Mass.com Article: Phins Putting Pressure On Pats

[FinsFan71]

Good morning Phins fans: :dolphins:

I came across this nice read in, of all place, a New England on-line news site. According to the article, the Patsies are feeling lots of pressure from Saban and our Phins to stay on top of the AFC EAST.

Now we will all find out if Belicheck is genius that ESPN and other sports analysts say he is. :sidelol: IMO, there will be a changing of the guard in 2006.

Go Phins!!!

Here's the link:

http://www.masslive.com/kennedy/republican/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1145173460187790.xml&coll=1

Enjoy the article and :feedback:

 

[Phinadict]

nice arcticle, but the guy compared Chad Pennington to Tom Brady and Dante Cuplepper? I don't see that in the same light...

 

[njfinfan]

Nice read. We all know Pennington's arm is suspect, at best. IMO, he can't be compared to any of the big name qb's at this point.

 

[Dolfan4life!]

The author states, "(during the off-season) the secondary was revamped. Gone are the likes of Brock Marion, Patrick Surtain and Sam Madison". Surtain's been gone for a year and Marion's been gone for two. Granted, we have signed many new players to the secondary, but mentioning these two guys in relation to this years off-season moves is misinformed.

 

[FinsFan71]

The author states, "(during the off-season) the secondary was revamped. Gone are the likes of Brock Marion, Patrick Surtain and Sam Madison". Surtain's been gone for a year and Marion's been gone for two. Granted, we have signed many new players to the secondary, but mentioning these two guys in relation to this years off-season moves is misinformed.

What did you expect...after all, this is an article from New England...

You know the saying, "You snooze, you lose." Patsies are gonna find out very soon the meaning of losing very very soon. With every FA addition and draft, we are becoming more physical, stronger, deeper and hungrier than they are.

Soon we will be the new rulers of the AFC East (2006)....mark my words! So, Patsies, keep losing all your talented players to FA...Keep ignoring the rise of the Phins...Soon you won't be able to ignore us...Especially when we start collecting Lombardi Trophys -- Our destiny will be fulfilled and very soon -- Thanks to our savior, NICK SABAN!!! :fire:

In 2006, we will be the new Beasts of the East!!!! :domoblow:

 

[NJPHIN34]

This guy seriously dogs Culpepper in relation to Brady. I will admit that Brady is a big game QB and a great one at that, but the way this guy puts it, makes it seem like DC has never played at that level nor will he. Wasn't DC a candidate for MVP one year? I believe Brady is always in the mix as well, this guy just needs to give credit where credits due. Oh and did he compare Kevin Faulk to Ronnie Brown? Cmon guy get outta hereeeee!

 

[FinsFan71]

MassLive.com Link Removed...here's my copy!!!!

<Link was Removed...But not to worry -- here's the Article>
:confused: :confused: :confused: :confused:

guess they don't want us to know....

Pressure's on Pats in draft
Sunday, April 16, 2006
There is nothing like a little competition, or rather a little increased competition, to change the pace of life, no?

The New England Patriots have won four of the last five AFC East titles, including three straight. In 2003 and 2004, they won titles by a whopping four games, first over Miami and then over the New York Jets. Last season, the Patriots finished one game in front of the Dolphins, but the division was actually clinched with two weeks still to play. A meaningless win by the Dolphins in Foxboro in the final week made the race seemingly closer.

Over the final two months of that 2005 season, there was for the first time in some time a whisper of danger. The Dolphins won their final six games, including an impressive, 23-21 victory at San Diego that devastated the Chargers' playoff hopes.

Ever since Nick Saban landed in south Florida in the 2004 offseason, Miami was expected to improve and challenge New England. Saban, after all, was New England coach Bill Belichick's most trusted confidant, and he had proven himself both as an NFL coordinator and college head coach.

Last year, Miami managed nine wins mostly on gumption. This offseason, Daunte Culpepper was added at quarterback, and the secondary was revamped. Gone are the likes of Brock Marion, Patrick Surtain and Sam Madison, replaced by the likes of Will Allen, Deke Cooper and Andre' Goodman.

Culpepper was the key off-season acquisition. He may not be Tom Brady, but he will most likely produce more than Gus Frerotte or any other Dolphins quarterback since Dan Marino. The AFC East has not seen a QB this good outside of Foxboro since Chad Pennington briefly showed promise in the 2002 season.

The Patriots, meanwhile, suffered some significant offseason losses - linebacker Willie McGinest, receiver David Givens and kicker Adam Vinatieri - which created a sense, true or false, that they will be weaker. While much of the focus has been on Vinatieri's departure, McGinest was a huge, pass-rushing playmaker for Super Bowl teams and Givens leaves a significant void at No.2 receiver on an offense that is not even sure who its No.3 will be.

