Tag: New England

Jets Make Sam Darnold the Youngest Week 1 Starting QB in the History of the NFL

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ESPN – The New York Jets have a new starting quarterback and a new face of the franchise.

Rookie Sam Darnold was officially named the starter Monday, coach Todd Bowles announced. He will become the youngest opening-day quarterback in NFL history. He will be 21 years, 97 days old when the Jets travel to play the Detroit Lions next Monday night.

Since my brain only works in fragments of movie quotes and pop culture references, lets set the table for this story first.

The Jets are going to make the newly minted 21-year-old, Sam Darnold, the youngest Week 1 starting QB in the history of the NFL.

GOOD LUCK!

The Jets went 5-11 last year with one of the oldest starting QBs in the league in Josh McCown aka Dolph Lundgren.

So it should come as no surprise the Jets turned to the No. 3 overall pick sooner than later to take over under center. Could a guy who just became old enough to buy a beer use a little more seasoning before suiting up for one of the worst teams in the league? Yea probably, but I guess if you’re the Jets whats the difference? You won 5 games with the veteran last year and that 5-year contract clock is already ticking so why redshirt the rookie?

Darnold looked like a lock to be the No. 1 overall pick after his redshirt freshman year at USC throwing for 31 TDs with only 9 INTs, 3086 yards, 67.2 completion % and a 161.1 passing efficiency rating. His numbers dropped pretty  much across the board though in his second and final year as a starter at USC. He threw less TDs, threw more INTs, had a lower completion % and a worse passing efficiency rating — so that would concern me.

What would also concern me is where the guy went to school. University of Southern California. Not exactly a beacon for future NFL QBs and its where the Jets have some experience.

Side note: I was at that game!

But in all seriousness, USC has produced only one real viable NFL starter in Carson Palmer. The rest of the USC signal callers turned into serviceable at best NFL QBs; Matt Leinart, Mark Sanchez, Matt Cassel, Matt Barkley, Cody Kessler, and John David Booty! Not a lot of Pro Bowls in there.

Who knows though? Picking a QB in the NFL is a total crapshoot. With my luck he’ll turn into the next great quarterback stud and will haunt me for all the fun I’ve had at the Jets expense over the past 18 years.

BREAKING: Tom Brady Announces New Episode of Tom vs Time for Tomorrow at Noon

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Breathe, just breathe. Tom Brady just announced on Facebook that he is dropping a new episode of Tom vs Time from the clouds tomorrow at noon. Why is he doing this? I feel like Ari Gold when Terrance came to visit him at home in the bar mitzvah episode.

But seriously, this show had a very definitive ending with the Patriots losing the Super Bowl and Tom pretty openly questioning his commitment to football.

It was a pretty controversial and was really just the beginning of a completely hectic offseason that featured infighting, rumors of both Brady and Gronk threatening to retire, Alex Guerrero got his groove back, with Gronk and Brady getting reworked contracts.

But there has been a cloud over this team for the better part of 7 months and now 4 days before the Patriots are set to kick off their 2018 season, Tom Brady busts his Facebook show out of the Disney Vault after saying time and time again he was done with Tom vs Time. Why?

On 98.5 this morning they were throwing out conspiracy theories saying that Brady may announce his retirement and that 2018 will be his last season. Or maybe he just wants to put his own spin on the narrative that got away from him this offseason after one of his favorite guys in Amendola left town, skipping OTAs, as well as his WR1 and TB12 client Julian Edelman getting popped for PEDs.

Who knows what the hell is going to be said on this episode tomorrow, but I suggest everybody take their lunch break at noon tomorrow with a pair of headphones and your iPhone.

In Case You Missed the Patriots Last PreSeason Game, Rookie QB Danny Etling RAN for an 86 Yard Touchdown

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I don’t know how you could have missed the illustrious fourth preseason game, but if you somehow did you missed Michael Vick Danny Etling, and recently inducted member of the Handsome Mens Club, rushing for an 86 yard touchdown.

Good luck trying to stash those wheels on the practice squad, Bill.

Robert Kraft Keeps His Stake in DraftKings as They Transition to Sports Book. Umm, Why Wouldn’t He?

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ESPN – Two prominent NFL owners have a stake in a bookmaker as the first season with expanded legal sports betting in the U.S. gets ready to kick off.

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones have retained their investments in DraftKings, sources confirmed to ESPN, even as the company has shifted some of its focus from daily fantasy to traditional sports betting.

Umm yea, no kidding. Robert Kraft is no dummy. He realizes that his family stands to potentially make more money with DraftKings and legalized gambling than they could ever hope to make running a football team. While some want to straddle the fence as gambling is seen as “seedy” it is actually on the verge of being legalized in every state in the country. I can literally see the Everett casino being built from my office window in Boston.

“The NFL has been a staunch opponent of sports betting for decades and remains concerned about its impact on the integrity of the game. The NFL fought New Jersey’s efforts to offer Las Vegas-style sports betting all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.”

…..because they weren’t getting a cut of the action. The NFL was more than happy to promote and advertise “fake” gambling in the form of fantasy football over the past 15 years because it drove billions of dollars back into the NFL.

Now? Like a bookie, they want the juice on the action.

