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Eric Decker Announces Retirement. Who is Going to Catch Passes for the Patriots?

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Okay, now I’m officially nervous. Eric Decker announced his retirement last night and posted the following message on Instagram.

All training camp and preseason I’ve been saying don’t worry about the receiver depth and that the Patriots will figure out a way to patch everything together for the first month until Julian Edelman returns. Then Malcolm Mitchell got cut. Then Jordan Matthews got cut. Then Kenny Britt got cut. Then Eric Decker retired.

Shit.

People obviously weren’t as high on Decker as I was, but I viewed him as a proven veteran who could catch the ball, no more no less. He definitely struggled in his short stint with the Patriots though as he was dropping lots of passes.

I still think Decker would have been able to right the ship. Maybe he’s not blowing by guys off the line anymore, but you don’t just lose the ability to catch the ball overnight. And for a guy that had four 80+ catch seasons I would have given him the benefit of the doubt. But maybe the Pats saw the writing on the wall. With all the drops it looked like Decker may have been on the outside looking in on Brady’s circle of trust. Once that happens its hard to get back in.

Former players were saying that Decker was thinking too much as he was trying to digest the Patriots playbook and was thinking more about where he was supposed to be rather than just catching the ball. Well it would seem like Belichick was over it and was going to cut Decker, but gave him the option to “go out on his own terms” and retire instead, which is exactly what Decker did.

Well now the Patriots receiving corps looks like this:

  • Chris Hogan
  • Phillip Dorsett
  • Cordarrelle Patterson
  • Braxton Berrios
  • Devin Lucien
  • Riley McCarron
  • Paul Turner (aka Paul Turner the IT Guy, or “something called Paul Turner” as Big Jim Murray nicknamed him)
  • Matthew Slater

That is not exactly confidence inspiring. And no, bringing in Dez Bryant is not the solution here, but hell if I know what that answer is.

Not all these guys are even a lock to make the roster and Doug Kyed over at NESN thinks the Pats might only keep 4 receivers total, which includes special teams captain Matthew Slater, and just try to stay above water until Edelman returns from suspension.

I can’t say I’m okay with the Pats slotting in Matthew Slater as the No. 4 WR as we’ve all seen what Slater can(not) do as a pure receiver.

The Pats may just lean on the deep RB group that they have, but even half of those guys are dealing with injuries. Rex Burkhead has missed some time with a tear in his knee, although reports have said he’ll be able to play through it. First round pick Sony Michel remains sidelined with his own knee injury too. Suddenly the RB depth isn’t what it appeared to be a few weeks ago.

Belichick and co. seem to like what they have at the TE position with Rob Gronkowski, Dwayne Allen, and Jacob Hollister has made headlines this preseason for his play. So the Madden expert that I am would not be surprised to see a lot of James White screens and 2 and 3TE sets to start the season for the Patriots.

I honestly doubt the Pats bring in anyone from the FA scrap heap at this point in the season. They’re more likely to see who may be available on the trade block as they did last year with Phillip Dorsett. The hot rumor this past week has the Patriots eyeing Denver’s Demaryius Targaryen, er, Thomas. I would be fine with that if the price is right, plus he’s a big dude at 6’3″, but at $8.5M I can’t see Belichick taking that on as is.

We’ll see what the Patriots do, but either way its time to start battening down the hatches as the regular season kicks off Sunday, Sept. 9th at 1 pm.

The Falcons Continue Their Assault on Overpriced Concessions With $5 Craft Beers

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ESPN – After peeling back prices on some of their most popular items last year to unprecedented levels, the Atlanta Falcons are ready to shock the sports world again with a $5 craft beer.

The Falcons will sell the $5 craft beers at their regular-season games — starting Sept. 16 against the Panthers — and any home playoff games. The craft beer price, along with all other concession prices, will remain the same next February when Atlanta hosts Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, despite the traditionally elevated concession prices at Super Bowls.

God bless Arthur Blank. We may have dropped years worth of 28-3 jokes on you and your franchise, but goddamn if the man doesn’t know how to please a broke cheap football fan.

Last year the Falcons made waves for slashing all their concessions prices to absurdly cheap levels, comparatively speaking. While having much lower prices than their peers, the Falcons are saying they did more business so it seems to be worth their while. Now they’re doubling down on that and will be selling craft beers for $5 a pop. That is insane.

