Why the Pats 'get all the players'

[Tailgater]

Intersting article from a former player:

http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/2009/03/the-draw-of-playing-in-new-england/

The Model

The New England Patriots are the team that every other club in the NFL wants to be — whether they admit it or not.

When I was still playing, that’s who we wanted to be, and whom we wanted to beat — on every team that I played. In Buffalo, all we talked about was finding a way to beat New England.

***
In the film room, whenever a Patriots tape was on — even if it was against a team we were preparing to play that Sunday — the conversation always shifted to New England. Why are they so good? What do they do that makes them better than everyone else? Is it the scheme or the players? Why do they get whomever they want in free agency? Sure, we would sit in those cold chairs in the dark of the film room and throw out criticisms of their players every so often, but we would be kidding ourselves if it wasn’t out of pure, unfiltered jealousy.

***The Respect Factor

This might be the most important factor when it comes to the Patriots’ success.

Tell me a time when a player went to the podium after a game or during interviews after practice and criticized the way things are done in New England. Because I can’t find one.


***
The Bottom Line

Players are drawn to New England because of the coach, the wins, the “team” idea that seems to exist there compared to every other dysfunctional NFL franchise.

 

[DuderinoN703]

Well since the guy played for Buffalo I could see why NE would be their focus b/c they're divisional rivals.

The only other reason you'd want to be like the Pats is b/c they won 3 Super Bowls in the last 10 years. Every team wants to do that.

 

[ArmyFin7]

I would tend to think 3 or 4 yrs ago maybe as far as the winning championships goes. But the Pats havn't won one in a while. I do believe for a long time they have been the best run franchise in the salary cap era, but other teams are starting to figure it out as well. The Steelers are proving to have some staying power as well as the Giants. I believe teams like the phins and Falcons are up and coming teams that will be serious contenders in another yr or so. While other teams like the jets and Redskins continue to do things as they always have an keep on circling the track.

 

[feelthepain]

Intersting article from a former player:

http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/2009/03/the-draw-of-playing-in-new-england/

The Model

The New England Patriots are the team that every other club in the NFL wants to be — whether they admit it or not.

I don't think "every other" team wants to be labled cheaters. I think there is way too much evidence that doesn't favor the Pats and the way they go about their business. It's not like it's just one disgruntled player tossing around allegations, suggesting the Pats cheated. No there has been fines and sources suggesting information of video tapes during walk throughs and it's always something with the Pats. I don't think there's anything the Pats do that other teams want to do. Hell Belicheat even has a hard time being a gracious loser. During the SB that he lost to the Giants the big jerk couldn't even let the playclock run out before he ran into the locker room. The refs even told him the time had not run out and didn't care he just wanted to get off the filed cause he wasn't the winner., Pathetic!!!!

 

[Layfield]

Yeah, Im still not sure why he left for the locker room before time ran out.

 

[Tailgater]

I don't think "every other" team wants to be labled cheaters. I think there is way too much evidence that doesn't favor the Pats and the way they go about their business. It's not like it's just one disgruntled player tossing around allegations, suggesting the Pats cheated. No there has been fines and sources suggesting information of video tapes during walk throughs and it's always something with the Pats. I don't think there's anything the Pats do that other teams want to do. Hell Belicheat even has a hard time being a gracious loser. During the SB that he lost to the Giants the big jerk couldn't even let the playclock run out before he ran into the locker room. The refs even told him the time had not run out and didn't care he just wanted to get off the filed cause he wasn't the winner., Pathetic!!!!

What 'disgruntled players' are you referring to? The guys on the losing side of big games? Please.

If you want a 'gracious loser' as a coach, you should have kept wanny around. I want a coach and player to HATE losing. Sitck to peewee soccer and don't keep score if that what you expect from any competative sport.

Wouldn't you think, after all these years, some former pats player would spill the beans if there was anything outrageous going on? That hasn't happened as far as i know.

This article was written by a former player. I think his viewpoint is a heck of a lot more valid than any fan, me included.

Ignore all the former coaches (including jimmy johnson & Tuna, among others) that say the whole thing was overhyped & overblown, and is a common theme around the league. You know better than they do. After all, ESPN says it was important and everybody knows they LOVE the pats. IT MUST BE TRUE!

 

[feelthepain]

What 'disgruntled players' are you referring to?

Go back and read what I wrote. I said, it's not like it's just one disgruntled player making accusaions.

If you want a 'gracious loser' as a coach, you should have kept wanny around. I want a coach and player to HATE losing. Sitck to peewee soccer and don't keep score if that what you expect from any competative sport.