So for Kraft or Jerry Jones to cut bait now, just because DraftKings changed their position (and millions of dollars of lawyer fees arguing) from “We are NOT gambling” to now saying “um forget all that, we are NOW a sports book” is crazy. DK is going to only become exponentially more valuable with the influx of legalized gambling and I can imagine Kraft didn’t just buy a handful of shares. A guy like that jumped in with both feet and realizes how much money his family could earn in the long run. Thats a smart guy right there.

Also, I will never forget the look of disappointment in Papa Giorgi’s eyes when I told him that Robert Kraft did not actually earn his fortune running the Kraft Macaroni and Cheese empire, rather he made his money in paper products. It was like telling a kid theres no Santa Claus.

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.

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;

 

 

The 300s Podcast: Fantasy Football Follies

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Football is back, thank christ. So this week, as summer is winding down, we turn our attention to the biggest productivity killer in corporate America; fantasy football.

-Flatscreen TVs are now disposable apparently

-Since I can’t play poker, Fantasy Football allows me to feel like a man and gamble

-Is DraftKings too much math and not enough fantasy?

-Hot Take: Live Drafts SUCK

Subscribe, rate, and review The 300s Podcast on iTunes, Google Play, and Spotify!

In Offense To Big Z’s Defense of Dan Shaughnessy From My Column Taking Down Dan Shaughnessy

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Here’s the thing. Bill Belichick doesn’t like bullshit questions. He is not here to be reality T.V. To be dramatic. I think that is where anyone who hates him finds their disconnect. You have middle aged me now watching (BECAUSE HAHA ISN’T THIS FUNNY AND IRONIC AND I’M COMFORTABLE WITH MYSELF) the bachelor. Of course they are going to hate Bill Belichick not talking about OOOOO the Malcolm Butler benching.

But have you ever heard Belichick field a question about….football? He LOVES it. When Ebner got hurt last year and someone asked him how it was going to effect kick coverage, he went onnnnnnnn and on about coverage and the x’s and o’s and who knows what. He just does not want to talk about bullshit side stories that have zero to do with winning football games. Are they interesting for us to talk about on a rainy day or at the? Sure. No one will deny that. But they don’t matter to the Hooded One.

 

-Joey B.

Happy 41st Birthday, Thomas Patrick Edward Brady, Jr.

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Image result for tom brady

Two score and one year ago, the world was gifted with a child – born in San Mateo, California – who would eventually go on to become a living legend responsible for providing constant joy, multiple championships, and pure, captivating handsomeness to New England and the rest of Pats Nation for over one and a half decades (and counting).

That man is none other than Tom Brady, and The 300s would be remiss if we didn’t give the G.O.A.T. a well-deserved (and probably all too emotional) birthday shout-out.

No other athlete in modern NFL history is as prolific and accomplished as TB12. (Sorry, Brady haters, but you literally cannot even begin to argue against this one anymore.)

Besides Charles Haley – who, while indeed a Hall of Fame defensive end, just so happened to be on some pretty loaded San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys teams – no other player has ever won five Super Bowls.

“Oh yeah, Mattes??!! How about the fact that Joe Montana NEVER lost a Super Bowl, and Brady’s lost THREE??!!”

Brady’s still been to eight of them in total, double the amount of times Montana even got there, and since 2001, when Brady took over as the starter, the Pats have won 14 division titles and have appeared in the AFC Championship 12 times.

Image result for tom brady career playoff record

TFB is also just south of 500 touchdowns passes for his career (488 right now), and is likely to pass Brett Favre (who finished with 508) at some point this season for second place all-time.

The guy’s also got over 45,000 passing yards for his career and three MVP awards to his name, one of which came last year at the age of 40. (Oh, by the way, only ONE other guy in the four major professional sports has ever won an MVP award at age 40 or older. That guy was Barry Bonds in 2004, and that was because he was juiced up more than a freakin’ grapefruit.)

“OH REALLY, MATTES??!! WHAT ABOUT SPYGATE??!! AND THE DEFLATED FOOTBALLS??!! THE GUY’S CHEATED HIS WAY THROUGHOUT HIS WHOLE CAREER!!!”

iron man eye roll GIF

come on eye roll GIF

If you’re one of those people who still puts any merit into that argument, you are a complete assclown that knows absolutely nothing about football. While I’m not absolving Brady and others in the organization of any and all blame, let’s not act as though the rest of the league doesn’t pull anything a little shady from time to time. But if you think any of it has helped him put up those kind of numbers and get that many wins, you’re probably one of those “the world is definitely flat” or “vaccinations cause autism” people, too.

Brady’s also the only ever back-to-back No. 1-ranked player on NFL Network’s annual “Top 100 Players” list – which is voted on by actual NFL players and nobody else; I’m pretty sure if Brady was such a cheat, opposing players wouldn’t be so quick to label him the greatest.

Anyway, I think we all get the picture that Brady is an absolute god amongst men who will forever burn as the brightest flame in the hearts of Pats fans everywhere, no matter how long he plays.

So happy birthday once again, Tom. Shine on, you crazy diamond.

(Here’s a little extra Tom Brady/Patriots porn for your Friday afternoon viewing pleasure:)