Author Archives: @stevea1127

About @stevea1127

I'm 25 from Taunton Ma and have a passion for sports especially Boston. My strong sports are MLB and the NFL. I'm hoping to get a job in sports writing someday.

Jacob Hollister out a few weeks with chest Injury

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Jacob Hollister got injured at practice this week

After last week’s terrible defeat against the Jacksonville Jaguars, it was certain that the Patriots had to make adjustments. The Patriots travel to Detroit to take on the Lions in Week 3. The Patriots signed Josh Gordon at the beginning of the week to help with the weak receiving core.  Then, Rob Gronkowski who was shut down against the Jaguars was put on the injury report on Wednesday after practice with a minor Ankle injury. However, he would be off the injury report by Friday and will be ready to go on Sunday night. As for Jacob Hollister, I was told Thursday night that he was being transported to Mass General. Then it came out on Friday, he was out because of a chest injury which happened at a practice according to Mike Reiss of ESPN Boston.

Hollister will be out a few weeks

Hollister went to the Bringham and Women’s health center around 2:00 on Thursday afternoon. He was there for a few hours before they would then transport him to Mass General for further testing. The injury had to occur between obviously during the Wednesday practice or the Thursday practice. Hollister caught three passes for 35 yards in the week 2 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. With Gronkowski being on the injury report at the time, there was a question if it would strictly be Brady and newly acquired Josh Gordon show on Sunday night. But a sigh of relief came when Gronkowski was off the injury report by Friday.

It’s not known if Hollister needed surgery at Mass General or not. The only thing that has come out is he has a chest injury which will sideline him for a few weeks. It would only be a greater loss if obviously Gronkowski was hurt bad and couldn’t play. Gronkowski has missed some time these last few seasons because he gets hurt a lot.

Bill Belichick and Tom Brady will always put the team first

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There is no I in Team

Bill Belichick and Tom Brady have been on the same team for a long time. We should be grateful at how many championships the Patriots have brought the city. Since 2001, the city of Boston has won 10 championships not many states can say that. For Belichick and Brady, they always will put the team first no matter what differences they may have. Brady has taken lots of pay cuts, so the Patriots can spend money on other high-end talents. Also, Belichick will make moves that he may not agree with. But he does what’s best for the team for example trading Jimmy Garoppolo.

Brady and Belichick have made sacrifices

So this latest book coming out is just another version of the drama that we’ve already known about. As long as Brady and Belichick are here, they are going to do what’s best to bring Super Bowls to New England every season. They may not get along all the time but they share the same goals. All this background noise is really never going to take away from what they do the best. They are both great at handling distractions and dealing with the media.

For example, people want to paint a picture of Belichick and Brady as this couple who wants to get divorced or break up. So say two people had a baby but didn’t get along that well. They would do what’s best for the child, so they may form a relationship and stay together even though they have differences. It is the same with the Patriots. The whole team is Belichick’s and Brady’s child. They’ve stayed together for this long because that’s what’s best for the team even though they have differences. If you want the team to succeed, you have to make sacrifices or it may fall apart.

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The Brady-Belichick drama sounds like a broken record

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Brady and Belichick don’t play golf together, but they share the same goals about winning

Cue the ‘fake news’ from people after they read reports of Brady wanting to leave the Patriots in March. It’s all based on a new book about “Belichick: The Making of The Greatest Football Coach of All Time.” This was written by Ian O’Connor after the 2017 season. All the drama surrounding these two is really old news at this point. Also, Brady said he wants to play until 45; however, he never said he’d finish his career in New England. If it was up to owner Robert Kraft, Brady would retire as a Patriot. I still believe Belichick walks at the end of the season, and Josh McDaniels will take over. If that happens, Brady will be a Patriots until the age of 45.

Belichick will probably retire at the end of the season

As for this new book on Belichick, a few quotes really stuck out from people with knowledge of the Brady and Belichick relationship. They told Ian  O’Connor that Brady would divorce Belichick. “If you’re married 18 years to a grouchy person who gets under your skin and never compliments you, after a while, you want to divorce him. Tom knows Bill is the best coach in the league, but he’s had enough of him. If Tom could, I think he would divorce him.” Belichick himself did not do an interview for the book.

