2018 Patriots OTAs

BaseballJones

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Time to pack it in, Patriots. The dynasty is dead.
I certainly wouldn't say that, but this isn't a small thing. Lots of new faces in the receiving and RB corps, and this is a great opportunity for Brady to start working with them. Probably won't be a disaster, but it's not insignificant or unimportant that Brady isn't there.
 

ifmanis5

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Here is the OTA schedule...

OTA Offseason Workouts:
May 21-22
May 24
May 30-31
June 11-12
June 14-15

Mandatory Minicamp:
June 5-7
 

PaulinMyrBch

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I didn't realize OTA's was that many sessions. I agree that this isn't a small thing. If he goes on to miss all of the OTA sessions, I think it turns into a big thing. There are a ton of new WR learning the system.
 

Otis Foster

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With all that's gone on, this would ordinarily be interpreted as a thumb in the eye. Hard to believe Tom would do it to Kraft. On the other hand, BB??? Hmmmm.....
 

caminante11

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Alan Branch previously did not show up for OTAs and was accepted into the team. I accept the tradeoff: Brady keeps playing at a high level into his 40's but doesn't show up for optional sessions as he used to do. I think the Patriots will accept the tradeoff too.
 

dcmissle

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I assumed it was facetious. Do people actually believe TB got JG traded?
It’s such a non-issue. Effectively he did — by not retiring. And when JG decided not to stick around on an extended, manageable deal, he punched his own ticket out of town.

So *it* was entirely unnecessary, and someone as smart as Tom would quickly grasp that.

And no, I’m not believing TB will skip any mandatory sessions.

Remember this about RapSheet — last year he had Dallas trading Romo to Washington for Cousins + a haul. It’s slow season and he cannot help himself.
 

Rough Carrigan

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It was about 50% tongue-in-cheek.

Sure, I believe Brady got Jimmy traded. No, I don't think him missing workouts is a big deal.
Yeah, but in those stupid Tom vs. Time videos he says how he's doing everything he can and if other qb's are gonna compete against him they're gonna have to make the same sacrifices. Ehh. Maybe not so much.
 

Captaincoop

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Brady with the TB12/Guerrero/Tom vs. Time stuff is like your friend who gets involved in Herbalife or one of those multilevel marketing deals selling knives or whatever. Total writeoff as a friend. In this case we still need to rely on him to win a Super Bowl, so, we're kind of stuck with him.
 

lexrageorge

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It was about 50% tongue-in-cheek.

Sure, I believe Brady got Jimmy traded. No, I don't think him missing workouts is a big deal.
Until someone can come up with a plausible scenario that would have allowed the Patriots to either (a) keep Brady/JimmyG another season; or (b) trade Brady without going over the salary cap, I refuse to believe anyone that claims the bolded. So far, beyond "the cap is crap" and "teams can always work around cap issues", I've yet to see such a plausible scenario.
 

PaulinMyrBch

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Until someone can come up with a plausible scenario that would have allowed the Patriots to either (a) keep Brady/JimmyG another season; or (b) trade Brady without going over the salary cap, I refuse to believe anyone that claims the bolded. So far, beyond "the cap is crap" and "teams can always work around cap issues", I've yet to see such a plausible scenario.
As long as the years TB12 is going to play is an unknown, there was no scenario that would have allowed them to keep them both. I naively thought there may have been a way to do it under the cap and I believed that post trade and right up to the point where JG signed the extension. After that, reality set it for me, there was truly no way. Had Brady said I've got 1 or 2 left, then maybe, but that's still doubtful considering JG wanted to play and wanted to be paid. He got both.
 

dcmissle

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The interesting questions to me are whether TB and Gronk are fucking with B.B. and, if so, why and when does it end?
 

Ed Hillel

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The interesting questions to me are whether TB and Gronk are fucking with B.B. and, if so, why and when does it end?
Gronk won’t be there until Thursday or Friday, because the earliest he can change his contract is May 24, and he isn’t going to risk injury before that.

