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Tom Brady

AFC East Notes: Smith, Ryan, Pats, Pegula

October 12th, 2014 at 8:51am CST by Rory Parks

The Jets have opened the 2014 season with a 1-4 record, a disaster at the quarterback position, and a dearth of optimism for an imminent reversal of fortunes. The two starring figures in the team’s disappointment, of course, are head coach Rex Ryan and second-year quarterback Geno Smith. However, as Conor Orr of NFL.com writes, the ultimate fate of those two men could be quite different if and when their respective tenures with the Jets are over.

Citing NFL Media’s Michael Robinson, Orr writes that “a defensively starved team would absolutely pay Ryan handsomely to return to his former role as a coordinator,” but teams would be much more hesitant to give Smith another shot. Orr adds that, unless Smith shows more comfort against top-tier defenses, it is difficult to imagine any sort of market developing for him, even among coaches with strong backgrounds in quarterback development.

Now for some more notes from around the AFC East:

  • Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that, despite the Jets‘ woes, a midseason firing of Rex Ryan or GM John Idzik is highly unlikely and that owner Woody Johnson will reevaluate his personnel after the season. Rapoport adds (via Twitter) that there is no “litmus test” for Ryan to keep his job, as the team could finish the 2014 season strong and opt to bring Ryan back. After all, the Jets worried after the 2013 season that he would be immediately rehired as a head coach elsewhere and make them pay, and that fear still exists among the team’s front office.
  • With the Broncos coming to town this week, Rich Cimini of ESPNNewYork.com takes a look back at the Jets-Broncos trade that brought Tim Tebow to the Meadowlands. Although the fourth-round pick that New York shipped to Denver turned out to be center Phillip Blake, who is now out of the league, the Broncos used the sixth-rounder on Danny Trevathan, their starting weakside linebacker: Advantage: Denver.
  • Ben Volin of the Boston Globe writes that, although the proliferation of doomsday articles concerning the Patriots‘ dynasty–which quickly disappeared after the team’s performance against the Bengals last week–contemplated a premature end to Tom Brady‘s days in New England, Brady’s contract suggests that he will remain under center for at least the 2015 season.
  • Despite the Patriots‘ throwback blowout of the Bengals last Sunday, Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News is unimpressed by the team’s long-term prospects and believes the dynasty is indeed fading.
  • Jerry Sullivan of the Buffalo News discusses the “eerie” coincidences surrounding new Bills‘ owner Terry Pegula‘s purchase of the team, and Sullivan wonders if the symbolism will continue with a Buffalo upset of New England later today.

Extra Points: Vikings, Brady, Fitzpatrick, Cowboys

October 11th, 2014 at 12:37pm CST by Ben Levine

Let’s check out some assorted whispers from around the league on this Saturday afternoon…

Poll: Will The Patriots Trade Tom Brady?

October 10th, 2014 at 10:45pm CST by Rob DiRe

The tension between Tom Brady and the Patriots’ coaching staff has become one of the strange ongoing stories of this NFL season. If it continues it could influence whether he finishes his career with the team. The Patriots have quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who was drafted in the second round and could serve as Brady’s successor.

Now the word is that the move could happen as early as this offseason. Some have gone as far as to say that the Patriots will shop Brady around this offseason. Brady remains committed to the team.

“I love all those guys, my coaches,” said Bady. “I’ve never had any tension with them, truthfully. It’s unfortunate that some things get said and talked about, especially when they don’t come from me, and I think that’s the — when you’re in the middle of an especially tough week with our team to deal with things that are really outside football that are very personal — very personal relationships that I’ve built up for a long time.”

The team just came off a big win against the Bengals, and despite some struggles, are still looking to be a powerhouse in the AFC. However, if a team comes to the Patriots with a huge trade offer, some think the team would entertain a deal.

With all that being said, it is hard to imagine Brady ever playing with another franchise. He has said he wants to play another four or five years, and it would be a surprise if he didn’t remain with the team he won three Super Bowls with for the entirety of his career. Still, head coach Bill Belichick has a reputation for getting rid of star players before they decline, but Brady would probably like to think he is the exception to that rule.