When I go to games at Fenway, I go to the last beer vendor by the bleachers, which the same woman has worked at every game I’ve been to in the last decade, just so I can get the sweet sweet deal of a tallboy can for $11.50 instead of $10.50 for a 12 ounce Bud Light.

True story: I’m a huge craft beer guy. I never thought I’d turn into the beer snob, but here we are. My dad never drank anything, literally anything, other than Bud Light cans. So I was always a Bud Light guy, when I could spring for it, or some cheaper light beer like Busch when I wanted to get blind drunk for $22 bucks.

With the explosion of craft beer and breweries being the only bar I can actually bring my dog to without getting the cops called on me, I gradually started drinking more and more obscure shit.

Started with IPAs, dipped into Sours, discovered that Double and Triple IPAs are a thing and before we know it I’m three sheets to the wind off a handful of beers.

Downside to all of these mega alcoholic brews though is the fact that they are expensive as shit. College me would slap 29-year-old me in the fucking face if he witnessed what I did at the packy yesterday. Saw the brand new Nightshift Double IPA (I’m on the email list NBD) at the packy and audibly gasped when I read the price tag for a 4-pack of tallboys.

$18 dollars.  Eighteen Dollars for FOUR beers.

You’re goddamn right I bought those beers.

And now we sit here going through bank statements and credit card receipts wondering where all my money goes saying things like “well if I cancel Netflix and my car insurance I should be able to cover rent this month.”

Fucking millennials, man.

Foot Locker Continues to Dominate With This New Jayson Tatum Commercial

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First off, this commercial is a cold reminder that the Celtics’ future First Team All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum was born in NINETEEN NINETY EIGHT! Thats 1998 for those of you that never got through hooked on phonics.

Around the time I graduated from college I started realizing that the professional athletes I was rooting for were quickly becoming younger than me, I had crossed that final frontier. Which is also probably a legit reason for why I LOVE aging veterans, especially 41-year-old quarterbacks playing at an MVP level.

Well now Tatum, a guy that I have like 9 years on, is a slap in the face to the memory of my youth. This kid missed Dunkaroos, Beanie Babies, Nintendo 64,Tamagotchis, dial-up internet, Pokemon. The man missed POKEMON. My brain can’t even comprehend that level of FOMO.

So this commercial is another slam dunk for Foot Locker as they continue to be the most underrated shoe brand in America. Nike is sexy, Adidas has Yeezys, but Foot Locker always entertains the hell out of me.

Roll the highlights!

Richard Sherman is Launching His Own Daily Fantasy Sports Site

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ESPN – San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman is entering the daily fantasy sports business. Sherman announced Thursday that his new fantasy site, Daily Number, will be launching paid contests in 23 states. Sherman is the co-founder, along with CEO Tom McAuley, and will be the chief brand ambassador, appearing in an upcoming video ad campaign.

While many NFL stars have endorsed fantasy sites, Sherman is believed to be one of the first, if not the first, to have a founding stake in a fantasy game.

I don’t know if now is the best time to just be getting into the daily fantasy business if you’re a competitor, but Richard Sherman’s a smart dude so I’ll give his new venture, Daily Number, a shot.

I try not to shoot down these equity based deals athletes sign and give it a chance first. Not because of how great or not their company is, but because of the power of branding.

Just look at Kobe Bryant and the sports drink he invested in, BodyArmor. If you asked me what BodyArmor was a few years ago I would have had no idea. If you showed me a bottle I would have said “oh right its that bootleg sports drink they sell at gas stations.”

Well Kobe’s magic branding powers touched BodyArmor, along with his $6 million investment, and less than 5 years later that investment is worth $200 MILLION. Good for him, Kobe really needed it.

So my point is, it doesn’t matter how big the competition is, there’s always room for the new guy on the block.

“Daily Number features a unique twist on traditional fantasy, with entrants creating seven-player rosters that attempt to eclipse a predetermined total amount of fantasy points, set by the site and known as the “daily number.” Each roster is given a rating. The more superstars on a roster the lower the payout is for teams that score more points than the daily number.”

The idea behind Sherman’s daily fantasy site is that instead of picking players based on monetary values like you do with DraftKings or Fan Duel, you pick a team of 7 players. Its like a middle ground between daily fantasy and regular fantasy football leagues, which is actually kind of smart. I don’t really mess with DK too much because I feel like I’m just getting hustled by algorithms and MIT math nerds. Sherman’s venture could provide the best of both worlds and help dummies like me feel, probably incorrectly, that they have a shot at winning some cash on daily fantasy.