I want a HC that hates to lose too, I just don't want him to be a sore loser on national television in front odf the world. He's a big frikin baby who doesn't mind talking to the media when his team wins an you don't see him heading off to the locker room early when he's the winner.

Wouldn't you think, after all these years, some former pats player would spill the beans if there was anything outrageous going on? That hasn't happened as far as i know.

Wouldn't you think if the Pats weren't chaeting there wouldn't be so much as a hint that they were? Losing a first round pick was a slap on the wrist, they should have gotten more. There was talk that the Pats cheated in other areas. So someone did try to "spill the beans", it was a coach not a player.

This article was written by a former player. I think his viewpoint is a heck of a lot more valid than any fan, me included.

Why cause he played in the league his viewpoint cancels out any cheating the Pats did?? Look the Pats have been caught, the proof is out there, none of your love for the Pats can cover that up. No one in the NFL believes the Pats SB victories are 100% legit, except Pat fans. The wins are and always will be tainted, you'll never be able to talk about those wins without someone questioning the validity of the wins.

Ignore all the former coaches (including jimmy johnson & Tuna, among others) that say the whole thing was overhyped & overblown, and is a common theme around the league. You know better than they do. After all, ESPN says it was important and everybody knows they LOVE the pats. IT MUST BE TRUE!

I don't have to ignore anything, I can look at what happened and know if the Pats were legit, they would have no need to cheat. If those teams were so good, they wouldn't have had to cheat to win those games. BB knew very well he was breaking the rules and he played dumb, but it didn't stop the loss of the draft pick.

Do you have any idea how big the loss of a 1st round pick is? I do believe it's never happend in the history of the game and yet IMO that wasn't punishment enough. As far as how those coaches feel about the Pats situation, the comments were made on just the video taping of the sidelines, Roger Goodell is the one with all the fact in this case, not Jimmy Johnson and BP. I also believe there was a letter sent out by Roger Goodell to everyone around the league and those who report on the NFL that they are limited in their comments.

In the end we all have our own opinions and I'll promise you th majority of NFL fans clearly believe the Pats were cheating. This isn't just bitter AFC east fans, this is league wide. No matter how much defending you can muster you can't change what is, we all know BB was/is a cheater.

 

[Tailgater]

I understand many fans feel that way. I understand they'd grasp any reason at all to think thats the only reason they won. Go for it. If it helps you feed your hate or lessen the pain of losing to the Pats, good for you!

All of the players I've heard that made noise about the taping were all on the losing side of the sb or championship games, including the steelers, chargers, eagles, rams and I think the Panthers. Of couse I have to include Schlereth too, though when the story fisrt broke, he said it was no big deal. then, when he realised he could get a lot more air time, he jumped to the other side and said it was worse than slaughtering baby seasl. LMAO!

The only hint of additional illegalities came from an asst video cleck, not a coach or former player, and that was provn to have no teeth other than rumor.

I understand BB and the Pats will always be under more scrutiny. Deservedly so. It comes with the territory.

It's just a joke when he does something like not shake hands after a game and everyone goes bonkers, while the next game the other coach does the same thing and it doesn't matter. It happens most every week with nobody noticing.

So I guess, if, in your opinion 'everybody in the NFL knows their SB wins weren't legit", why do so many players want to sign with the Pats? Are they born cheaters or something?

Keep up the hatin'. Some day, the fins will be hated as they once were. It's one of the measuring sticks of success.

Go back and read what I wrote. I said, it's not like it's just one disgruntled player making accusaions.



I want a HC that hates to lose too, I just don't want him to be a sore loser on national television in front odf the world. He's a big frikin baby who doesn't mind talking to the media when his team wins an you don't see him heading off to the locker room early when he's the winner.



Wouldn't you think if the Pats weren't chaeting there wouldn't be so much as a hint that they were? Losing a first round pick was a slap on the wrist, they should have gotten more. There was talk that the Pats cheated in other areas. So someone did try to "spill the beans", it was a coach not a player.



Why cause he played in the league his viewpoint cancels out any cheating the Pats did?? Look the Pats have been caught, the proof is out there, none of your love for the Pats can cover that up. No one in the NFL believes the Pats SB victories are 100% legit, except Pat fans. The wins are and always will be tainted, you'll never be able to talk about those wins without someone questioning the validity of the wins.



I don't have to ignore anything, I can look at what happened and know if the Pats were legit, they would have no need to cheat. If those teams were so good, they wouldn't have had to cheat to win those games. BB knew very well he was breaking the rules and he played dumb, but it didn't stop the loss of the draft pick.