Brady, I dunno. My guess is this is a compromise with Giselle more than an FU to anyone, but that’s just a guess.
 

dcmissle

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Thanks for the info on Gronk. Makes sense.

I am not presuming one way or another, which is why I posed it as a question.
 

TheoShmeo

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In the last several years, Tom has talked a lot about how important OTAs are. What changed for him? Conflict with Bill about Alex Guerrero, Tom’s contract or the work environment? Or a little bit of all three?

It’s May, and it’s way premature to panic. But I think this absence is noteworthy inasmuch as it’s counter to how TB has conducted himself and his words. And I liked the idea of achieving the kinds of things that Brady discussed when he talked about OTAs in the past.

Perhaps more importantly, until Tom and Bill reach some sort of detente, I think winning will be more difficult.
 

trs

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I wonder how much of this is just a length of season thing. We heard more noise about the length of Spring Training this year and whether or not the body needs that much time to "ramp up." Obviously as you all have pointed out, OTAs allow for players to work together, get timings down, but really what other than that does Brady need to be at camp to do that he can't do on his own? It's certainly not like 15+ years ago when players drank and ate away their off-seasons and OTAs existed to get them not back in shape but just remotely close to a defined shape.

With Gronk, I think it's a combination of the May 24 and knowing that really all he needs to do to succeed at this point is not get hurt. It's unfortunate, but with the NFL what seems to get rewarded the most is the questionably-controllable "ability" to not get hurt. The NFL is basically World War 1 -- whoever gets lucky, has more fresh meat, or gets a late-game addition is probably going to win.

Of course being good helps too. Brady and Gronk are already good. Now I think they're just focusing on not being a casualty.
 

heavyde050

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For Brady, it could just be as simple as he really wants to spend this extra time with his family because when he comes back to football - he is all in 100%.
What Brady is doing (at his age) requires sacrifices in both the personal and professional realm.
As long as he shows up at mandatory minicamp and plays like the top QB he is, all will be forgiven.
If he isn’t good anymore - that is an entirely different discussion.
 

steveluck7

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If he isn’t good anymore - that is an entirely different discussion.
They way I see it, if he's suddenly not good, it'll be because age has caught up to him. In that case practicing MORE would not solve the issue.
Getting on the same page with new guys takes time but he also has a ton of time between mini camp and training camp. He sticks around for a few extra hours on a few of those days and he's "made up" basically all the time he's missing now
 

Bowhemian

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I wonder if any of these intrepid reporters have asked the Patriots about Brady not being at OTAs.
While I acknowledge that I have 0% information, my guess is that the Patriots knew that he wouldn't be there, and that they have an agreed upon start date. I highly doubt the Patriots know nothing about this.
 

heavyde050

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I wonder if any of these intrepid reporters have asked the Patriots about Brady not being at OTAs.
While I acknowledge that I have 0% information, my guess is that the Patriots knew that he wouldn't be there, and that they have an agreed upon start date. I highly doubt the Patriots know nothing about this.
Like
 

dbn

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Until someone can come up with a plausible scenario that would have allowed the Patriots to either (a) keep Brady/JimmyG another season; or (b) trade Brady without going over the salary cap, I refuse to believe anyone that claims the bolded. So far, beyond "the cap is crap" and "teams can always work around cap issues", I've yet to see such a plausible scenario.
You probably also believe man has really walked on the moon.
 

BigJimEd

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I wonder if any of these intrepid reporters have asked the Patriots about Brady not being at OTAs.
While I acknowledge that I have 0% information, my guess is that the Patriots knew that he wouldn't be there, and that they have an agreed upon start date. I highly doubt the Patriots know nothing about this.
That date is likely the mandatory camp. I'm sure the Patriots are aware of his plans that doesn't mean they like it though.
But these are voluntary camps and in the long run it doesn't mean much at all. Still I'm sure the organization would prefer all healthy players there.
 

Bowhemian

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You probably also believe man has really walked on the moon.
Yup, I also believe that the earth is not flat.
That date is likely the mandatory camp. I'm sure the Patriots are aware of his plans that doesn't mean they like it though.
But these are voluntary camps and in the long run it doesn't mean much at all. Still I'm sure the organization would prefer all healthy players there.
Agreed, but I would like to think that while they may not like it, they give him a little bit of latitude considering his service time with the team, not to mention the many contract restructures that he has agreed to.
 