I can’t imagine the NFL is thrilled with one of its most prominent players being a founding member of a company thats sole purpose is to gamble on games he is actively playing in. It would be hard for a cornerback to have a huge effect on someone’s fantasy day with thousands of different lineups running all at the same time, but it sure as shit won’t be hard for someone to poke holes in it.

Either way you know the commercials for this thing is gonna be dynamite with an older Richard Sherman who gives even less of a fuck what the NFL thinks about what he says or does. So you got me Richard, I’ll try it.

It Would Be a Shame if JD Martinez Missed the Triple Crown Because of Mookie Betts

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How wild would it be if arguably the greatest free agent signing in Red Sox history, J.D. Martinez, doesn’t win the Triple Crown only because his teammate is also having a historic season?

That could very easily happen.

Currently Martinez leads the league in HR with 38 and RBI with 108 (the tweet above is from Tuesday) and is second in Batting Avg. at .333. The only guy he trails in Avg is his teammate and fellow outfielder Mookie Betts, who is batting an insane .340. Mookie has dropped 4 points since Tuesday, but it would take a legit slump from a guy who was hitting .350 most of the year for Martinez to catch him at this point.

Obviously the Triple Crown is just a weird stat that we all give credence to that doesn’t actually mean anything like hitting for the cycle, but it does provide a historic moment for any and all bar trivia for the rest of time. To put into perspective Mookie’s batting average lets take a look at the AL leaders over the past 10 years.

  • 2017 Jose Altuve .346
  • 2016 Jose Altuve .338
  • 2015 Miguel Cabrera .338
  • 2014 Jose Altuve .341
  • 2013 Miguel Cabrera .348
  • 2012 Miguel Cabrera .330
  • 2011 Miguel Cabrera .344
  • 2010 Josh Hamilton .359
  • 2009 Joe Mauer .365
  • 2008 Joe Mauer .328

First off, golf clap for Joe Mauer. Holy shit, I forgot how good he used to be. The dude hit .365 (!) in 2009 and nobody even talks about it because he’s in the frozen wasteland that is Minnesota. Still doesn’t touch Nomar’s .372 in 2000, but to be fair that is the greatest display of hitting I ever saw and is also why every guy in my softball league still taps their toes 35 times before stepping into the box.

Also, for all the Mike Trout apologists out there its time to pipe down. I don’t care that he has a 7.1 WAR or that he has a 1.083 OPS, the dude currently sits at 60 RBI. Does not matter how bad the team in front of him is. You cannot win the MVP with under 100 RBI. That may be me turning my back on sabermetrics, but so be it. Can’t have it.

It’s either Mookie Betts or potential Triple Crown winner J.D. Martinez for 2018 AL MVP. Goddamn it’s a good time to be a Red Sox fan.

 

PS – You can in fact win the RBI with under 100 RBI, but that didn’t fit my argument so I threw it here in the PS section that nobody reads. It happened last year in fact when Altuve won the MVP with 81 RBI, Mauer in ’09 with 96, Pedroia in ’08 with 83, and Ichiro won the MVP in 2001 with 69 RBIs!

Dunkin’ Donuts Rebranding as Dunkin’ is Just Factually Inaccurate

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Boston Magazine – Dunkin’ Donuts is launching an “unprecedented” overhaul of its Boston locations, rebranding dozens of them as “Dunkin,‘” and there is absolutely nothing you or I or anyone else can do about it.

The coffee chain, which got its start in Massachusetts, is announcing the spread of its new modern concept at a Dunkin’-themed extravaganza today from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the newly remodeled Dunkin’ near City Hall…According to a release ahead of the celebration, Dunkin’ Donuts will be bringing its modern new design and truncated logo to 30 of its Boston locations. It says it’s re-imagining its coffee shops with “a modern in-store experience and new technology to make running on Dunkin’ faster and more convenient than ever before.”

I don’t know one single fucking person that calls Dunkin Donuts “Dunkin” and neither do you. If you tell me that you call this beacon of Boston by the nickname “Dunkin” then you are lying. It’s “Dunkies.” Always has been always will be, regardless of what the silly orange and pink sign says. Dunkies corporate offices really missed the mark on this one.