Extra Points: Brady, Cowboys, Oliver

October 10th, 2014 at 10:27pm CST by Rob DiRe

Even after the Patriots‘ 43-17 throttling of the previously undefeated Bengals, stories persist of the ongoing tensions between Tom Brady and the team. Kirk Minihane and Gary Tanguay joined Arbella Early Edition to discuss the chances that the recent rift will lead to a split.

They came to a surprising conclusion, both figuring that there is a more likely than not chance that Brady could finish his career with another franchise. They can see the team considering trading him if the right offer came along.

“If I’m Belichick I say… ‘Tom, thanks for the memories, swell, here’s the watch, goodbye,’” says Minihane. “You’d be insane not to do it. They’re going to at least explore trading Brady in this offseason. I’m convinced of that.”

Here are some other notes from around the NFL:

  • The Cowboys are 4-1, and most of the credit has gone to the offensive line, but not forgotten are the team’s two stars, Dez Bryant and DeMarco Murray. Both players will be free agents at season’s end, but the team is not worried about getting extensions signed during the season, writes Jon Machota of DallasNews.com. The team has already targeted both players as pieces moving forward, making their pursuits known.
  • Chargers‘ running back Branden Oliver had a breakout game Sunday against the Jets, racking up 182 yards and two touchdowns rushing and receiving. The electric rookie went undrafted, and considered signing with the Colts before joining the Chargers, reports Alex Marvez of Fox Sports 1 (via Twitter).
  • Finally, Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel spent some time with Packers‘ first-round pick Ha Ha Clinton-Dix. Dunne got to know a lot about the future star safety and his life off-the-field.

Tension Between Patriots, Tom Brady

October 6th, 2014 at 8:02am CST by Zachary Links

There’s palpable tension between Tom Brady and the Patriots’ coaching staff and multiple sources told Chris Mortensen of ESPN they believe it could influence whether he finishes his career with the team. Meanwhile, two sources say that rookie quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was drafted as Brady’s successor and the move could happen “sooner than later,” though none of the sources suggested that change could happen during the 2014 season. For his part, Brady refuted the notion of a rift between him and management after last night’s game.

“I love all those guys, my coaches,” Brady insisted. “I’ve never had any tension with them, truthfully. It’s unfortunate that some things get said and talked about, especially when they don’t come from me, and I think that’s the — when you’re in the middle of an especially tough week with our team to deal with things that are really outside football that are very personal — very personal relationships that I’ve built up for a long time.”

Meanwhile Mortensen writes that Brady is upset over the questionable personnel decisions that led to the downsizing of the Pats offense and the retirement of longtime offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia after the 2013 season. With Pro Bowl guard Logan Mankins being traded before the season, Brady’s input into game plans and pre-snap adjustments has significantly diminished in favor of a more conservative approach that’s easier to follow for the novice linemen. Internally, a source says some have cited Brady’s declining performance as the reason for the conservative line strategy.

The Patriots are now 3-2 after last night’s 43-17 win over the Bengals, which may help to ease tensions all around.

Patriots Notes: Brady, Thompkins, Mankins

October 5th, 2014 at 10:28am CST by Ben Levine

Cardinals defensive tackle Tommy Kelly was cut by the Patriots in late August, but the veteran doesn’t seem to have any hard feelings. In fact, he actually sounds like he’s happier not playing in New England, and the 33-year-old questioned the team’s motivation in an interview with Darren Urban on the Cardinals website:

“I couldn’t take busting my tail every day getting to a game and them taking me out of the game for someone who I know isn’t better than me, because he’s a cheaper option. Are we worried about money here? Or are we worried about winning?”