BigJimEd

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Yup, I also believe that the earth is not flat.

Agreed, but I would like to think that while they may not like it, they give him a little bit of latitude considering his service time with the team, not to mention the many contract restructures that he has agreed to.
oh sure, I agree. I don't think they view it as a big deal either. He's earned some leeway at this point.
 

DJnVa

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I wonder if any of these intrepid reporters have asked the Patriots about Brady not being at OTAs.
BB was asked today. His response: "I'm not going to talk about the people who aren't here."
 

bakahump

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OK I will say it, and I will piss off alot of people.

When does this become Selfish of Tom Brady?
You want to play till your 45. Fine, You certainly thus far seem to have the performance to reach that goal. However, your performance has always been based on your ultra effort driven by your competitiveness. That combined with your TEAM, that you worked to integrate seamlessly with (Showing up to all the voluntary stuff, pointing out those that didnt, hosting guys in Montana etc etc).
If thats going to become lacking then that could be a problem. Maybe not for Tom Bradys Personal stats, but for the other players and the team that depend on a dedicated QB.
Also if the Rumors are true (and I realize it could be just mongering) that Brady is making noise about (and the OTA absence is an extension of that) a new contract/more money, then as a Pats fan I take offense.
I get that these guys put there bodies on the line. I get that they should make it while they can. But thats not what this is about with Brady. He could retire tomorrow and have a (relatively) healthy life. He has more then enough money for several generations. This is about ego. And ego at this point irks me when his image has always been based on having no ego when it came to the team. Had he always been about making sure he got paid then strangely I would be more ok about him wanting big contracts in his twilight. Instead he seems to be just doing this to prove he is the GOAT. Its like he looks down the list and says "Well I really havent ever been paid like the GOAT, so maybe I should do that now."
Even if this isnt just about money but about "treatment" its again like he said "Never been a Favre-esque primadonna before, but as the GOAT I should warrant that treatmen dammit".

Look if Brady said tomorrow I am done, I would hold nothing against him. He owes us nothing in my opinion. What would change that view is 2-4 years of "I want my cake and to eat it too" of spending time with his family but also playing the uber competitive card. I dont believe you can have it both ways.

He has always said "When I cant commit 100% I will quit. This team, Mr. Kraft and Coach Belicheck deserve that." We always took him at his word and that was a big part of what we respected about him. Well now he is changing the rules. He will couch it in some "I am as committed now as I ever was". But his actions says otherwise.
Maybe it was unfair to expect him to continue to be the same kind of maniac he always has been, but HE said he would always be that way or he would hang them up.
To me this feels like his heart isnt in it anymore (to the maniacal extent it was), but after he pulled the Jimmy G power play he knows that retiring now would in a lot of peoples minds tarnish his image. So he is going to "Half ass it" (for Brady anyway) for a year or 3 so he can say "See even when I forced them to choose between Jimmy and I, I still stuck around out of loyalty."
I hope he realizes that there will be no round 2 of "Young QB comes in and needs to be put in his place/shipped out". The dedicated leader we believed Brady to always be would instead do everything in his power to prepare the new kid for the future.

Time Sucks. I am now writing anti Brady posts.
 

joe dokes

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What ever happened to waiting until a great player actually sucks on the field (or does something heinous off of it) to boo him? Wasn't shitty enough?
 

Saints Rest

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OK I will say it, and I will piss off alot of people.

