convicted rapist...he is a convicted sexual offender...he was acquitted of the more serious rape charges...He is also a long shot to make the team, but an interesting talent none-the-less. Besides, the articles I have read on the case pretty much all say that this was more of an alcohol induced, mistake of youth...I am NOT condoning his action and he will continue to and has been paying for that mistake...but Saban and the NFL have apparently done background checks and interviews with former coaches and that must have set their minds a ease about him...besides, the onus is on him to not do anything to screw up this opportunity...

Boston...still has issues, but again...to me, it seems as though these are calculated risks the Saban is taking. He cost us over $3 mil last year to rehab his knee..why not try and get something out of him...At worst, he gets injured again...at best, he is part of a deadly WR duo/trio in Linehan's offense. For the vet min. contract, it was worth a shot, to me.

So, yes, he has somewhat veered away from that opening statement he made regarding the team. But we have yet to see how things will shake out. We haven't even played a game yet. I don't know all the personal stories about the Pats players, but I'm sure they are not all squeaky clean as you stated...I know that Wilfork was not exactly a homebody while at the U...and Vrabel is the second dirtiest player in the league next to Romo...Harrison has been fined quite a few times by the league for illegal hits...Obviously, those are not character issues necessarily, but no team in the NFL is that squeaky clean...

Another thought....how much of this publicity about the players backgrounds is rhetoric brought about by and amplified by the local press. Its a known fact that there are several local radio and newspaper guys that have a hard-on for Saban because of his media "lockout". I'm sure that other players in the league have had or have issues and we hardly hear about them. But I could be off base, it was just a thought...

:yeahthat:

 

[TARHEEL38]

Good replies, one and all. I must restate for the record I am 100% behind Saban and think he will be fine in the long run. It just seems like over the past 12 months everything that could go wrong has, to the point last off season I was afraid to check the message boards every day. I guess I am a little gun shy. It just seems as though I would have been afraid to take as many chances this early, given the last year and the fact he is a new NFL head coach.


Just imagine for a minute if one, two, or more of these chances he has taken comes back to bite him. Then imagine we start off slow, which is possible considering the schedule we have. Just think of the abuse he will have to endure. I personally think it is worth it, but it could get really ugly, really quick.

 

[Mile High Fin]

Just because Saban is compared to Belicheck doesnt mean he is Belicheck! He is going to do some things his own way and take certain risks. All of these "risks" he's taken are rather small the biggest risk was him drafting Crowder and i'm fine with that pick b/c crowder has superstar talent. The boston thing, the elam thing, and the ricky thing are all little risks and if they dont pan out they don't hurt our team in anyway... so why not take these risks?

Word!