Brady was uncertain if he wanted to be a Patriot as of late March. However, he couldn’t ask for a trade because the fans of New England would be irate and also Kraft. They just had traded Jimmy Garoppolo and if Brady then asked to be traded, he would never live it down. All the talk about Brady and Belichick is really starting to sound like a broken record. By now we get it, they hate each other but share the same goals. Now Belichick stripped the receiving core this year to make it harder for Brady. Now the Patriots got Josh Gordon, who is a headache off the field, but hopefully, he’s productive on the field.

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Tom Brady Appears Questionable About Josh Gordon

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Tom Brady speaks about Josh Gordon

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady seems questionable about the trade the Patriots made for Josh Gordon. Josh Gordon has had his troubles on and off the field. Gordon told GQ in November that his ritual before and after games was drinking, smoking, and partying.

“We would stay at the team hotel and then players are allowed to go back home, get what they need, and then go to the game. So I’d leave the hotel early morning, go home, eat breakfast, do my little ritual, whatever it may be, some weed, some alcohol, and then go to the game. And then, I’d definitely be partying after every game, win or lose. Every game.”

Brady hasn’t had a big name receiver since Randy Moss

Tom Brady hasn’t really had a deep threat since Randy Moss. Moss was different because he never was into hard drugs off the field or in trouble with the law. Brady told Westwood One yesterday

“I hate to make projections and expectations, That’s not fair. I’ve never met Josh, personally — just like I hadn’t met some of the guys who have come in the last couple of weeks. We’ll see how it goes this week. Hopefully, he can work hard, put the team first, and end up helping us in any role that he can find for himself on the team.”

It doesn’t seem too promising, but Brady realizes at this point the Patriots are desperate and needed to do something at the position.

I can see why Brady would be questionable about the move. Gordon could be just like Chad Ochocinco or have a great season as Moss did. Belichick doesn’t put up with the distractions or the nonsense, so if Gordon does miss a meeting you can expect to see Gordon off the team quickly. Gordon is quick and can get open which is what the Patriots need especially with Edelman out until October.

Bill Belichick Still Won’t Talk About Josh Gordon

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Bill Belichick Silent on Josh Gordon

The Patriots signed Josh Gordon, however, Belichick won’t talk about it. It’s not even known if Gordon is even in Foxborough yet for his physical. With Gordon’s very bad history of staying in the league due to his substance abuse issues, Belichick could be smart and not announce the acquisition yet. Again, Gordon is a higher risk than Randy Moss with off-field issues with substance abuse. New England isn’t the Cleveland Browns- they actually care about winning here.

Gordon Has Played in 41 Games and Caught 16 Touchdowns in His Career

Bringing in troubled players off the field has been a recipe for Belichick. However, is Gordon the worst out of the bunch? Let’s look at Corey Dillion, who had his troubles with the law from DUI’s to domestic violence arrests. In three years with the Patriots he rushed for 3,180 yards and 37 touchdowns. Albert Haynesworth didn’t have the work ethic on the field to keep up with the Patriots. His off-field issues were not as bad as substance abuse, but he did owe lots of child support. Chad Ochocinco couldn’t get the Patriots offense at all, which could be a concern for Gordon down the road.

As for Belichick’s conference call this morning he’s playing it smart. What if something happens and he fails his physical. Now Gordon can’t play on Sunday and could get released before he even steps onto the field. It probably is also the reason why Brady was a little skeptical of the troubled wide receiver too. Tomorrow is practice and Belichick will meet the media. By then Gordon should’ve already had his physical all set and ready to practice with his teammates. Also, the press conference will be a must watch. Again, the Browns aren’t the Patriots. One mess up and you’re gone.

Brady Having Trouble Trusting His Receivers

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Brady Really Needs a Reliable Receiver

Brady is really struggling to connect with this wide receiving group, and it really showed in New England’s Week 2 loss to Jacksonville. With Kenny Britt coming back to work out for the Patriots today is a sign the Patriots are desperate at the position. It’s really just been screenplays and handoffs to the running backs for the last two weeks. Chris Hogan has been a complete disappointment so far. You would think with Edelman out he would’ve stepped it up. This receiving group might be even worse than the 2006 receiving group. Tom Brady can’t even throw the ball downfield unless it’s to Gronkowski, who was silent in the game.