When does this become Selfish of Tom Brady?
You want to play till your 45. Fine, You certainly thus far seem to have the performance to reach that goal. However, your performance has always been based on your ultra effort driven by your competitiveness. That combined with your TEAM, that you worked to integrate seamlessly with (Showing up to all the voluntary stuff, pointing out those that didnt, hosting guys in Montana etc etc).
If thats going to become lacking then that could be a problem. Maybe not for Tom Bradys Personal stats, but for the other players and the team that depend on a dedicated QB.
Also if the Rumors are true (and I realize it could be just mongering) that Brady is making noise about (and the OTA absence is an extension of that) a new contract/more money, then as a Pats fan I take offense.
I get that these guys put there bodies on the line. I get that they should make it while they can. But thats not what this is about with Brady. He could retire tomorrow and have a (relatively) healthy life. He has more then enough money for several generations. This is about ego. And ego at this point irks me when his image has always been based on having no ego when it came to the team. Had he always been about making sure he got paid then strangely I would be more ok about him wanting big contracts in his twilight. Instead he seems to be just doing this to prove he is the GOAT. Its like he looks down the list and says "Well I really havent ever been paid like the GOAT, so maybe I should do that now."
Even if this isnt just about money but about "treatment" its again like he said "Never been a Favre-esque primadonna before, but as the GOAT I should warrant that treatmen dammit".

Look if Brady said tomorrow I am done, I would hold nothing against him. He owes us nothing in my opinion. What would change that view is 2-4 years of "I want my cake and to eat it too" of spending time with his family but also playing the uber competitive card. I dont believe you can have it both ways.

He has always said "When I cant commit 100% I will quit. This team, Mr. Kraft and Coach Belicheck deserve that." We always took him at his word and that was a big part of what we respected about him. Well now he is changing the rules. He will couch it in some "I am as committed now as I ever was". But his actions says otherwise.
Maybe it was unfair to expect him to continue to be the same kind of maniac he always has been, but HE said he would always be that way or he would hang them up.
To me this feels like his heart isnt in it anymore (to the maniacal extent it was), but after he pulled the Jimmy G power play he knows that retiring now would in a lot of peoples minds tarnish his image. So he is going to "Half ass it" (for Brady anyway) for a year or 3 so he can say "See even when I forced them to choose between Jimmy and I, I still stuck around out of loyalty."
I hope he realizes that there will be no round 2 of "Young QB comes in and needs to be put in his place/shipped out". The dedicated leader we believed Brady to always be would instead do everything in his power to prepare the new kid for the future.

Time Sucks. I am now writing anti Brady posts.
Maybe you will piss some folks off, but this is pretty close to the first third of an article Bedard wrote on BSJ this morning. The second third lambasts Belichick; the third hammers Kraft. The overall theme being that some or all of those three need to start acting like adults and sit down and work this out.
 

BigJimEd

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after he pulled the Jimmy G power play
....
when I forced them to choose between Jimmy and I
Do you have any evidence to back this up? Unless and until you can answer lexrageorge's post earlier in thread, I'm just going to assume anything you post on topic is just an emotional rant with no factual basis.
 

joe dokes

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Maybe you will piss some folks off, but this is pretty close to the first third of an article Bedard wrote on BSJ this morning. The second third lambasts Belichick; the third hammers Kraft. The overall theme being that some or all of those three need to start acting like adults and sit down and work this out.
This begs the question of whether there's anything "to work out."

Ironically, it is the fact that Brady is in virtually uncharted (for football) waters of "adulthood" -- he's almost 41 -- that no one outside the team seems able to handle.

I'll bet McDaniels gets it. He's about the same age as Brady, and, like Brady, is neither a libidinous septuagnerian widower, nor a divorced guy with older children.
 
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bakahump

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I havent read the Bedard piece.

I do wonder though, How much of this is BBs fault?

Is he wrong to draw a line in the sand about Alex? He has been this way for years. Basically "Everyone Commit to the team and the program, do as we ask, dont cause distractions and this staff and myself have ultimate authority over football operations".

That hasnt changed. At least BB has been and continues to be consistent. TB seems to be wavering and thats what has me concerned.
 

Bowhemian

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Why are a lot of you guys assuming that there is something wrong, that there is something to actually work out? For all we know, the 3 of them still get along swimmingly and they read this shit and just laugh. Yeah, I get that there was some smoke, and some reporters keep making noise about it, but they know just as much as we do. Nothing.
 

bakahump

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So if I understand your ask.
You want to know "How could the Patriots have Kept Jimmy G".
Can I ask a retort before I answer? How much responsibility does Brady have to be 100% committed to continuing to be the Patriots QB, and how far ahead is it reasonable for him to communicate that?

