Sort of reminds me how we beat Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh to go to the 2004 AFC finals doesn't it?:smile: If you hang around the game gets crazy all the time. When you have the superior team like the Chargers do, you have to put teams away, you can't let them hang around. The Pats were lucky as hell, but the Chargers played nervous and stupid all game and allowed the Pats to hang around. That part wasn't luck that was a veteran team that was outmanned keeping their cool vs a team with great talent and no clue.
Geez....I know there's "colors" you just don't wear but when there's a chance of finally achieving your career-long(in Vinny's case..REAL LONG) goal, you do whatever it takes to attain it...even if it means having to practically sleep with the enemy. Let me say this too : No matter what happens in the coming weeks, I'll bet that should Vinny choose to Retire a Jet even after possibly(and it's not a slam dunk that it will happen) getting his ring courtesy of the Patsies, not one Jet fan will boo him during that particular ceremony. Why? 'Cause Unlike the Patsie fans, JETS FANS HAVE GOT CLASS...RIGHT? RIGHT???? OF COURSE WE DO. REMEMBER THAT! :up:
Then you'll be the only one who will do that and everyone will look at you in the crowd and go "WTF are you booing for? Why are you acting like some damn Patriot fan? You've got more class than that!!"
Gimmie a break. Vinny should be booed and he wouldn't be the only one. VINNY has got to show more class than signing with the Patriots, what a total joke. How can you even defend him?
I would be very disappointed if the organization let Vinny retire as a Jet. Granted he took the team on a great ride for a few years, but he really didn't play here long enough, retired, unretired to the Jets main rival and then played against the Jets in the playoffs.
The guy had one good season for us....how has he suddenly become this important icon in Jets history? This isn't exactly Wade Boggs going to the Yankees fellas...calm down.
No - I'll boo right along with him. What good does a ring mean if you are the 3rd string QB and were picked up in week 14 or whatever? What has he contributed as a player to earn "his ring?" If he wanted a ring so badly, why didn't he go ask Parcells or someone to coach? But to go to the Pats and then whoop it up with them - I'm sorry but it makes me ill. I have lost all respect for him. I know fans think differently than players, but I'm a fan and I have that right. I want no part of a Testaverde day at a Jet game now and I wasn't a big fan of one for him anyway before this. This just ices is. He is sleeping with the enemy and buddying up to BB. Nuff said.
The guy has played for 6 teams....3 of them before the Jets. What makes you think the Jets have some special hold on him? This isn't Joe Namath or Al Toon...it's a guy that came to the Jets, had one great season, got injured and left. If Pennington were to sign with the Patriots or Dolphins in a few years...then I could understand this anger...but seriously...Testaverde is not the face of this franchise.
--The Patriots didn't (and actually never) beat themselves in playoffs games, which deserves something. They are too well coached and too smart of a team on the field to beat themselves. You could look at the fumble on the interception in a number of ways. What if Troy Brown didn't play defense; I doubt he would have stripped the ball. Troy Brown plays defense as a part of Belichick's gameplan. Troy Brown, as a result, knew what he had to do and how to do it. --They also made 3 --Again, these are mistakes that smart teams like the Patriots will not make, especially in the playoffs. Something has to be said for knowing how not to beat yourself. --The refs have let a lot of stuff slide in this entire postseason with all teams. They don't want games decided by yellow. And, as Jet fans I'm sure you appreciated it, but the Patriots, mainly Samuel, got extremely ripped off last postseason against Denver with phantom pass interference calls that actually sparked controversy over weather you should have the ability to challenge penalites. --No flag because there was no personal foul. Rivers a) acted and b) was hit by a Patriots player who was pushed by a Chargers Olineman. --This game was won and lost by Belichick's mind. He's a genious. This game was decided by mistakes that the Chargers made; mistakes that you will never see a Patriots team make under Bill Belichick. He coaches them not to make mistakes. The defensive gameplan was very solid even though LT had a good game. They pressured Rivers all game and good presence in the secondary. Plus the Chargers had good field position all game, and the Pats had anything but. Coaching is the only thing that allows you to win when there is such a drastic difference in starting field position. --Patriots get lucky because other teams make stupid mistakes that they themselves don't make and don't have the coaching that they have. If you wanna call that luck...