So now comes the April 29-30 draft, with both teams playing a similar style of defense - a 3-4 base - and consequently looking for similar types of defensive players. The same might be said for Cleveland and even the New York Jets, coached by past Belichick coordinators Romeo Crennel and Eric Mangini, respectively.

Miami has the 16th overall pick and New England the 21st, with the Patriots enjoying a much greater opportunity to grab young, cheap - if inexperienced - talent on both days of the draft. There are, of course, no guarantees. Remember, the Patriots picked up receiver Deion Branch in the second round, 65th overall, of the 2002 draft - jackpot - but also grabbed receiver Bethel Johnson in the second round, 45th overall, of the 2003 draft - bust, at least to this point.

Miami and New England have some similar needs - cornerback, receiver and outside linebacker. The Dolphins also need that prototypical 3-4, run-stopping nose tackle, while the Patriots need a back of the future.

While fans are always tempted by high-profile receivers, those often seem to be risky picks. Really, do you wish the Patriots had taken David Terrell or Koren Robinson sixth overall in 2001 rather than Richard Seymour?

This is not a stunning group of receivers, anyway. Miami has had two top prospects, Chad Jackson of Florida and Santonio Holmes of Ohio State, in for visits, but those guys do not stack up particularly well against other recent first-round picks at the position.

The Dolphins have receiver Chris Chambers, tight end Randy McMichael and running back Ronnie Brown, but probably need something more than just Marty Booker behind that group. The Patriots have Branch, tight ends Benjamin Watson and Daniel Graham plus running back Kevin Faulk, but they now would choose second and third wideouts from the likes of Troy Brown, Reche Caldwell and Johnson.

As far as outside linebackers, Pro Football Weekly's draft prospectus notes that Kamerion Wimbley of Florida State and Manny Lawson of North Carolina State are among those defensive ends who might wind up as pass rushers from the outside linebacker spot in a 3-4 scheme - making the linebacking group in this draft class a good one.

Oregon nose tackle Haloti Ngata will probably not last past Cleveland at the 12th pick, and Wimbley or combination lineman Brodrick Bunkley of Florida State might not either. If a defensive lineman the Dolphins like survives past that, then they might move up to grab him.

New England could always shift Mike Vrabel back to outside linebacker and draft someone for the inside. The Patriots also might think 2003 seventh-rounder Tully Banta-Cain can help them offset the loss of McGinest to some degree. Abdul Hodge of Iowa is a potential 3-4 inside linebacker who might be around in round two, but he might not slip past Crennel and the Browns.

There should be cornerbacks around late in the first round, too, meaning teams like the Patriots and Dolphins can probably find quality help.

Then there is the fun part of the draft and post-draft talent search. With Corey Dillon coming off a sub-par season, the Patriots will be looking on day one for a running back to help in the present and perhaps even carry the load in the future. With Vinatieri gone, there might be a place for a younger kicker to challenge the recently acquired Martin Gramatica.

Miami, meanwhile, had Vince Young in for a visit - just in case he drops in the draft - as fishy as that might sound.

Chris Kennedy can be reached at ckennedy@repub.com

 

[phunwin]

nice arcticle, but the guy compared Chad Pennington to Tom Brady and Dante Cuplepper? I don't see that in the same light...

No, he compared the 2002 Pennington to those guys. And in 2002, Pennington was flat-out AWESOME: 69% completions, 3120 yards, 22/6 TD/INT ratio. He also led the Jets to a playoff thumping of the Colts. That was his one healthy season, and before he started having arm problems.

 

[tcdrover]

Anyone else notice how many draft picks the pats have this year?

I think we CAN overpass them this year, but we need to get younger to be competetive in the long run year in and year out...

:dolphins:

 

[PhinsRock]

You're right, Pennington was awesome that year and looked like he was ready to be classed with DC and Brady, before his arm went south.

Good article, thanks for the link.

In Saban We Trust!

 

[enigmatics]

Nice read. We all know Pennington's arm is suspect, at best. IMO, he can't be compared to any of the big name qb's at this point.

Huh? The dude compared Pennington's 2002 season to them, not him now........

 

[themole]

Nice read. We all know Pennington's arm is suspect, at best. IMO, he can't be compared to any of the big name qb's at this point.

Here's to a beautiful day to you M. :D

 

[phinMikeDC]

nice arcticle, but the guy compared Chad Pennington to Tom Brady and Dante Cuplepper? I don't see that in the same light...

He said Pennington was that good in 2002....which he was - he led the league in QB rating that year.