Here is my "answer".
I doubt that TB woke up this offseason realizing "Man OTAs kinda suck, and Giselle wants me home, and I am 41 years old and Iike being with the kids and I dont need the wear and tear". Instead I think this has been an ongoing saga (as evidenced by comments on TvsTime). Brady said "I want to play till I am 45". Doesnt mean he HAS to.
So if he came in last October and said "Yea I am not sure I can commit at the same level as I have in past but I still want to play for awhile" then I think we would be foolish to believe that BB would have been ok with that and wouldnt have made the Cap work this year. Would it have hurt 2018? Definitely lots of cuts and less talent. Would it have shut the TB window a little tighter or maybe completely? Yes (and TB didnt want that...more on that in a minute). So instead despite the fact that he had to know that "its tougher now to commit so completely", he must have told BB and or Kraft exactly that. Kraft and BB own some of this as they too should have realized that Brady could lessen his commitment and that he was probably bound to.

So if TLDR
The question is flawed. It doesnt have to be Keep them both and the team as built for championship run. Which is where LexGeorge is coming from.
It would have been EASY for the patriots to keep both Jimmy and Brady. If they committed to transitioning to Jimmys team in 2019 or 2020 and basically calling it a day on Championship aspirations for the short term. In the grand scheme of things that might have been "in the best interest of the New England Patriots" long term.

Teams somtimes do "Suck for Luck". So why do we think it would have been different to "Suck for Succession". You do things that hurt you now to set yourself up for the future.
 

OurF'ingCity

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It would have been EASY for the patriots to keep both Jimmy and Brady. If they committed to transitioning to Jimmys team in 2019 or 2020 and basically calling it a day on Championship aspirations for the short term. In the grand scheme of things that might have been "in the best interest of the New England Patriots" long term.
Seriously? They were a drive away from winning their sixth Super Bowl last year with a depleted roster and you want to blow it up to keep Jimmy G, who at the time had started all of 3 games? Also, why do you think Jimmy G would have been OK with sitting for two more years? Even if they franchised him (and blew up the team around him in order to do so), what's to say the Patriots' approach wouldn't have just soured JG to the Pats organization as a whole causing him to sign somewhere else eventually anyway?

I'm with joe dokes - I'll get concerned when it appears that any of this is affecting the team's performance in any way. To date, there is zero evidence it has (again, they were a drive away from winning a Super Bowl last year and are the favorites to win it this year as well).
 

lexrageorge

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OK I will say it, and I will piss off alot of people.

When does this become Selfish of Tom Brady?
You want to play till your 45. Fine, You certainly thus far seem to have the performance to reach that goal. However, your performance has always been based on your ultra effort driven by your competitiveness. That combined with your TEAM, that you worked to integrate seamlessly with (Showing up to all the voluntary stuff, pointing out those that didnt, hosting guys in Montana etc etc).
If thats going to become lacking then that could be a problem. Maybe not for Tom Bradys Personal stats, but for the other players and the team that depend on a dedicated QB.
Also if the Rumors are true (and I realize it could be just mongering) that Brady is making noise about (and the OTA absence is an extension of that) a new contract/more money, then as a Pats fan I take offense.
I get that these guys put there bodies on the line. I get that they should make it while they can. But thats not what this is about with Brady. He could retire tomorrow and have a (relatively) healthy life. He has more then enough money for several generations. This is about ego. And ego at this point irks me when his image has always been based on having no ego when it came to the team. Had he always been about making sure he got paid then strangely I would be more ok about him wanting big contracts in his twilight. Instead he seems to be just doing this to prove he is the GOAT. Its like he looks down the list and says "Well I really havent ever been paid like the GOAT, so maybe I should do that now."
Even if this isnt just about money but about "treatment" its again like he said "Never been a Favre-esque primadonna before, but as the GOAT I should warrant that treatmen dammit".

