The Scores Report - The National Sports Blog » Tom Brady Patriots

Brady calls out the Patriots’ mental toughness

Anthony Stalter — Thu, 13 May 2010 18:00:21 +0000

While the tone of the interview was more or less positive in nature, Tom Brady questioned the Patriots’ mental toughness last year during a recent interview with WEEI.

From the Boston Globe:

“Coach always used the [phrase] ‘mentally tough’ to us, and I always agree with him. When the going got tough, we didn’t get going. We weren’t a mentally tough team last year.

“I think that’s been a big point of emphasis for Coach this offseason. Hopefully, we’ve found ways to address it.’’

Brady also insinuated that the team lacked leadership.

“All of us, we need to do a better job of leadership,’’ he said. “And I was one of the leaders last year, and obviously I sucked at doing that.

“So I’ve got to do a better job at that, I’ve got to do a better job of playing quarterback. And that’s what I’m prepared to do.

Again, the interview was positive in nature so I don’t want to spin this into a story about how Brady ripped the Patriots. Plus, what he said was true – on a whole, the Pats played flat last year. Their effort against the Ravens in the playoffs was pitiful and it served as a reminder that they’re not the same team as they used to be. Opponents aren’t going to fear them anymore either.

The Pats have gotten by throughout the years thanks to a solid core of veterans and great game plans. But as those veterans have aged, younger players haven’t stepped up to help the team overcome its weaknesses. The Patriots have never had the most talented overall team (save for their 18-1 squad), but you could be rest assured that they would always be prepared and had the mental fortitude to beat you in crunch time. If they’ve lost that, then the Patriots will be in rebuilding mode sooner rather than later.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

Is Brady’s time with Pats coming to an end?

Anthony Stalter — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 15:00:56 +0000

Albert R. Breer of the Boston Globe broke down the questions the Patriots face while heading into the offseason, including the expiring contract of one Tom Brady.

What about the quarterback? Brady’s deal expires after the 2010 season, and this is the closest he’s come to the end of a contract since becoming a Patriot in 2000. He signed a four-year extension in 2002 with two years left on his rookie deal, then inked a six-year deal in 2005 with two seasons left on that accord.

In August, Eli Manning and Philip Rivers signed six-year contracts worth $16.25 million and $15.5 million per season, respectively. Jay Cutler got a two-year, $30 million extension in October. Peyton Manning is headed for a contract year as well, and Colts owner Jim Irsay said an extension is “a given.’’

Brady’s never been one to siphon every last dime. But with the possibility the Colts once again could reset the market for quarterbacks in an uncapped environment, this one could be complicated.

To me, the Patriots already made this decision this past offseason when they traded Matt Cassel to the Chiefs and retained Brady. Cassel had proven that he could run the offense and he’s much younger than Brady. If there was ever a time for a changing of the guard, it was when the Patriots had both quarterbacks on the roster.

They made a commitment to Brady and unless he’s a complete disaster in 2010, then I highly doubt he’s going anywhere. Was he the same player this year that he was in previous years? Of course not, but he was also coming back from major reconstructive surgery. Give him another full year and then let’s see where he and the Patriots stand.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

Brady calls out Patriots’ toughness

Anthony Stalter — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 15:27:10 +0000

Following Sunday’s loss to the Dolphins in Miami, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady questioned his team’s toughness.

From the Providence Journal:

“I think we’ve got to find a way to play better football for 60 minutes, in all phases, and everyone has got to focus on what they need to do better. I think that’s the most important thing: being mentally tough to overcome adversity,” Brady said. “When things don’t go your way, you have to fight back. That’s a challenge for all of us. I think at times we do, and at times I don’t think we fight very hard.

“We have leads in the second half and leads in the fourth quarter and we’re just not closing the game out when we have the opportunity to.”

Not that I disagree with him, but this is coming from the man who complained to a ref when a member of the Ravens’ defense blew on his knee.

There’s something fundamentally lacking with the way the Patriots play on the road. In their heyday, the Pats would jump out to a big lead and then step on their opponents’ throats. But now they keep their opponents in the game throughout by playing poor defense and turning the ball over offensively.