You want proof you say? Look no further than this Casey Affleck SNL skit. Hilarious, but inaccurate. “I love Dunkin, guy” is a line only a shoobie would write.

I rest my case.

With LeBron Gone, Cleveland Fans Are Eager to Tank The Economy by Betting Big on the Browns in Vegas

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ESPN – Sportsbooks struggled to attract any action on the Cleveland Browns from the betting public the past two years. That changed this offseason.

Bettors at multiple Las Vegas sportsbooks have been backing the Browns to win the AFC North, the AFC title and even the Super Bowl. At MGM sportsbooks, the Browns have attracted more bets to win the Super Bowl than the Atlanta Falcons, Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars, who were playoff teams last season. Cleveland is listed at 60-1 to win the Super Bowl at MGM.

Just throw your money in a fire, Browns fans. At least a raging fire is fun to watch.

“There are more bets on the Browns to win the AFC North than the other three teams combined,” a sportsbook manager for Caesars Palace told ESPN. “Only the Raiders and Steelers have more bets to win the AFC [than the Browns]. The public likes the Browns, and I’m not sure why.”

Love me some Baker Mayfield, but this feels a bit premature guys. Remember the last time the Browns got some shine? It was 2008 and the Browns were coming off their best season in years going 10-6 in ’07. So the NFL gave the Browns like 6 primetime games in 2008. What happened? Derek Anderson, Braylon Edwards, and that whole motley crew came back down to Earth, the Browns proceeded to do Browns things and went 4-12.  No mas Browns on national TV. So maybe lets just pump the brakes for a minute before you all go and gamble away your rent money.

But, hey, maybe its not about the money.

Maybe they want to show LeBron that they don’t need him and his economic sustaining presence. We got the Browns baby!

 

David Price Continues Good Will Tour, Rips 69-Year-Old Red Sox Reporter Jonny Miller

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Just to set up this blog, I’m not going to bury the lede (thats a Big J Journalism term) so you can see what David Price has been up to lately.

I really don’t want to keep doing this, David. It brings me no joy. I don’t enjoy the, often deserved, reputation of Boston as an overly critical and negative town.

It drives away plenty of players before they even give the city a chance. But it also breaks people, which is why Boston is such a die-hard city. If you can make it in the media fishbowl that is Boston, then you are forever a folk hero in the city that founded America. Not a bad trade off I’d say.

So I can understand to a certain extent some of the resentment David Price harbors for the Boston media. When he doesn’t perform he gets raked over the coals. But hey, thats the tradeoff when you make $30 Million a year. I’d let people be mean to me on the radio if it meant I could clear $30,000,000 a year.

Where Price gets into trouble though is he goes looking for these problems, drumming shit up with the media. I can hold a good grudge so I get it. But, buddy you’re (potentially) here for four more years. You get more bees with honey than vinegar. Build bridges, don’t burn them. Etc. Etc. So just when he’s starting to pitch well the past several starts the talk around Price dies down and people start to wonder if hey maybe he’s turning a corner.

Then he tries to roast 69-year-old Jonny Miller, a guy who has been covering the Red Sox for 40 fucking years. Yuck.

Now for most guys in the media they can take it and probably deserve it. You wanna throw a tantrum and yell at Evan Drellich in the clubhouse? Have at it. You wanna grandstand and yell at MLB Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley because you don’t like what he says on TV? Sure. Does that make you a dickhead, yup, but sure. Do you really need to shit talk Jonny Miller? Especially after the guy asked why you were pitching so WELL?

Whatever, pitch lights out in October and you can be a glorious dickhead a la John Lackey or Josh Beckett. Until then, pipe down.

In the meantime though, buy a YUCK shirt.

Millennials Are Now Blamed for Ruining the U.S. Economy and I Say “Good”

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Yahoo – It’s that time of year, when students prepare to head back to the classroom. For many taking the next step in higher education, the question is increasingly, “Is it worth it?” Millions of millennials have already put off settling down because of the rising costs of servicing college debts to the detriment of economic growth. Student loans are now the second-largest category of household debt in America, topping $1.4 trillion and trailing only mortgages at $9 trillion..“You do stand to see longer-term negative effects on people who can’t pay off their student loans. It hurts their credit rating, it impacts the entire half of their economic life,” Powell said in March. “As this goes on and as student loans continue to grow and become larger and larger, then it absolutely could hold back growth.”

