OT - Patriots, again- say it aint so Bill

[azrider]

That moment you go from being excited about watching the Super Bowl........then you find out Joe Buck is announcing

[unterhausen]

I was looking at his hair last night, he must have spent a ton on it. But it does look pretty good. I wonder if he will eventually give up or if one of the baldness treatments will kill him first.

My daughter was halfway watching the game last night and noted that Buck said something stupid. I guess it's hard to miss, even if you don't know much about the sport he's announcing

[ScottW]

Buck knows so little about so much, and demonstrates it so frequently, that I cannot fathom how he's managed to stay employed in that capacity. He's worse during baseball because he's got more airtime to fill. Scarcely an inning goes by without some inane utterance.

Romo is BY FAR the best announcer in football right now. Conveys a high level of knowledge without drowning you in playbook jargon. He can basically tell you what play is coming based on specific details in formations & personnel, not just logical guesswork based on down & distance. It's like watching Daniel Negreanu playing poker and calling out the other guy's hole cards with a pretty decent accuracy rate.

[MattTuck]

Farewell, Tom. Thanks for the memories.

Buffalo is looking fierce.

[Spaghetti Legs]

Originally Posted by MattTuck

Farewell, Tom. Thanks for the memories.

Buffalo is looking fierce.

This is gonna be interesting.

[benb]

Brady caught the Favreavirus. Can’t see this being something that helps his legacy.

He should retire.

[72gmc]

Someone is going to pay too much, but that’s what pro sports is about.

[wc1934]

30 million - Chargers or TB. Give me a break. As I said before, in Bill we trust.

[Dave B]

Originally Posted by benb

Brady caught the Favreavirus. Can’t see this being something that helps his legacy.

He should retire.

Agreed. I don't know what it is like to have that type of drive/lifestyle/desire for competition. I just hate to see someone of his stature go out like so many.

Montana, Young, Marino, Favre, etc. Regardless, he made it fun when he played and I am sure whomever he goes to is going to have some very excited players/fans.

I sure hope Billy Boy can pull another QB out of his behind.

[wc1934]

Originally Posted by Dave B

Agreed. I don't know what it is like to have that type of drive/lifestyle/desire for competition. I just hate to see someone of his stature go out like so many.

Montana, Young, Marino, Favre, etc. Regardless, he made it fun when he played and I am sure whomever he goes to is going to have some very excited players/fans.

I sure hope Billy Boy can pull another QB out of his behind.

He will again build a top rated defense, which will keep them in most games. The offensive will just need to be average, or a bit better.

I hope TB looses every game.

[Bruce K]

I agree the defense SHOULD be strong but they have lost 2 key linebackers in Van Noy and Collins.

Curious how they will replace that talent

BK

[72gmc]

Originally Posted by Dave B

Agreed. I don't know what it is like to have that type of drive/lifestyle/desire for competition. I just hate to see someone of his stature go out like so many.

Montana, Young, Marino, Favre, etc. Regardless, he made it fun when he played and I am sure whomever he goes to is going to have some very excited players/fans.

I sure hope Billy Boy can pull another QB out of his behind.

This comment inspired me to quickly check my memory. Brady and Favre have gone several years beyond the length of the others' careers (I added Bradshaw, understanding he may have been an innocent oversight from a Patriots fan). To date, Brady, Bradshaw, and Marino can attribute their career accomplishments in part to unusually stable situations with respect to team/coach/organization.

Montana had stability with DeBartolo and Walsh for a while, but that turned over to Seifert and Young and all of that fun (the benching of a 4X SB champ). Young was extra-old by NFL standards due to his USFL years. Stability and Favre did not go together. Of this group, only Montana and Favre took the huge risk of going to other teams and wound up leading playoff contenders.

This is a long way of saying quarterbacks who go out old don't all go out the same way. I am not a fan of the Patriots or some of the ways Tom has built his legacy, but he's doing one thing I've long criticized him for not doing--he's stepping outside of the system that made him. Even if he doesn't lead another team to the playoffs, at least he's taking the chance to prove himself apart from BB. Whether that's a good call with respect to his health is another topic.

[rwsaunders]

At least TB has been professional about wanting more money at the end of his career...

[gemship]

I'm OK with TB leaving, actually as soon as the media got a whiff of a notion to report on it a few months back I figured it had to be true. I just wish he would really go away but I guess he's gotta be a diehard.

[benb]

Honestly if he complains about the fans and everyone in NE decides he's the next coming of Satan like Roger Clemens or Babe Ruth or Manny Ramirez he had it coming.

He's had everyone worshipping the ground he walked on here for 20 years and he's made enough money to retire for many lifetimes. Everyone loves him. Now it's time for an intelligent QB to retire and if he decides he thinks he's still 30 and should be treated & paid like he's 30 he will end up going down with a lot of people here hating him and ruining his legacy.

The only athletes who end up hated in Boston are the ones who flake out. If he leaves cause he wants to leave he'd be fine. If he changes the story to "NE isn't grateful enough and isn't paying enough" his legacy will be the same as guys like Clemens & Martinez. He's not flaking out cause he wasn't dedicated anyway... just cause he's getting older and it's time to retire.. so the only way he gets tarred and feathered is if he asks for it.