Brady Has a Right to Be Frustrated

Tom Brady was livid on the bench in the first half of the game. Josh McDaniels was chewing out the offense also. They would then go down the field and just settle for three points to make it 14-3. I guess you can blame Belichick for giving Brady terrible receivers to work with besides Edelman. But also there is no one better at doing more with less than Brady. However, the guys he’s throwing to need to be able to catch and have a good connection with Brady on the field. In the first half, Brady was 12/18 for 107 yards with no touchdowns and zero interceptions.

At the end of the first half of Brady only connected with two receivers: Chris Hogan and Phillip Dorsett. Altogether it was four receptions for 26 yards. That isn’t good enough because Blake Bortles was looking like an NFL MVP in the first half also tearing up the Patriots defense. Overall if Brady can’t connect with this receiving group then this is going to be a long season. Finally Belichick is giving Tom Brady someone decent to throw to with Josh Gordon now a Patriot.

No Positive’s Taken from This Game

If Edelman comes back and gets hurt this offense is really screwed. You can’t rely on Gronkowski and your running backs to win you games. You need reliable receivers that Brady can trust. Not some no-name first round picks from the Cleveland Browns who will be cut in a week. They should’ve kept Danny Amendola. At least he knew the offense, and Brady wouldn’t put Amendola in a spot where he could actually catch it and not get hurt. But Belichick wants Brady to win more with less and not spend money. The offense has a lot of work to do. Thank God the Patriots play the terrible Lions next week.

As for NFL Coaches It’s Belichick and Everybody Else

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Belichick Is the Best Head Coach in the NFL

Bill Belichick is by far the best coach in the NFL, and it’s not even close. The reason for that is simple it’s because he drafted a quarterback in 2000 who has brought him five championships since. Most of Belichick’s assistants have gone onto becoming head coaches themselves. That question is why? My answer is because they either can’t draft a quarterback, or they try to act like Belichick when they haven’t won anything as a head coach.

There’s Nobody Close

The debacle on Monday Night Football between the Lions and the Jets was a disaster waiting to happen. Matt Patricia lost that game before it even started. All these reports coming out that he’s being too tough are prime examples of him trying to be like Belichick. Also, he has a quarterback in Matthew Stafford who isn’t a Tom Brady quarterback. Let’s go to Josh McDaniels, who is also failed as a head coach because he was trying to be like Belichick and drafted Tim Tebow, who isn’t even close to Tom Brady.

The advice to coaches around the league should be don’t be like Belichick because you don’t have a quarterback good as Brady is. Belichick has earned the right to be tough because he has the championships to back it up. Also a big huge thank you to the greatest quarterback of all time. Jon Gruden is now coaching the Raiders and because he doesn’t have a Tom Brady quarterback in Derek Carr, expect the Raiders to not be good this season. Now Jimmy Garoppolo might be a different story. No, he’s not Tom Brady, but he could be a decent quarterback and win championships. But overall it’s Belichick, Brady and the Patriots, and then everybody else until Brady and Belichick are out of New England.

The Pros and Cons of Brady’s Performance on Sunday

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Brady’s Performance on Sunday

Tom Brady looked sharp over the win against the Houston Texans. At the beginning of the game, it was just him and Gronkowski connecting on the field. All the skipping of offseason workouts for Brady did it mean anything? Or does were the Texans a bad example of a team? Brady did his own thing during the offseason working out his way. He gets to do that he’s the greatest of all time and has earned that right. What we saw Sunday is something we’ve seen Brady do find his main target and try to connect with them.

One pro from the game was Brady to Gronkowski. They both connected really well, all Brady has to do is throw it up there and Gronkowski finds a way to haul it in. Without Gronkowski it’s a little more difficult I think to maybe get the ball to the other receivers. Phillip Dorsett had himself a game too, so did Patterson and James White. Even Devlin had himself a game. My one con from the game was Chris Hogan Brady couldn’t connect with Hogan at all. He missed Hogan twice down the field with the long ball.

Brady To Gronk Was Piece Of Cake

Brady admitted after the game there are things to improve on. For example, leaving some points on the field. Patterson was really only a factor on some screen plays and didn’t go over into the middle of the field like Gronkowski did. Another pro for Brady was his calmness in the pocket looking for the open receiver, tight end, and running back. Without Gronkowski, the drive before halftime would not have gotten us points. My last con would be connecting with Patterson downfield. I think maybe they should try that this week and use it next week in Jacksonville. Also, Brady can’t throw it to Hogan when he’s tripled covered. Gronkowski or Edelman can catch that, but Hogan is neither one of those players.  Overall, I give Brady’s performance a B+ considering all the drama and talk all offseason. Brady is 41 and passed for 277 yards and three touchdowns with only one interception on a tipped ball.