Kelly isn’t the only player reportedly questioning the Patriots decision-making. Read below to find out who else may have issues with Bill Belichick and company…

  • According to Chris Mortensen of ESPN (via Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com), quarterback Tom Brady is “uncomfortable” with some of the Patriots’ personnel and coaching changes.
  • If the Patriots continue to scuttle, the team will have an interesting decision to make with their franchise quarterback, writes Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. If Brady is on the roster for the last game of this season, the final three years of his contract become fully guaranteed. When that inevitably happens, the Patriots will have to decide how much longer they want to roll with the future Hall of Famer.
  • According to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com, the Patriots asked Logan Mankins to take a pay cut not long before ultimately trading the Pro Bowler. The writer questions whether Belichick was “exacting a measure of payback” for Mankins’ 2010 holdout.
  • The decision to cut Kenbrell Thompkins was less about the player’s talent and more about flexibility for the Patriots, writes CSNNE.com’s Tom E. Curran.

AFC East Notes: Jets, Dolphins, Brady

October 1st, 2014 at 12:39pm CST by Luke Adams

Let’s round up a few Wednesday updates from around the AFC East, where every team except the 1-3 Jets is tied for first place at 2-2….

  • In addition to working out fullback John Conner, who signed with the club, the Jets auditioned center Thomas Austin, tackle Michael Bamiro, and center Lemuel Jeanpierre this week, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun adds (via Twitter) that the club also tried out linebacker Chris Young.
  • The Dolphins worked out several players as well this week, according to Wilson, who tweets that linebackers Kaelin Burnett, Uani Unga, and Paul Hazel, along with defensive end Steven Means, were among the participants.
  • While Tom Brady‘s subpar September is hardly a reason for the Patriots to panic, Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap (writing for The Sporting News) outlines possible strategies for the club if Brady’s struggles continue. The former MVP’s contract ensures that his salaries for 2015, 2016, and 2017 will become fully guaranteed if he’s still on New England’s roster at the end of the 2014 season.
  • As Albert Breer of the NFL Network notes (via Twitter), Brady provided an interesting answer today when asked whether he felt the Patriots have the offensive weapons he needs to win: “We’ll see. We’ll see here in a couple months.”
  • Tight end Brandon Barden tried out this week for the Bills, tweets Wilson.

East Notes: Donnell, Dolphins, Brady, Jets

September 30th, 2014 at 10:02am CST by Luke Adams

After losing Brandon Myers to the Buccaneers, the Giants kicked the tires on a number of free agent tight ends this past offseason, including Brandon Pettigrew and others. However, the team ultimately didn’t make any major additions at the position, and that decision looks like the best one the front office made all year. As Peter King of The MMQB.com details, new No. 1 tight end Larry Donnell has been a revelation during the first few weeks of this season, racking up 25 receptions and four touchdowns already, just three years removed from going undrafted and unsigned out of Grambling State.

As we look forward to seeing if Donnell can keep up his impressive play throughout the season, let’s round up a few more items from around the NFL’s two East divisions….

  • Defensive end Emmanuel Dieke, who was cut by the Giants last month, is working out for the Dolphins today, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter).
  • Pointing out that the remainder of Tom Brady‘s contract remains “insanely team-friendly,” Ben Volin of the Boston Globe wonders if the Patriots would ever get to the point where they’d consider trading their longtime signal-caller to a team in need of a quarterback.
  • Rex Ryan‘s job as the Jets‘ head coach may hinge on whether or not he decides to continue to rely on Geno Smith as the club’s No. 1 quarterback, writes Steve Selby of the New York Post.
  • Mark Bullock of the Washington Post takes an in-depth look at why Redskins outside linebacker Brian Orakpo isn’t proving to be worth his large 2014 salary in the early going this season.

Pats Notes: Brady, Gronk, O-Line

September 28th, 2014 at 10:12am CST by Rory Parks

Ben Volin of the Boston Globe writes that, although the league’s quarterbacks have seen a general uptick in overall statistical performance through the first three weeks of the 2014 season–standard small sample size disclaimers apply–those numbers are not being driven by the traditionally elite signal-callers. Among the under-performing big names is the Patriots’ Tom Brady, who as Volin notes, has produced “head-scratchingly bad” statistics.

