Andrews Apologizes for Mistake

I don’t mean to harp on them, but the New England Patriots have had a really tough offseason.  They’ve weathered the storm impeccably, and I would expect nothing less from a Bill Belichick-led team and organization.  However, it still bears noting that the Pats have had so much scandal (much of it the fallout from Spygate) that I literally forgot all about the player who was caught with more than a half-pound of marijuana on his person a couple days after the Super Bowl.  Patriots safety Willie Andrews went on record to apologize for his actions recently in an interview at the team’s facilities.

Andrews is one of those amazing instances where you can truly see how nonsensical the 24-hours news cycle really is.  Some guys get busted without even enough on them to constitute a felony, and it’s big news.  Andrews got busted for intent to distribute, and nobody cares.  The hypocrisy here is evident, but since Andrews was the beneficiary in this instance, I doubt he’ll complain.  This seems to have been an isolated incident from which the young player has learned an invaluable lesson.  I don’t believe his name will show up in this kind of story ever again.

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Are Pats Prepared for 2010?

Last week, something happened in the NFL that affected every single team.  I didn’t really post it here, because it wasn’t specific to the Patriots, and I try to keep this blog as specific as possible.  However, now, according to John Clayton, it is a Patriots issue, so it’s time to discuss.  The issue in question is the league owner’s voting to strike down the current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) while they try to find a new compromise.  In doing so, they have opened up the possibility of one season with no salary cap in a few years.

If this does go down, then the Patriots top John Clayton’s list of teams who may be hit hardest by the non-capped year.  The Pats stand to lose many of their defensive players, which would definitely be an issue.  However, one thing Clayton fails to point out is the collective age of these players.  The Patriots would not likely have re-signed all these men - salary cap or not - and will probably be looking to shore up their defense via the draft in coming years.  While this will be a challenge, I don’t believe the sky is falling for the Pats just yet.

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Belichick Loves Lacrosse

This hasn’t been an easy offseason for Bill Belichick.  Truth told, knowing what we know about the man, I’d say that he hasn’t much enjoyed things since the Spygate controversy sprung up.  Now, with even more allegations swirling, Belichick knows that he likely won’t hear the end of all of this until the season starts.  Once the Patriots start racking up wins again, perhaps Belichick will be able to breathe a bit easier.  However, for now, during the offseason, all Belichick has is his annual trip to the Lacrosse Final Four to comfort him at the moment.

This year, Belichick didn’t have to travel at all, actually.  Gillette Stadium hosted the event, which means that the legendary New England coach didn’t ever have to be that far from his office during any game.  Belichick has been heavily caricatured, even more so in the wake of Spygate, to the point that it’s easy to forget that he’s a real human being just like anyone else.  The man is certainly not perfect, but to simply think of him as some evil genius cackling to himself every time he wins a football game is silly.  Stories such as this one remind us of the softer side of Bill Belichick, and he deserves to be painted as a full human being.

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Patriots Make ESPN List

Every NFL team must endure its share of scrutiny.  However, when you’re the reigning NFL dynasty of greatness, and you’re under a microscope pretty much 100% of the time, you’re going to get even more attention.  Unfortunately, not all of that attention is going to be positive, and this week the Patriots have made it onto John Clayton’s list of offseason non-moves.  This list is unfortunately not a particularly great list to land on, and the Patriots generally avoid these kinds of types of things altogether, but this year the media is not being so kind to the Pats.

The Patriots failed to shore up their issues at the cornerback position this offseason.  For that, John Clayton is questioning whether or not the Pats will be able to keep up with some of the more potent offsenses in the NFL this season.   The Patriots certainly have some questions to answer on defense this year, but as one of the best-coached teams in the NFL, I don’t see them sliding too far from the top.  I believe everyone should trust in Bill Belichick’s ability to lead this team to greatness, despite some of the recent bad press.
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More Patriots Allegations

The New England Patriots cannot catch a break.  It seems that every time the Patriots and their fans believe they may finally be in the clear when it comes to all the dirt and mud being slung their way, something else comes up to knock the Pats down a peg or two.  This week, as Spygate is finally dying down, we now have this report that a former Patriots player is alleging the team practiced players who were on injured reserve.  Practicing IR players is strictly forbidden in the NFL, and now it appears an investigation will be launched to check into these newest allegations.

I don’t know if this is true or not.  The fact is, very few people know if this is true or not.  But the fact that the only two men who are lobbing this accusation may have an ax to grind with the Patriots as an organization should not go unreported.  Just because someone says something, that doesn’t make it a fact.  We should all remember that up until a few weeks ago, everyone was convinced the Pats had taped a Super Bowl walkthrough.  That turned out to be false, and many of these accusations could turn out to be false as well.  Let’s not rush to judgment.