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Patriots in general not impressed with the win today

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Patriots Get The Win On Opening Day

It felt like a fall day in Foxborough today when the Patriots hosted the Houston Texans. Tom Brady connected with Rob Gronkowski a lot today. Gronkowski really had himself a day catching seven passes for 123 yards and one touchdown to put the Patriots on the board first. After the game, however, Brady said “We’ve got to do a lot better than that, I don’t think we played anywhere near what our capabilities are. All of us probably look at the game and realize we could have done a lot of things differently.” As a team, the Patriots committed three turnovers on Sunday, two on the offense and one on special teams. Brady threw for 277 yards on the day.

The team thinks they can play better

Brady continued saying “It’s a good win, obviously, but we’ve got to do a lot better, You’ve got to coach hard and you’ve got to correct guys, and you’ve got to correct yourself and have high expectations for yourself. And that’s how you have high expectations for the team.” In my opinion, Brady’s best drive of the day was just before halftime when Brady led the offense down the field and scored to make it 21-6 Patriots at halftime.

Bill Belichick also spoke after the game and thought it was a good win. “Obviously, some things we need to improve on, clean up on. But that’s the way it always is in a game like this. Houston’s tough. We expected it to go all 60 minutes, like it did, and come down to the final play. That’s pretty much what we’ve got.” Belichick said. Considering the loss of Edelman and Amendola, the offense didn’t do too bad. Phillip Dorsett played well catching seven passes for 66 yards and a touchdown. James White also had a solid game and scored a touchdown as well. Even Cordarrelle Patterson played well and gained 19 yards on a screen pass. Rex Burkhead who rushed for 64 yards and James Devlin caught four passes for 22 yards was a big part of the offense today too.

Next week, the Patriots travel to Jacksonville to play the Jaguars. Gronkowski will have a great game and make Jalen Ramsey eat his words. The Patriots do their talking on the field while Ramsey does his talking during media sessions. Next Sunday should be a great game.

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Is Bill Belichick retiring sooner rather than later?

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Bill Belichick’s Days Numbered Has Patriots Head Coach

Via USA Today

I wrote in April that Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was retiring after this season. This was after Josh McDaniels came back to be the offensive coordinator. In April, it was all about whether or not Rob Gronkowski or Tom Brady would be coming back for the 2018 season. After Gronkowski’s dirt bike press conference, there was a meeting with Belichick, Gronkowski, and his agent Drew Rosenhaus. Gronkowski would then post a video that he would be committed to the 2018 NFL season.

With Josh McDaniels coming back, I said the Belichick would be retiring at the end of the season. It was based on the events of last year and not being able to do things he wanted to do. For example, the trade of Jimmy Garoppolo for a 41-year-old quarterback. The only difference is Brady is playing at MVP level. The right decision in Kraft’s eyes and Belichick’s was to trade him.

What Does The Extension For Josh McDaniels Mean?

With this new five year extension for Josh McDaniels as reported by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport yesterday, you don’t pay an offensive coordinator like a head coach unless you see that coordinator becoming the next head coach in my opinion. It’s not known how many years Belichick wants to coach. When I went to training camp this summer for Boston Sports Extra, I was told that if Belichick wants to retire he’s doing a great job hiding it. Again, the Patriots do the best at handling distractions.

I still believe Belichick is done at the end of this season. When McDaniels came back, he said he needed to know what his situation was going to be going forward. Once he found out Belichick was going to be on his way out quietly, McDaniels said yes to coming back and coaching his favorite quarterback. Say McDaniels was coaching the Colts, what would Brady’s reaction be? Brady, of course, had a say in bringing Josh McDaniels back like it was reported.

Belichick has accomplished a lot along with Tom Brady. Brady has stated he wants to play five more years. However, Belichick has not stated he wants to coach five more years. Belichick did state in 2009 that he would be coaching into his 70s. That’s not too far off. Don’t be surprised if you just see the breaking news one day that Belichick is retiring as head coach of the Patriots. There will be no season long going away party. It will come at the end of the season when people least expect it.

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