Ethan in Cleveland Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 Perhaps the OP needs a history lesson. How do you think the Patriots won their first SuperBowl? They signed a bunch of middle of the road free agents (Mike Vrabel for an example) and paired them with a few stars on defense and an all-world defensive minded HC to make a SB run. It helped that the rules of the day allowed Belichick to grab and hold receivers all day long. The Patriots won 7 games last year with the most number of COVID opt-outs in the league and played the league's hardest schedule (preseason ranking). The Bills barely beat them in the first game. Newton had a better game than Allen in the first game - both were terrible. And they were one yard away from beating Seattle in Seattle. The Patriots are not in the class of the Bills but they have the personnel to make a WC run. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
appoo Posted March 15, 2021 Author Share Posted March 15, 2021 28 minutes ago, FFadpecr said: How is the Patriots O-Line "hollowed out"???? Huh?? The Patriots have one of the best O-Lines in football for 2021. It's going to be an elite unit. 2 excellent OTs in Wynn and Trent Brown 2 excellent OGs in Mason and Onewnu. The Patriots may have roster issues: OL is not 1 of them. Trent Brown isn't excellent and Onwenu hasn't played guard in the NFL. They should be good, but they lost a pair of VERY good starters in Cannon and Thuney, and they lost a pro-bowl caliber center in David Andrews, unless he decides to stay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost_002! Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Jokeman Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 18 minutes ago, Success said: BB has an aura about him because of his greatness as a coach - and there is no doubt about that. I think most of us agree that he's the best ever. But he has never been all that as a GM. Always has his share of head-scratching moves, and his draft record is middlin' at best. He benefitted for years from a GOAT QB taking pay cuts and having a salary below his value, and also from FA's taking pay cuts to play with that GOAT. This reminds me of drought-era Bills, or other teams that "won" the offseason with FA additions but then fizzled in the regular season. None of what they're doing concerns me right now. They still have Cam behind center. Cam was broken last season and I'm sorry but the Patriots receiving core was horrible last year. That said it' still bad until they get someone. Yet knowing Belichick he's going to look for lesser known guys Marvin Jones and Adam Humpheries that would fly under the radar but can produce. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo03 Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 (edited) Simple Belichick is out to try to prove he can win a SB without Brady He had a 36-44 record in Cleveland and has a 25-28 record without Brady in NE 61-72 total without Brady He isn't gonna see another SB much less win one though. His ticket for that is playing in Tampa now amd just won one without him in his first year there on a team that was on a 13 year playoff drought. Edited March 15, 2021 by Buffalo03 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOKBILLS Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 36 minutes ago, H2o said: They will either be taking Mac Jones or Trey Lance at #15. Their defense is going to be stout again. As many, many teams have learned in the past. If you have your guy at QB, you better be prepared to go up and get him. Because staying put is a recipe for getting locked out in this Draft IMHO.. I live in NC...Most of my immediate family down here are die-hard Panthers fans...They are all 100% convinced the Panthers will take Lance at #8...We'll see I guess, but IF so that's the 4th QB gone at #8 overall...That's a worst-case-scenario for the Pats leaving 7 spots above them for a team to jump up and grab Mac... Should be interesting...Admittedly I hope they get locked out... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nester Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 Bill is trying to see how far he can go before getting fired. I bet he gets far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethan in Cleveland Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 15 minutes ago, SirAndrew said: BB is one of the worst GM’s in the league. That’s the issue He is a very good GM. He sheds players before they bottom out. He accumulates multiple draft picks. He makes great trades. He is just a terrible judge of collegiate talent. Yet even with that he managed to draft the greatest QB in NFL history and probably the top 3 tight end in NFL history. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichRiderBills Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 1 hour ago, appoo said: They're spending a bunch of money on signing good to above average F/As, none of whom will push them over into contending range when you've hollowed out your OLine, have the broken down version of Cam Newton as your QB, and don't have much WR talent. All they're really doing is setting themselves up to pick at 15 - 20, so basically out of the running for a franchise QB. Unless their strategy is a 5 years of being mediocre, I don't get it. Either rebuild or try to contend. They're doing neither. Too quick to judge their off season. Theyve never paid OL. My guess is they will sign young guys, likely draft a young option type QB where Cam and he can run a similar offense. On defense they still have a ton of solid players, and maybe some of the opt outs return. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