Look if Brady said tomorrow I am done, I would hold nothing against him. He owes us nothing in my opinion. What would change that view is 2-4 years of "I want my cake and to eat it too" of spending time with his family but also playing the uber competitive card. I dont believe you can have it both ways.

He has always said "When I cant commit 100% I will quit. This team, Mr. Kraft and Coach Belicheck deserve that." We always took him at his word and that was a big part of what we respected about him. Well now he is changing the rules. He will couch it in some "I am as committed now as I ever was". But his actions says otherwise.
Maybe it was unfair to expect him to continue to be the same kind of maniac he always has been, but HE said he would always be that way or he would hang them up.
To me this feels like his heart isnt in it anymore (to the maniacal extent it was), but after he pulled the Jimmy G power play he knows that retiring now would in a lot of peoples minds tarnish his image. So he is going to "Half ass it" (for Brady anyway) for a year or 3 so he can say "See even when I forced them to choose between Jimmy and I, I still stuck around out of loyalty."
I hope he realizes that there will be no round 2 of "Young QB comes in and needs to be put in his place/shipped out". The dedicated leader we believed Brady to always be would instead do everything in his power to prepare the new kid for the future.

Time Sucks. I am now writing anti Brady posts.
You didn't piss me off. I don't even hate your post, despite your repeating of the tiresome (and likely incorrect) story about there being a Brady power play that caused JG to be traded.

Yes, ideally, Brady would be there. There are new receivers on board, Edelman is getting his timing back, etc. And teammates will naturally look upon Brady as being a leader, and it's natural for the team (and fans) to want Brady to show leadership by example.

OTOH, of all players currently on the rosters of the 4 local sports teams that should be given some leeway, Brady is first, and the gap between him and #2 on that list is greater than the distance to Neptune. From a pure football perspective, Brady can probably afford to miss these OTA's. He's not going to show up to camp looking like Pablo Sandoval. He'll get plenty of reps in July to work with the receivers under more realistic conditions. He probably knows the offense better than most of the coaching staff. He's missed OTA's before and still followed those missed OTA's with amazing seasons.

For MLB, NHL, and NBA players, I'm fully on board with the argument that you play according to the terms of your contract, even if the market changes. For NFL, that argument holds absolutely no water whatsoever. Players can be lose their job and be cut just about anytime, leaving millions of dollars on the table. Brady doesn't technically have that problem, as his contract is guaranteed. But he's done the team a huge favor during the last couple of restructures, and as a result he is paid well under market. He'll be 16th highest paid QB in 2018, behind notable Hall of Famers such as Garappolo, Matt Stafford, Kirk Cousins, Derek Carr, Joe DPI Flacco, Cam Newton, and Alex Fucking Smith!!!!!! So, yes, he has a right to be pissed if the team is holding a hard line on extension talks. And, if fans insist that Brady still follow the terms of his contract to the letter, then Brady similarly has the option to follow the CBA to the letter and miss OTA's. That's life, and like it or not the team has to deal with that.

Finally, as for keeping both QB's on the roster, it was impossible due to the salary cap. There was nothing to work out; it was not feasible. Take a long, hard look at JG's contract with the 49'ers before saying something "could have been worked out". About the only way it could have worked is if Brady came in to Kraft's office and said that 2018 would be his last season. In that case, yes, they could have potentially structured JG's contract with roster bonuses and the like so that they could have kept him under the cap in 2018 before ballooning in 2019 when Brady's salary would be off. But once Brady decided he wanted to keep playing beyond 2018, there was absolutely nothing the Pats could do, especially given the fact that Don Yee represented both QB's, a huge issue that is being conveniently ignored by your response. The only other option would have been for the Pats to say "to hell with your wishes, we're switching to JG in 2019". If you don't see why Kraft didn't do that, well, I don't know what to tell you.
 