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Tomase Writes About Meriweather

I don’t generally call out the writer’s whose articles I pull.  I just figure that’s not something I really need to be doing.  However, today I dropped John Tomase’s last name in to my headline, because I think this article is very interesting.  Tomase, if you remember, was the reporter who first broke the (false) story about the Patriots taping the St. Louis Rams’ walkthrough prior to their Super Bowl clash.  Tomase has since apologized, and he even went on record as saying that he looks forward to covering the Patriots in the future, as he has formed relationships with the players and coaches.

This article about Brandon Meriweather’s adjustment to becoming a Patriot is the first step in that healing process.  Tomase is a very capable sportswriter, and he deserves another chance.  I am glad to see that the Patriots are exercising their better judgment here, and allowing Tomase to have access to the team again.  If they had held a grudge and been unable to forgive and forget, that would likely have been viewed as extremely hypocritical, especially in the sports media.  I look forward to linking people to many of Tomase’s stories in the future.

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Belichick Defends his Actions

Bill Belichick claims the New England Patriots never tried to hide their tapings, and he has defended himself on CBS News.  The Associated Press is now running an updated version of this story, in which Belichick blasts former employee Matt Walsh, and says that he never had any intention of willfully breaking the NFL’s rules on taping.  There are varying schools of thought at this point on this issue, with many people flatly calling Belichick a liar.  Even the commissioner of the league, Roger Goodell, has said that he doesn’t buy Belichick’s side of the story.

Here’s my question, though.  First of all, why is it that we are so ready to believe Matt Walsh?  The guy was a total unknown who allegedly has a bit of an ax to grind with the Patriots as an organization, so why is he being treated like some kind of perfect witness?  Secondly, why is Roger Goodell speaking to the media about this whole thing?  Bill Belichick, after being caught and punished, is now having to endure rampant speculation about his own integrity, spurred on by the Commissioner of the NFL.  How is this fair?  I say it isn’t, and people should let this story go.

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Boston Media Weighs In

Will no one come to Bill Bellichick’s defense? Is there no one who feels even the remotest of loyalties to the man who brought this team three Super Bowls? Apparently not, as this Boston Globe article roundly criticizes Bellichick for putting Patriots fans on the defensive for the rest of their lives. The article goes on to state that Bellichick obviously knew the practice was against the rules, and that his behavior now is making things hard for Patriots fans. First of all, this is ridiculous. Second, it’s unfounded, as the rules on taping were only recently tightened. Third, Boston has forgotten what the Patriots used to be.

Look, I’m old enough to remember how the Patriots were for basically the entirety of their existence. Before the Tuna came to town, your team was basically the (then) Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the north. Then Bill Belichick comes to town and turns you into the preeminent NFL team on the planet, and the fans and media want to complain that maybe some of his practices weren’t 100% kosher? Get over it, people. This will go away in time, and you’ll still have three Super Bowls (at least) to hand your hats on. Enjoy that, and don’t sweat the small stuff.

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Gregg Easterbrook has Lost His Mind

Spygate has nearly come to a close.  It will linger, as a story, probably throughout this week.  I don’t expect the Patriots to do much to make news, per se.  As such, with the 24/7 news cycle being what it is, we’ll likely have to endure more than a few stories about the legacy of Spygate.  Some of these stories will downplay the issue.  Some of them will bring it to the forefront and continue to call for further punishment.  I don’t believe we’ll ever actually come to a consensus, as NFL fans, over what should be done about Spygate now.

However, I also don’t believe I’ll ever see anyone rail on the Patriots quite like Gregg Easterbrook.  Easterbrook believes Bellichick should be suspended for a year, which is perhaps the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.  Easterbrook’s calling for Bellichick’s head is as silly now as it was when he began shouting last season.  His witch hunt has caused more than a few people I know to give up on his column altogether (which frankly has not been very well-written as of late).  He really ought to switch his focus, as this is just embarrassing for Easterbrook at this point.

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Herald Reporter Regrets Spygate Story

Boston Herald sports writer John Tomase regrets writing the erroneous Super Bowl walkthrough taping story that ran before the Patriots were to take on the New York Giants this February in their Super Bowl XLII loss.  While it’s nice that he came forward and accepted responsibility for his mistake, it’s not clear whether or not his working relationship with the Patriots can ever really be mended.  Super Bowl losses tend to stick out in people’s minds, and fair or not, Tomase’s story will forever be linked to the Pats losing to the Giants.

It’s unfortunate that this is playing out this way.  Boston will likely need a fall guy in all of this, to take the heat off of the fact that their team has technically been bending the rules for nearly a decade of greatness.  However, before we elevate Tomase to Bucker-esque status in Boston, let’s take a minute to remember that this guy was only trying to break a story.  He was doing his job, and he got a bit carried away.  To demonize Tomase now would be to do a disservice to man who has done his job admirably up to this point.

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