On Sunday, Brady’s interception in the end zone late in the fourth quarter killed them. But the Dolphins still had to march up the field in order to score, which they did. Whether it’s a lack of toughness or not, the Patriots just aren’t getting it done on the road and that’s a troubling sign with the playoffs looming.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

Dolphins’ Porter says Brady has separate rules

Anthony Stalter — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 19:15:21 +0000

In a recent interview with NFL Network’s Rich Eisen, Dolphins’ linebacker Jerry Porter said that Tom Brady has an extra advantage every week because he has his own set of rules.

From ESPN.com:

“No question,” said Porter, the Miami Dolphins’ quotable linebacker, who meets Brady’s New England Patriots on Sunday. “When a guy can tell a ref when to throw a flag, and he gets it, he’s got his own rules. They made the rule that you don’t go at the legs for Tom, so when he feels that someone is going at his legs, he just points to the ref and he gets a flag. So I can honestly say that he gets his own rules.”

Earlier this week, Porter said he has a “natural hate” for the Patriots, even bringing up the infamous spying charges leveled against New England from the 2007 season. The Patriots were fined $250,000 plus a No. 1 draft pick, and head coach Bill Belichick was fined $500,000 for videotaping signals from New York Jets coaches from the sidelines.

“I still don’t care for New England,” Porter said. “The hate’s been there for a while, especially after all the cheating they did back in the day.

… They can sweep it under the rug if they want to, but just like anybody else that’s cheating that gets caught, you put an asterisk by it. But nobody puts an asterisk by those championships.”

Porter has opened his mouth so many times about opposing teams and players that there is no shock value in what he said above. And actually, I agree with him that Brady is protected like a China doll – as our most quarterbacks in the NFL.

Some of the penalties levied on defenders this year from hits on quarterbacks have been ridiculous, both in the pros and on the college level. It’s getting to the point now where quarterbacks should just wear flags. It’s one thing if the defender clearly took a shot at a quarterback after the ball was released. But it’s quite another when a defender is going all out and the refs expect him to stop in midair to avoid hitting the quarterback.

I’m with Porter on this one.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

Bang! Cartoon: Skirting Issues

Anthony Stalter — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:45:21 +0000

In their latest ‘toon, Bang! Cartoons tackles the ever-growing issue the NFL has with trying to protect its quarterbacks, namely the Patriots’ Tom Brady.

Tom Brady’s importance to the Patriots being downplayed

Anthony Stalter — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 03:38:02 +0000

It was amazing to watch the Patriots play the Chargers on Sunday night. New England is a completely different team without Tom Brady under center. And while that’s not an earth-shattering revelation, it’s something that shouldn’t be downplayed as much as it has at this point in the season.

This was a team that went 16-0 last year and outside of a few close calls, it steamrolled opponents on a weekly basis. Had they beaten the Giants in the Super Bowl, an argument could have been made that the 2007 New England Patriots were the greatest team in NFL history.

But as evidence by San Diego’s 30-10 rout on Sunday night, the Patriots are falling incredibly fast from their high perch. Even at 3-2, they’re not true postseason contenders. Not with Matt Cassel under center. And that’s not a knock on Cassel per se – it’s just reality. He’s an inexperienced player trying to lead an experienced team that is so used to having their quarterback know where he’s going to throw on every play and relying on him to make plays when things go haywire.

Without Brady, teams don’t fear the Patriots like they did last year. They don’t respect they’re swagger anymore and with each loss, you know Randy Moss is itching closer and closer to tanking it. It appears that not even Bill Belichick can save this team and it’s hard to hold that against him considering he doesn’t have his quarterback.

New England’s players and coaches have done a nice job trying to convince everybody that they’re fine without Brady – that they can win just as they did last year. But with Denver, Indianapolis, Buffalo and the Jets coming up over the next month and a half, the Patriots have a tough road to stay in the playoff hunt. Save for a Matt Cassel breakout performance, this team is in major trouble. And it’s amazing how fast a team can fall from grace after losing just one player. Even if that player is Tom Brady.

Irrelevant side note that means nothing: It was funny to hear Al Michaels essentially make a reference to gambling at the end of the game. The Patriots called a timeout so that they could run one more play in the red zone with two seconds remaining and while the game was already in the books with the Chargers up 30-10, Michaels noted that, “there are a few people very interested in this play here.”

Michaels said that because the over/under on the game was 45. Had the Patriots scored a touchdown, the total would have gone over. The only reason why his comments were interesting because the media is usually so hush-hush about the world of gambling. Maybe Al had some T.J. Duckett’s riding on the under? Al…you dog you.