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I think Edelman is fantastic, but I still think he has a bit to go to be considered better than Welker was. I think the numbers would back that up too, but I could be wrong.
I love Welker and don’t disagree with a lot of whay you say...that being said no matter what the numbers say I want Edelman over Welker every single time...no knock on Welker but Edelman brings an attitude and edge that not many athletes have...his ability to come up big in big moments is as good as any WR...again I am not trying to knock Welker because he doesn’t deserve that but I have zero doubts that Edelman makes that catch in the Giant Super Bowl that was a big reason they lost because that is what he does...
Reasonable minds may disagree and welker was outstanding but he dropped a sb winning pass he had both palms on and I "lean" edelman.
I hear ya, but I feel one play shouldn't define someone's career, particularly that one that everyone points to (additionally, it was a horrendous throw).
1 play shouldn't define a career but right or wrong it often does just that; people remember big catches in big games and tend to forget the rest. It was not a horrendous throw when u consider where the safety was, the ball was thrown away from the safties side which is exactly where u want it. Was it high? Yes, was it a hard catch? Yes, was it a catch he makes 7 out of 10 times? Yes
Agree with you. Just a clarification - that was Santonio Holmes (not AB) who made the clutch catch vs Arizona.
Do you have an actual response (besides linking stuff)?
Why should he respond?
I think the benching of Butler may have been the difference maker in the game. We will never know but it is hard for me to believe that Butler would not have faired better against Jeffrey in the first half as in the second when they placed Gilmore on him for good. With Ajayi apparently unable to go in the second and Gilmore shadowing Jeffrey- you could see the offense for Philly just not be the same.
Butler on Jeffrey was a total mismatch. He would have 6 inches and 40-50 pounds on Butler. Butler didn't cause the team to not have a pass rush. Butler didn't whiff on tackling running backs that were bottled up and escaped for big plays. Butler didn't leave guys wide open in the middle of the filed. And Butler was not the universal answer for the RPO.
Agreed...that D was a complete and utter train-wreck yesterday...they did not need Butler...they needed LT, Ronnie Lott and Deion Sanders...
I am not saying Butler was the better matchup but Butler is the better player. I think he could have made a play or two that were not made. And that is not to say that there were not other areas that the Patriots laid an egg in. The Eagles were the better team in the game. Overall, Pederson and the Eagles staff out schemed Belichek and his staff.
We will never know but the Pats just needed one play on defense. Butler is capable of making that kind of play.
I think it all came down to all they needed to do was wrap up and tackle. It's as simple as that. Even with everything else that went wrong and with no pass rush, if they even made half the tackles they missed the game would probably have swung their way. There were runs that should have been losses or no gains and third down passes that would have been short and turned into 4th downs. Maybe the Eagles would have gone for it on those plays (some were in their own territory so I would guess not on those). Three more timely tackles could have changed the entire complexion of the game. We don't know if the outcome would have changed, but IMO the score would have been lower and NE might have been able to score in the 30's and win.
Agree and disagree (as we often do with this topic)...fully agree with everything you say but no will ever convince me differently about the pass rush...when you give a good QB all the time in the world bad things are gonna happen...Foles could have played that game without a helmet on yesterday...
Color me not convinced. While Butler may have made a play, he also could have busted on three others and made things worse. Put another way, I think he would have been abused if they tried putting him on Jeffery. Maybe they would have put him on Agholor, but they were not getting any pressure and guys were getting open.
it is hindsight but you are dead-on...there is something about Butler they really do not like...should have moved him for something last offseason and re-signed Ryan who did not get a crazy contract...
Butler not being traded to the Saints before the 2017 draft is still a huge mystery down here. In hindsight, it's almost like if he thought there was a one in ten chance Butler would play well elsewhere, Belichick's ego wouldn't let him pull the trigger. Like, he was pretty sure the team could move on from Butler just fine, but he somehow couldn't bear to be wrong. Just weird, and very un-Blichick-like in retrospect.
Butler is the better player. You don't like the matchup then do what they did in the second and have Gilmore shadow Jeffrey. The Patriot D is not good enough to sit a guy of Butler's talent based on matchups. There is something else going on... it will come out but I can not believe that this was a matchup decision and if it was- what a complete failure.
Anything stopping Butler from just going public with it? He doesn't seem allegiant to the Patriots anymore.
I think he wouldn't let Butler shoot his way out of town...they dug him up out of the scrap heap, gave him a chance and turned him into something...I get Butler wanting the $ but it wasn't his time and BB wasn't gonna move him just too make him happy...all that being said his career could not have more highs and lows in such a small window...there were times he looked like a legit #1 and times he looked bad...just a real odd career with the Pats...
This time I fully agree with you that the lack of pass rush was the primary thorn in their side yesterday. But even with that glowing deficiency, they STILL could have won if they had made even a couple more tackles. IMO, they would have been in position to somehow still win IN SPITE of their huge lack of pass rush.
You are assuming Butler knew what the issue was and that the Patriots gave him fair warning. It could easily stem from NE thinking they made him a fair offer and Butler declining. Who knows, maybe Butler or his agent started chirping about a new contract again leading up to the Super Bowl. Maybe Butler said the wrong team to BB right before the start of the game. At this point it's total guesswork.
No, I meant "Why doesn't Butler go public with why he was benched last night"? Or at least his take on it?
Got zero issues with not paying Jones and Collins...those type of decisions are why they stay on top every year...also, the fact they were basically one play away from winning despite their D would have been an all-time miracle...would have almost felt dirty about winning that way (almost)...it is not that they need a huge pass rush but they need a pass rush...losing Hightower was a killer because he is their defensive leader and one of the few guys on D capable of making big plays...would have been nice to see if the Rivers kid could have helped this year as well...but right now that front 7 needs some more athleticism and needs to have the ability to pressure the QB...do that and I have zero doubts they will figure it out on offense...
Maybe he doesn't want it public...not sure what happened here but I don't think BB saw him eating with his hands at the pre-game meal and decided to bench him...as I said elsewhere...this has to be a discipline issue for him to not leave the bench while they got torched repeatedly...