appoo Posted March 15, 2021 Author Share Posted March 15, 2021 10 minutes ago, KOKBILLS said: As many, many teams have learned in the past. If you have your guy at QB, you better be prepared to go up and get him. Because staying put is a recipe for getting locked out in this Draft IMHO.. I live in NC...Most of my immediate family down here are die-hard Panthers fans...They are all 100% convinced the Panthers will take Lance at #8...We'll see I guess, but IF so that's the 4th QB gone at #8 overall...That's a worst-case-scenario for the Pats leaving 7 spots above them for a team to jump up and grab Mac... Should be interesting...Admittedly I hope they get locked out... What's interesting is that theres 4 QBs who seem to be graded out as top 10 QBs prospects - Lawrence, Wilson, Fields and Lance. And then you have Mac Jones, who was massively prolific in a historically loaded offense. Then you look at the teams that are drafting: Jags (rebuild), Jets (rebuild), Falcons (Future), Panthers (rebuild), Niners (Future), and Vikings (rebuild) would all be teams that would either definitely draft a QB, or have a greater need, either as a QB of the future or onset rebuild. Mac Jones would have to slip past the Niners and Vikes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 22 minutes ago, Ethan in Portland said: Perhaps the OP needs a history lesson. How do you think the Patriots won their first SuperBowl? They signed a bunch of middle of the road free agents (Mike Vrabel for an example) and paired them with a few stars on defense and an all-world defensive minded HC to make a SB run. It helped that the rules of the day allowed Belichick to grab and hold receivers all day long. The Patriots won 7 games last year with the most number of COVID opt-outs in the league and played the league's hardest schedule (preseason ranking). The Bills barely beat them in the first game. Newton had a better game than Allen in the first game - both were terrible. And they were one yard away from beating Seattle in Seattle. The Patriots are not in the class of the Bills but they have the personnel to make a WC run. Just good enough to be middle of the pack without a QB which is exactly where I like them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
appoo Posted March 15, 2021 Author Share Posted March 15, 2021 And Kendrick Bourne is another guy who is above average but doesn't neccesarily move the "contender' needle, unless he's your final piece of the puzzle. But if he's your best WR - well that's just not good enough. Think a lot of y'all are right, there's got to be a QB play here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ndirish1978 Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 Pats are learning that the deep discounts they were receiving when signing FAs were actually all about Brady and not Hoodie. I'm all for them wasting cap space on players who just had career years and won't live up to those contracts. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigK14094 Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 Pats betting Cam has something left in the tank. He almost beat the Bills so I won't rule that out. Cam is not the physical specimen he once was, but, he has a lot of starts under his belt, and knows how to handle the game. They could do worse, especially if they draft a QB and let him sit a year or two. Remember, Aaron Rodgers sate three years behind Farve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloMatt Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 (edited) Their D looks like it will be formidable. Edited March 15, 2021 by BuffaloMatt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleeding Bills Blue Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 1 hour ago, appoo said: They're spending a bunch of money on signing good to above average F/As, none of whom will push them over into contending range when you've hollowed out your OLine, have the broken down version of Cam Newton as your QB, and don't have much WR talent. All they're really doing is setting themselves up to pick at 15 - 20, so basically out of the running for a franchise QB. Unless their strategy is a 5 years of being mediocre, I don't get it. Either rebuild or try to contend. They're doing neither. What do you think patriots fans have been saying about buffalo for 20 years? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirAndrew Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 (edited) 51 minutes ago, Ethan in Portland said: He is a very good GM. He sheds players before they bottom out. He accumulates multiple draft picks. He makes great trades. He is just a terrible judge of collegiate talent. Yet even with that he managed to draft the greatest QB in NFL history and probably the top 3 tight end in NFL history. Isn’t a terrible judge of collegiate talent generally a bad a GM ? The myth of BB brilliantly moving on from overpaid stars is overrated. He could move on from those big contracts because Brady continued to win games. Belichick’s inability to find any talent on offense ended Brady’s tenure. Edited March 15, 2021 by SirAndrew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoBills808 Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleeding Bills Blue Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 10 minutes ago, BuffaloMatt said: Their D looks like it will be formidable. Honestly their D needed improvements at LB and up the middle the most. Getting hightower back, and adding godchaux up the middle should help with the leaky run defense. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Brown Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 1 hour ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said: my biggest worry is that they now land Deshaun Watson. Watson would have to sign off on that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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