LKelley67

excellent article-
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200....ap/index.html

lines that stood out to me about the pats:
Unselfish players are part of the profile developed by Belichick and Pioli, who are given total personnel freedom by owner Robert Kraft -- another key to a winning franchise. (See Jerry Jones in Dallas and Daniel Snyder in Washington for the other side.)
Every year, New England scouts approximately 4,000 college players. But the "A" list is down to around 100 on draft day, with players judged on leadership, selflessness and the ability to fit the team's unusual schemes as much as on athletic ability.
seems this front office here is enamored with athleticism over "players" imo.

LKelley67

another excellent article to understand the cap, it\'s impact, and the evolution of the league-

http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/inde...6867318950.xml

LKelley67

about the pats here. i truly believe thier success has come by being the first team to truly manage the cap in an ongoing manner.

http://patriots.bostonherald.com/pat...35&format=text

Tobias-Reiper

..more than managing the cap, I think it is the dual mentality that \"we are a team\", yet \"no one is indispensable\", as it was shown with the Lawyer Milloy situation. Cap\'s too high? Snip. Someone else can play the position.

... it is also the mentality that you are there to play football and that the team wins or loses the game... I\'ve never head a Patriot complain about refs (well, maybe that\'s because they get all the calls ), or boos, or weather, etc...

LKelley67

the management are those \"snips\". ty law, one of the top cbs in the game? yup. gone next year? in all probability. it does indeed take gamers and team players to take a step down in pay than what they could get elsewhere. they have found the right character guys to accomplish this. but why? to be a part of a winning tradition. the sad state of so many professional athlete prima donnas is that they have been coddled since high school and college and have little appreciation for team concepts. many are gifted athletic freaks of nature that get by solely on that. so when you give a 22yr old from rural geogia a $19mil deal ($9mil so far) you better be absolutely sure of your investment. talent and performance can vary but character and heart should still be there. when not, quitting or just looking for the lunch line has an overall demoralizing effect to the team as much or more than lost performance on the field.

forgive the rant :casstet: