In today's (1/1/07) Boston Globe... "We're back in the AFC East for our biggest challenge of the year," Belichick said. "Eric Mangini, his staff, and entire team are doing a phenomenal job. The Jets are playing extremely well, as we are well aware based on the last time we faced them."
This is beautiful. Here we are, with nothing to lose. ALL the pressure is on Belichick and the Patriots. I don't even know how he'd respond losing to Mangenius. You're damn sure he's worrying about this game more than an Jet-Patriot game before.
I hope this isn't the focus this week... Bill vs Eric... I get it... Bill's a dick...Everyone knows he's a dick... and yeah, I'll be so sweet if we knock his team out of the playoffs, I just hope that story doesn't take away from the story of the awesome year the Jets had...
Unfortunately that is the way of the media is going to run with it. Do yourself a favor, do not read any newspapers or watch any sort of pregame shows before the game. Turn on the game at 12:59 PM on 1/7 and enjoy the game.
It was always suprising and unlike BB to act that way toward EM. It was a strategic flaw that BB let his emotions dictate is policy instead of his usual intellignet logic. By spiting EM, he simply gave EM and the Jets additioal motivation to beat him. By this post he has obviously learned his lesson. Look for him to heap praise on EM and the Jets from here on out.
Very true. Now when he gets asked about EM all week, all he has to say is look at my quote earlier in the week.
>>EXACTLY! That's my take as well. The HC of the NEP mentioned the "M"-word and praised him because he wants to preempt it as a motivational tool for the Jets players. He has to know that there would be a drumbeat from the media to get him to utter The Penguin's name throughout the whole week, the more he would resist saying Mangini's name, the more the media heat and hype would build around the game, but more importantly, the more the Jets players as a team would feel disrespected by Belichick. To use a fight analogy, it would the Jets playing as Ali as he beat Ernie Terrell while demanding of Terrell "What's my name?" after Terrell insisted on referring to him as Cassius Clay.
I don't think the I was a douche now I'll be nice method, if that's what he's doing, would have any affect on Mangini... I think Belli knows him well enough to know that... I really think he doesn't want to give the Jets any kind of added emotional boost they could use to motivate themselves to play harder...ats_suck:
All I can do is add my voice to the chorus that BB is way too smart to make the same mistake twice. He tried the humiliation route before, and it made him look ridiculous and was a complete failure. He is taking that completely off the table for this game from the first minute, which is the only sensible thing to do. Expect a gigantic lovefest from Foxboro until the opening whistle.
Yeah, although I think he's got a huge job ahead of him with focusing his team this week. If he had continued to ignore Mangini he'd have had trouble selling the underdog Jets as dangerous to his team. Now he has the reverse problem, which is that he's got to convince the Pats that the Jets are just a challenging opponent. The psychology of getting beat at home last time is going to be at play here. For the record: Going back to 2002 when wildcard teams from the same division meet in the playoffs the road team is 3-1.
Can't say I'm surprised he finally came to his senses and realized this was an unnecessary distraction, but nothing has substantially changed. Belichick still despises Mangini. Belichick is still a home wrecking, anti-social piece of shit. The sky is still blue.