Do you have any idea how big the loss of a 1st round pick is? I do believe it's never happend in the history of the game and yet IMO that wasn't punishment enough. As far as how those coaches feel about the Pats situation, the comments were made on just the video taping of the sidelines, Roger Goodell is the one with all the fact in this case, not Jimmy Johnson and BP. I also believe there was a letter sent out by Roger Goodell to everyone around the league and those who report on the NFL that they are limited in their comments.

In the end we all have our own opinions and I'll promise you th majority of NFL fans clearly believe the Pats were cheating. This isn't just bitter AFC east fans, this is league wide. No matter how much defending you can muster you can't change what is, we all know BB was/is a cheater.

 

[ih8brady]

Well since the guy played for Buffalo I could see why NE would be their focus b/c they're divisional rivals.

The only other reason you'd want to be like the Pats is b/c they won 3 Super Bowls in the last 10 years. Every team wants to do that.

2 Super Bowls. One was revoked by Vladimir Putin :tongue:

 

[feelthepain]

I understand many fans feel that way. I understand they'd grasp any reason at all to think thats the only reason they won. Go for it. If it helps you feed your hate or lessen the pain of losing to the Pats, good for you!

You can play the roll of victim all you want, you can make it seem as though everyone else is just jealous of the Pats success and we're looking for excuses to ruin their championships. The Pats were found guilty of cheating and I'm sure there's more to it than we know, however Roger Goodell has an image to uphold and he's trying as hard as he can to keep the NFL form looking like MLB.

Remember the tapes Goodell destroyed before anyone could view them? It's obvious there was more going on then people were told. You can think the Pats success is all about the talent, well why cheat if you can win with the talent? BB was making sure the Pats won at all cost, taking the unexpected and bad luck out of the equation.

This isn't about Dolphin fans or any other NFL fans having hate for the Pats. It's about the facts and the facts are clear in this situation. The Pats cheated, did they cheat in the playoffs? Did they cheat in the SB? Well we know they cheated in the division and whats the best way to earn a bye week and set yourself up for the easiest ride to the SB? By winning all your division games. I don't think it's tough to figure out what the Pats were doing and why.

By being caught red handed cheating and make no mistake, they were caught cheating. Than anything else they do can be up for debate, it's no longer speculation, the Pats cheated it's a fact. I don't have to stress the Pats or their success, cause by getting caught, they made it easy to draw a rational conclusion based on facts. You an spin it any way you like, but we don't have to spin anything all we have to do is look at the facts and that's our proof, evidence whatever you want to call it.

There's no need to be bitter or jealous when the Pats are the ones who cheated and got caught. You can't very well sit there and tell us the Pats didn't cheat during the SB or playoffs cause they were guilty of cheating, question is for how long. I think it's very reasonable to assume they cheated duing the SB given the fact the were caught cheating during the regular season. If you're the Police investigating a murder, that would be considered strong circumstantal evidence and you would be a prime suspect.

 

[The New Guy]

Intersting article from a former player:

http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/2009/03/the-draw-of-playing-in-new-england/

The Model

The New England Patriots are the team that every other club in the NFL wants to be — whether they admit it or not.

When I was still playing, that’s who we wanted to be, and whom we wanted to beat — on every team that I played. In Buffalo, all we talked about was finding a way to beat New England.

***
In the film room, whenever a Patriots tape was on — even if it was against a team we were preparing to play that Sunday — the conversation always shifted to New England. Why are they so good? What do they do that makes them better than everyone else? Is it the scheme or the players? Why do they get whomever they want in free agency? Sure, we would sit in those cold chairs in the dark of the film room and throw out criticisms of their players every so often, but we would be kidding ourselves if it wasn’t out of pure, unfiltered jealousy.

***The Respect Factor

This might be the most important factor when it comes to the Patriots’ success.

Tell me a time when a player went to the podium after a game or during interviews after practice and criticized the way things are done in New England. Because I can’t find one.


***
The Bottom Line

Players are drawn to New England because of the coach, the wins, the “team” idea that seems to exist there compared to every other dysfunctional NFL franchise.

I was looking for a March 2004 date on that article. That is a nice read if you are a Pats fan, but I don't believe it to be true. Who are these "High profile free agents" that are signing with the Pats instead of other teams? Are we talking about Fred Taylor, Joey Galloway, or ShawnSprings? Did they turn down bigger contract offers from other teams just to play for the Patriots?

The most important thing to the majority of NFL players in free agency is the money. That's why Jason Brown signed with the Rams when the Ravens were 1 game away from the Super Bowl last year. I am not saying that older veterans don't want a chance to win a Super Bowl, just saying that money is very important.