I’m like a junkie getting his fix when the latest “millennials ruined ___” story pops up. I need it like I need air. Baby boomers take every opportunity they can get to label millennials as lazy, entitled, poor tippers, unhealthy, delusional, they blame them for killing Applebees, Office Parks, as well as ruining fine institutions like Sears. In some sick twist of irony, we’re also apparently ruining college enrollment rates.

And now millennials are tasked with ruining the United States Economy.

Good.

Millennials get blamed for everything and when we respond with “we’re broke” we get slapped with articles saying the reason we can’t afford to buy a house is because we lack discipline and eat too much avocado toast.

So now the hens have come home to roost. Hey I’m not asking for a handout. My dumbass 17-year-old self signed that life altering contract filled with soul sucking student loan debts. Thats on me. Whether that should be allowed as an option for a teenager who just got their drivers license, yet still can’t buy a pack of smokes is a different question altogether.

But when millennials complain about anything we get told we need to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps, ignoring the fact that the generation before us literally killed social security and luxuries like “retirement” for their kids. Millennials basically just get the speech from The Departed.

Which is all fine, but when all of us 20 somethings with college degrees that aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on, just refuse to spend money on things like houses and cars and weddings because we literally cannot afford it; then the economy takes a hit. Then I laugh. Not because it solves anything, but because I’m a spiteful prick.

You want to see what corruption looks like? Look no further:

“From 2007 through 2017, the CPI rose by 21 percent. Over that same period, college tuition costs jumped 63 percent, school housing surged 51 percent and the price of textbooks by 88 percent.”

Textbook prices increased 88 PERCENT. How the fuck is that even possible? Ask anyone who ever went to college for anything other than law or medicine how many times they used their textbook. Almost never. Buying textbooks was the biggest scam going and I graduated years ago and now I’m learning that prices have only continued to rise?? Do yourself a favor kids;

  1. Go to state school and save your money, or better yet just punt on college and work a $30,000/year job and live like a debt-free king.
  2. If you insist on going to college and buying textbooks, don’t be a sheep. Just get the previous year’s edition on Amazon for probably 75% less than what the university is trying to sell you.

Other tidbits from this story;

“Korn Ferry puts the average starting salary for a 2018 college graduate at $50,390”

$50K out of the gates? Maybe the title of all these articles should just be focused on Communications and Journalism majors bringing down the economy because I can tell you I did not touch that salary level in my first job. Not even close.

“[Average starting salaries] up 2.8 percent from 2017, the just-released July Consumer Price Index report shows the inflation rate rose 2.9 percent over the last 12 months. Does the phrase “treading water” come to mind?”

So the minimal increases in salary that millennials are starting to earn immediately gets dwarfed by rising housing costs and inflation rates? Its definitely the avocado toast thats holding kids back goddamnit.

 

With Isaiah Wynn Out for the Season, Scrutiny Intensifies on Patriots’ Poor Drafts

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ESPN – New England Patriots top draft choice Isaiah Wynn tore his left Achilles during Thursday’s preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles and will miss the 2018 season, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Last year the Patriots top pick Derek Rivers blew out his ACL and missed the whole season. Granted he was “only” a third round pick, he was supposed to be a solid young infusion of talent the Patriots were banking on. This year their top overall pick Isaiah Wynn just blew his achilles and is done for the year. Add that to the fact that they’re other first round pick this year in Sony Michel has missed the entire pre-season with a knee injury and the Patriots draft is looking like a shaky class already, at least in the immediate future.

My point here though is that the Pats have not gotten much out of the draft in the past several years, which is essentially playing with fire in today’s NFL. If we go back and look at the Patriots draft picks in the first 2 rounds over the past 10 years and the contributions they’ve gotten — it gets ugly. I took the first 2 round as the barometer as that is normally the elite young talent you expect immediate contributions from. Guys you’re getting in the later rounds are oftentimes lottery tickets and/or end of the roster players. Anyone that makes a significant contribution from late in the draft is a pleasant surprise, no more no less.