The Patriots exemplify the saying...Luck is where preparation meets opportunity. I agree with a lot of your post, but think you go a little overboard at times. - Belichick never would have had Brown playing CB if he could have helped it. - The PI call in Denver was probably the first bit of officiating to go against the Pats in the post-season if a few years. In general, the Pats have gotten more than the majority of questionable calls to go their way during their dynasty. However, officiating is not the reason they are going to their 4th AFC title game in 6 seasons. - While I agree Rivers acted, he was hit in the helmet which should have been an automatic call. Not that it woudn't have been a cheap call, but the officials have been calling QB helmet contact penalties by the letter of the law all season, and for much less. - your last bullet point is spot-on
I'm not to that degree, I think it was more a matter of Vinny being back in the game vs being out of the game. Not a tough choice, a lot of these guys have a hard time giving it up. But I'm in total agreement with you about the ring, that's just nonsense. If fulfills nothing for his career if he stands by and watches Brady lead them to another one. One thing I respected most about Patrick Ewing (and there are many), when he bounced around at the end of his career, he didn't go and back up Shaq to win a token ring. He understood what it means to win one as opposed to get one. Better off to have none.
I guess Brady's three interceptions were part of Belichick's grand genius of a game plan? I guess he drew up that 4th down pick just the way it played out? He told Brady to throw the pick and Brown to strip the ball? If McCree knocks the ball down or catches it and falls down, its a steady dose of LT and game over and then we'd all be talking about how bad Brady was and how Schotty outcoached Belichick by keeping Brady in check all day. I agree Belichick has a great football mind, but you are not labeled a genius simply because the players on the other side of the field are idiots or that the ball bounces a certain way in your favor. That is what happened yesterday. I saw nothing impressive in the Pats other than they got second chances on drives caused by stupid plays by the Chargers and those second chances - after the play penalties and fumbled interceptions that should have been fall downs and a failure to cover a fumbled punt rather than trying to pick it all led to 14 Patriot points. Without those three awful plays, which had nothing to do with Belichick or Brady, the Pats lose 21-10.
I agree with this. I don't begrudge Testaverde going to the Pats or any other team. Of course, if he never plays a significant minute for the Pats this year, and they win the SB, he should take the ring and stick it in a box somewhere, since it will be completely meaningless. By the same token, I don't get the whole "retire as a Jet" and have a ceremony thing. What exactly has Testaverde done to care about that? He had a great 1998, but other than that year he had 48 TDs and 51 INTs in 51 games as a Jet. He had a great 1996, too, but I don't see anyone suggesting he "retire as a Raven." I couldn't care less if he retires as a Jet or not, and I can't see the slightest reason to have a ceremony honoring him either way.
A "Token" ring??? Are you referring to Alonzo Mourning now? LOL. 'cause I assure you that Shaq seemed to be the one who acted like the backup to Mourning last year..... but we're getting off-topic here....So you and everyone here will vociferously boo Vinny if this(what I said before) occurs? Not that Jets Management would even do it which makes all this moot but somehow I doubt every fan in the stadium would boo him. I mean.....If only to just be POLITE about it and all AND TO SHOW SOME CLASS and not stoop to RAIDER/EAGLE/PATRIOT-FAN level. I somehow foresee that happening and the worst-case scenario would be a MIXED reaction..... However, I'm curious.....Let's Say the Pats get knocked out of the Postseason and Vinny doesn't get a ring....but yet he wants to retire a Jet....Do you still boo him?
It's not only that. The guy was not good after the 1998 season. He was okay in 2000, adequate at best in 2001 (I contend Testaverde's consistent mediocre play, particularly the key 12-2 game, cost the Jets the division title that year and helped propel the Patriots to their first Super Bowl win), and bad after that. Why should the Jets give Testaverde one of those ceremonial contracts and hold a press conference for the guy? Have the Jets stooped this low to honor mediocrity? It would be embarrassing.
I agree...... the Colt's D is playing "light's out" right now and as much as I would hate to see Peyton got to a Super Bowl. It is the lessor of the 2 evils. Wouldn't be great if it came down to a Vinatieri field goal for the win?
--Good points. I just don't think there should have been a yellow flag when Rivers fell. A) He acted and B) He was bumped by a Patriot's player who was pushed by an Olineman right into him. You can't let the game be decided by that...