If everybody wants to play for the Patriots, why did Asante Samuel, Adam Vinatieri, David Givens, Deion Branch, and many others leave for more money? Again, I am not saying that a proven track record does not help allure free agents to your club, but to think that the Patriots have any advantage over other winning franchises is wishful thinking. Patriots fans may want to think that, but they are still living in 2004-05.

 

[Tailgater]

The article was posted this week. Not sure where you got 2004 from?

You evidently missed the point of the article. The former pat players got their rings then left for big money.

Galloway was offered more by the Steelers.

I do think the Pats have an advantage over most teams when it comes to signing vets that are past their prime, the ones that have already had one or two big contracts. If the Colts and Steelers were in the habit of bringing in vets, which they are not, the Pats advantage would be shared with them.

The only FA that I know turned down more money with the Pats to sign with another team was Derrick Mason, who ended up taking the Ravens offer, mostly because his wife didn't want to be in the Boston area.

I was looking for a March 2004 date on that article. That is a nice read if you are a Pats fan, but I don't believe it to be true. Who are these "High profile free agents" that are signing with the Pats instead of other teams? Are we talking about Fred Taylor, Joey Galloway, or ShawnSprings? Did they turn down bigger contract offers from other teams just to play for the Patriots?

The most important thing to the majority of NFL players in free agency is the money. That's why Jason Brown signed with the Rams when the Ravens were 1 game away from the Super Bowl last year. I am not saying that older veterans don't want a chance to win a Super Bowl, just saying that money is very important.

If everybody wants to play for the Patriots, why did Asante Samuel, Adam Vinatieri, David Givens, Deion Branch, and many others leave for more money? Again, I am not saying that a proven track record does not help allure free agents to your club, but to think that the Patriots have any advantage over other winning franchises is wishful thinking. Patriots fans may want to think that, but they are still living in 2004-05.

 

[ArmyFin7]

Talk about a useless article. Of coarse the Pats are gonna be the media darlings this yr. Brady is coming backand most everyone has them favored to win the superbowl. Every media outlet has to find a way to talk about the Pats. Arn't they favored about every yr though?

 

[The New Guy]

The article was posted this week. Not sure where you got 2004 from?

You evidently missed the point of the article. The former pat players got their rings then left for big money.

Galloway was offered more by the Steelers.

I do think the Pats have an advantage over most teams when it comes to signing vets that are past their prime, the ones that have already had one or two big contracts. If the Colts and Steelers were in the habit of bringing in vets, which they are not, the Pats advantage would be shared with them.

The only FA that I know turned down more money with the Pats to sign with another team was Derrick Mason, who ended up taking the Ravens offer, mostly because his wife didn't want to be in the Boston area.

I know the article was posted this week. It was just a joke. The article made it sound like the Pats won the last 4 Super Bowls.

Maybe I did miss the point of the article. What I got from it was how everyone wanted to be just like the Pats and how they could sign any free agent they wanted because every player really wants to be a Patriot. :crazy: Maybe there was a grain of truth to that 4 years ago, but I just don’t believe it to be true.

By the way, how many rings does Donte Stallworth, Tim Dwight, Doug Flutie, Chad Brown, or Junior Seau, have?

I do think the Pats have an advantage over most teams when it comes to signing vets that are past their prime, the ones that have already had one or two big contracts.

I am more willing to agree with that statement than what is written in the article. There is a big difference between high profile free agents and veteran free agents that are past their prime. I do think that the Patriots are more likely to sign a vet that is passed his prime. I don’t necessarily think it is because the older vet only wants to play for the Patriots, but rather that the Patriots are more willing to sign them when other teams are not as interested.

Galloway was offered more by the Steelers.

Was he? I didn’t know that the contract details were released yet. As far as I know Pittsburg didn’t even make him a contract offer when he visited them. I heard that if they were gong to offer him a contract, it was going to be a 1 year deal for the vet minimum.

Even if what you are saying is true, I don’t believe it was just because every player wants to be a Patriot. There are many factors that go into a player’s decision to sign with a team. How much are they willing to pay me? Is the team a contender? How much playing time will I get? Maybe Galloway felt he would get more playing time in NE. I do not believe that if NE offers a contract, a player is just going to sign then and there. I am sure there have been other free agents besides Derrick Mason that have turned down a contract from NE.

The point is, not every player wants to be a Patriot. Just ask Zach Thomas. :D To think that way is a bit arrogant if you ask me.

 

[shula_guy]

arrogance is the patriots trademark