With that being said, lets take a look…

  • 2018
    • 1st Rd – Isaiah Wynn (No. 23), Sony Michel (No. 28)
    • 2nd Rd – Duke Dawson (No. 56)
  • 2017
    • 1st Rd – NO PICK
    • 2nd Rd – NO PICK
  • 2016
    • 1st Rd – NO PICK
    • 2nd Rd – Cyrus Jones (No. 60)
  • 2015
    • 1st Rd – Malcolm Brown (No. 32)
    • 2nd Rd – Jordan Richards (No. 64)
  • 2014
    • 1st Rd – Dominique Easley (No. 29)
    • 2nd Rd – Jimmy Garoppolo (No. 62)
  • 2013
    • 1st Rd – NO PICK
    • 2nd Rd – Jamie Collins (No. 52), Aaron Dobson (No. 59)
  • 2012
    • 1st Rd – Chandler Jones (No. 21), Dont’a Hightower (No. 25
    • 2nd Rd – Tavon Wilson (No. 48)
  • 2011
    • 1st Rd – Nate Solder (No. 17)
    • 2nd Rd – Ras-I Dowling (No. 33), Shane Vereen (No. 56)
  • 2010
    • 1st Rd – Devin McCourty (No. 27)
    • 2nd Rd – Rob Gronkowski (No. 42), Jermaine Cunningham (No. 53), Brandon Spikes (No. 62)
  • 2009
    • 1st Rd – NO PICK
    • 2nd Rd – Patrick Chung (No. 34), Ron Brace (No. 40), Darius Butler (No. 41), Sebastian Volmer (No. 58)
  • 2008
    • 1st Rd – Jerod Mayo (No. 10)
    • 2nd Rd – Terrence Wheatley (No. 62)

As you can see, in the last 10 years, the Patriots had great success in the first half of the decade, drafting guys like McCourty, Solder, Mayo, Gronk etc. But in the past 5 years (not counting the 2018 draft) the Pats have exactly ONE of those players still on the roster in Malcolm Brown who is solid but unspectacular.

And for the guys that were actively traded away, the Patriots have not received great value in return.

  • Chandler Jones – Received OL Jonathan Cooper (cut before his 1st season with NE) and a 2nd Round draft pick, which the Pats then traded to the Saints for 3rd and 4th Round draft picks ultimately turning into Joe Thuney, and Malcolm Mitchell (recently cut).
  • Jamie Collins – Received Browns 3rd Round draft pick, which the Pats then flipped to Detroit for No. 85 overall, which the Pats then used to take Antonio Garcia (played 0 snaps for NE and missed his entire rookie season due to blood clots in his lungs before getting released).
  • Jimmy Garoppolo – Received a 2nd Round draft pick, which the Pats then flipped to Detroit and traded down for a 2nd and a 4th, which they then flipped a couple of times again in a whole bunch of draft day trades to wind up with Duke Dawson and a 2019 Bears 2nd Round draft pick.

It obviously doesn’t help that three of the last 5 years the Patriots didn’t even have a first round pick due to various reasons, trades, and league mandated penalties from absurdly overblown alleged incidents. This is not a great way to build a deep roster guys.

Your team is built around that young talent because you can’t overpay for everyone. With guys like Logan Ryan, who was formerly the third CB on the Pats, getting $30 million contracts — you rely on young cheap talent to flesh out the rest of the roster. But the Patriots have failed to do that over the better part of the last decade.

That is how we find the Patriots suddenly with the fourth oldest team in the league at an average age of 26.7. The cabinets are bare my friends and most of that is masked by Tom Brady being the goat.

Part of the problem here is the high risk/high reward approach the Patriots tend to take in the draft. Because they have been set at quarterback for the better part of the last 2 decades, they have been able to take some big swings (and misses) on risky players. Taking Rob Gronkowski in the 2nd round with a bad back was a big risk because he was just coming off a missed season due to back surgery. But obviously that paid off as Gronk, when healthy, has turned into arguably the greatest tight end the league has ever seen.

But then there are cases where the team is taking risks in the 1st Round on guys with pre-existing injuries and unsurprisingly those same injuries pop up and the guy never makes an impact. Easley was a guy with two bum knees coming out of Florida and never made an impact with the Patriots because he was always battling, yup, knee injuries.

So it should come as no surprise really that the Patriots lack a core of young, elite players on the roster. All of their best players are on the back 9 of their careers; Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski Devin McCourty, Julian Edelman. They had 2 players in the NFL Top 100 (Gronk and Brady) and exactly 0 players on ESPN’s top NFL players under 25 years old.

Listen this team will be good as long as Brady is upright and pliable in the pocket and Gronk is on the field. But probably not a second longer. With each passing mediocre draft, I am less and less confident that this team will be all that good the second Brady and/or Gronk call it a career.

TLDR;