Belichick's Biggest Challenges of Nex Year

[gaylord]

Tryin to get away from the mindless arguing...

Okay, let's say the Patsies win the SB again this year hang: )

What do you Patsy fruits think will be the biggest new challenges and difficulties facing the Patriots next season.

I came up with a short list of possibilities.

1) Nick Saban and the re-vamped Fins
2) Romeo Crennel; whether he's with the Browns or 49ers
3) Ty Law leaving in free agency and possibly playing for another AFC team
4) The continued aging of veterans such as Johnson, McGinnest, Harrison, Dillon, Bruschi, etc.
5) Having to find a new offensive and defensive coordinator
6) Buffalo Bills squad sans Frankensoe

Also, what are the things you Patsy fairies are most excited about for the next yr?

1) Free Agency
2) Draft
3) Colvin and Watson at 100%

Thoughts?
As you can tell, I'm trying to give an alternative feeling, at least until your ultimate demise ina few days...

 

[B A Rabbit]

Still trying to run around and spread more garbage I see. We will worry about next year when it gets here. Only a fool lets things that can't affect him, affect him.

 

[StarKleck]

I'm going to ignore the juvenile insults and pretend for a moment that a genuine response is wanted.

It's way too early to worry about Saban and the Phins. They have a ton of work to do and first year coaches usually have mixed results. It may be that they were mistaken in giving him that much control considering he has no pro HC experience. Even experienced coaches who take on the duel role of HC and GM are often spread too thin, as we've seen with Holmgren and Sherman.

Ty Law is not a free agent. I may be in the minority here, but I think he'll be a Patriot at least until the end of his contract. His cap number will be high but not so much than than this year as to make it unmanageable, particularly if there is a significant bump in the salary cap.

The only position that really needs an infusion of youth is the MLB core. None of those guys appear to be slowing down yet but it's only a matter of time. OLB is okay with Vrabel (29), Colvin (27), and TBC (24). And let's not put Willie McGinest out to pasture yet. At the age of 33 he's playing the best ball of his entire career.

Two safeties were taken in the third and fourth rounds of the most recent draft. Are either of those guys the answer as the eventual replacement to Harrison? Too soon to tell. Fortunately, he doesn't seem to be slowing down one bit, so there's plenty of time to find out.

Why would we be worried about Dillon? The guy is only 30 and just had a career year both individually and for the franchise. He's younger than the likes of Priest Holmes and Curtis Martin and appears to keep himself in superb shape. No reason why we shouldn't expect to get a good two or three years out of him.

Losing coaches is a necessary evil of success. But this team is known for having back up plans for everything and everyone. They probably already have coordinator replacements waiting in the wings. Of course, Romeo hasn't been offered another job yet and his age means his window of opportunity is beginning to close, so they may never even have to cross that bridge.

Who says Bledsoe isn't the starting QB of the Buffalo Bills in 2005? Look at the talent on that team: they are close to putting together a championship run. That pretty much goes straight out the window if they choose to turn to JP Losman. Young QB's usually have to go through a lot of growing pains. If he takes the route that most new QB's take, he may actually be a step back from Bledsoe in the short term. I wouldn't be surprised at all if they stick with Bledsoe, gambling that he'll be adequate with a strong supporting cast.

There's plenty to look forward to this offseason and in 2005. This team doesn't seem to have any gaping holes that a decent draft and a couple of free agent signings wouldn't fix. And we haven't really gotten a glimpse of the 2004 class yet, since most of them got hurt early and couldn't contribute. It'll be like having two sets of rookies to evaluate. All in all, it appears to be a team that is set to compete for championships for many years to come.

 

[gaylord]

I have this strong feeling that Law will not be a Patsy next year.

As for Dillon, it wouldn't hurt to have a better back-up than Faulk or Cobbs if he does indeed go out for a game or 2 like he did in Pittsburgh as an insurance plan.

 

[ENFORCER]

Joke or not.... I give no one the time with a user name like gaylord. Go back to the toilet your mom left you in you little nugget

 

[thomas144]

I'll take this thread seriously, because, why not?

The only issue (from that list) that would concern me is the aging of the linebackers.

The biggest concern I have is grooming a backup/replacement for Tom Brady.

I am personally mostly psyched about the draft. I don't know anything about college football but I get into the draft every year. For whatever reason it's the most fun thing in sports.

I would take more interest in available free agents if I knew more about football. I can't say I had any awareness of Rodney Harrision or Roosevelt Colvin before they signed with the Pats. I find the Patriots' free agent signings to be really interesting mostly because I can't anticipate what they might be.

The rookie I was most excited about before he got hurt was Gus Scott.