Those stats include a 58.8 completion percentage, 5.5 yards per attempt, and 210.7 passing yards per game. There are, of course, reasons for those numbers: Brady is clearly uncomfortable throwing the ball downfield and has little faith in his receivers and his offensive line. Nonetheless, Brady will, as Volin points out, have to pick up the slack if the team is to make its yearly run to the playoffs, even though the AFC East is shaping up to be just as weak as it always is.

Here are a few more Patriots tidbits to pass along this morning:

  • Speaking of Brady’s struggles, Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald writes that analysts like Trent Dilfer and Matt Hasselbeck point out the flaws in the Patriots’ roster to explain some of Brady’s problems, along with Brady’s increasing penchant to take the safe throw rather than force the issue. Nonetheless, both believe that Brady will be able to overcome his early-season woes and put up solid numbers yet again.
  • One thing that would certainly help a Brady resurgence is the continued good health of Rob Gronkowski. Phil Perry of CSNNewEngland.com observes that Gronkowski should be able to become the middle-of-the-field threat that the team needs him to be sooner rather than later, which would open up the passing game for the rest of the team’s receiving corps.
  • As noted above, the offensive line has been a big problem for New England. Adam Kurkjian of the Boston Herald writes that the Pats will go into Monday’s game against Kansas City with Nate Solder at left tackle, Bryan Stork at center, Dan Connolly at right guard and Sebastian Vollmer at right tackle. Kurkjian notes that left guard remains unsettled, with Marcus Cannon and Ryan Wendell as possibilities. Perry has the same suggestion in a video post.

Tom Brady Talks Mankins, Pats, Future

September 2nd, 2014 at 12:02pm CST by Luke Adams

A report last week suggested that Patriots quarterback Tom Brady wasn’t too happy with the team’s decision to trade Pro Bowl guard Logan Mankins to the Buccaneers with less than two weeks until the regular season got underway. Appearing on WEEI this morning, Brady didn’t deny being upset, though his comments indicated that he has already moved past it. Here are the highlights from Brady’s radio appearance (links via ESPN.com):

On Mankins’ departure:

“I love Logan. Logan was a great friend of mine. Nobody stood for Patriots football more than him. … I dealt with whatever feelings I had last week, but I’ve moved on. I have to move on, because that’s what this team expects me to do.”

On whether it has gotten any easier to rationalize how the business side of the NFL works:

“Absolutely not. I’m a very person-to-person type of person, a very emotional person. I don’t think those things have ever gotten easier for me. I don’t think they ever will. But you have to come to grips with it also, and learn to deal with things in a mature way. We, as players, it’s the business side of things. We’re out there to play, we’re not out there to run businesses. We’re there to enjoy the camaraderie with our teammates, enjoy the playing experience with our teammates, and play for one another. And you deal with whatever comes up and then you move forward. I think that’s part of the sport. … I know it’s going to happen next year too, I know it’s going to happen the year after that, the year after that. For as long as you continue playing, you’re going to be dealing with this.”

On the possibility of staying with the Patriots for the rest of his career:

“There’s nowhere I’d rather play, I know that. I love playing for this team and I love representing this team and hopefully I can do that for as long as I can. When I suck, I’ll retire, but I don’t plan on sucking for a long time. So hopefully that leads me to being here and there’s no place I’d rather be.”

On considering retirement and weighing how long to continue his career:

“You know, you’re expected in this business to perform. That’s what football is about. This is not a personality contest. This is a very highly competitive game where your physical skill set and what it means to the team, they place a value on that. If that value fits within the range, then great. If it doesn’t, they don’t want you and then you go somewhere else to play. Once no one else wants you, or you don’t want to play anymore, that’s when you retire. Some guys make the decision to retire early. So I like working hard at it and I’m going to try to be the best I can be for as long as I can be that. Hopefully the team values that and if they don’t, then I’ll probably have a tough day at some point. But that’s what football is all about.”

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