EL Jeffe

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Instead of this being some sort of passive-aggressive plan to stick it to The Man, maybe (just maybe) Brady has decided that at this point in his career (and life), recharging his batteries at home is a better use of his time than showing up for walk-throughs in a system he's thoroughly mastered. Would Brady like to be there? I'm sure, but he can't be everywhere at once (or everything to everyone). Would BB prefer Brady there? I'm 100% sure he would. Does it put sand in his nether region? BB being BB, probably. But Brady's presence at OTAs isn't ultimately going to matter one way or the other once the season kicks off. This just seems like a lot of manufactured media drama. I have no doubt much of the reporting about ongoing tension, bad blood, etc. is grounded in some truth. But I also have no doubt that the tension isn't going to affect whether the team wins or loses a single game. Maybe Brady & BB won't be going out for beers 10 years from now, but once the season kicks off, all the relevant parties will be doing everything in their power to win football games, like always.
 

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You know, I think instead of talking about the guys not there, let's talk about something positive and productive... honestly I am so sick of hearing about TB12, Gronk, and BB. There are 51 other roster spots that matter and there is so much competition throughout the roster. So many position battles and progress that we could instead track.

You don't make snap judgments based on the first few days of OTA's. Fine. No overreactions here, but apparently our young group of corners had a great day against Hoyer and Etling. Crossen had an INT in the endzone. It was a leaping interception too (he has hops which we know from testing).

Mike Reiss and Doug Kyed on twitter have a nice recap of things.
 

Oil Can Dan

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Instead of this being some sort of passive-aggressive plan to stick it to The Man, maybe (just maybe) Brady has decided that at this point in his career (and life), recharging his batteries at home is a better use of his time than showing up for walk-throughs in a system he's thoroughly mastered. Would Brady like to be there? I'm sure, but he can't be everywhere at once (or everything to everyone). Would BB prefer Brady there? I'm 100% sure he would. Does it put sand in his nether region? BB being BB, probably. But Brady's presence at OTAs isn't ultimately going to matter one way or the other once the season kicks off. This just seems like a lot of manufactured media drama. I have no doubt much of the reporting about ongoing tension, bad blood, etc. is grounded in some truth. But I also have no doubt that the tension isn't going to affect whether the team wins or loses a single game. Maybe Brady & BB won't be going out for beers 10 years from now, but once the season kicks off, all the relevant parties will be doing everything in their power to win football games, like always.
I saw a tweet that he's across the street at TB12 today. That turned me from 'this is no big deal' to 'yeah maybe there's something to this'.
 

NortheasternPJ

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Nov 16, 2004
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I saw a tweet that he's across the street at TB12 today. That turned me from 'this is no big deal' to 'yeah maybe there's something to this'.
Brady and Gronk were apparently there yesterday and today. Hot takez aside, this is really disappointing. They aren't sitting around lifting weights at Gillette, they're actually practicing and Brady seems to think it's more important to do resistance bands and other things. I don't care how they choose to work out, not playing and working with their teammates in scrimmages isn't good.
 

joe dokes

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Jul 18, 2005
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Brady and Gronk were apparently there yesterday and today. Hot takez aside, this is really disappointing. They aren't sitting around lifting weights at Gillette, they're actually practicing and Brady seems to think it's more important to do resistance bands and other things. I don't care how they choose to work out, not playing and working with their teammates in scrimmages isn't good.
How can you say you "dont care how they choose to work out," and criticize their choice as to how to work out?
 

Carmine Hose

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Brady being at TB12, literally next door to where the team is conducting the OTAs, effectively destroys the spending more time with the family narrative.

That may have applied to the workout phase when he was out of the area (e.g., working at UCLA's new Wasserman football center), but if he's in town that's absurd. I mean, the kids are still in school. He can't spend time with them during the day when these OTAs are happening. And, who's to say that Gisele isn't busy with her (more financially successful) career?
 

DJnVa

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Dec 16, 2010
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Man, when New England turns on you they turn HARD.

Dude has a 100 year grace period from me and until and unless we hear something from BB more than we have, he can do whatever he likes during voluntary OTAs. He's earned that.
 

tims4wins

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Isn't Brady at TB12 like all the time anyway? Maybe the choice is OTAs + TB12 = X hours, whereas just TB12 = Y hours, and it is a significant difference.

Either way, I just can't bring myself to care.