I’ve got the day off today, (it’s election day!) but didn’t want to be accused of not posting the report cards after a Patriots loss, as I was last week.

Making The Grades – Giants at Patriots – Jeremy Gottlieb on Patriots Daily is his usual brutally honest self.

Patriots Report Card – Ron Borges is the happiest he’s been in years.

Patriots Report Card: Eli Manning Out-Bradys Tom Brady While Pats Defense Collapses in Loss to Giants – Jeff Howe says that the Patriots have some work to do.

Patriots Report Card: Blame Brady for loss to Giants – Kirk Minihane says this one is on Tom Brady, and Brady alone.

Hector Longo’s Two-minute Drill – The E-T writer does his normal hack job on Jerod Mayo, and chides Pat Chung for “begging out” on the final drive because he had an “ow-ey.” He also wistfully longs for Buddy Farnham to be part of the secondary.

ESPNBoston Report Card – Special Teams is the big goat here.

Patriots report card Game 8 – Submit your own grades on Boston.com.

Bruins cut to chase – Fluto Shinzawa has the details of the Bruins 6-2 win over the Islanders last night. More on the game from Douglas Flynn | Steve Conroy | CSNNE.com

Maddux withdraws as Sox candidate, cites family reasons – Sean McAdam reports on Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux declining to interview with the Red Sox. Gordon Edes says that Maddux has everything the Sox want – except a desire to be here.

 

Published by Bruce Allen

Automattician.

29 thoughts on “Fading Patriots Grade Out Poorly”

  1. If Penn State had not delivered D&C the most perfect story for their self righteous indignation wheelhouse, would we have been subject to non stop Dr. Conrad Murry conviction talk radio this morning?

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    1. It was mornings like this morning that I'm glad I have my MP3 player in the car. Talk about not knowing your audience. College football isn't big around here…Most people don't know or care about Penn State. Yes, the scandal is horrible but I'm sure most people, like me, would rather talk about the suckitude of the Pats.

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    2. To their credit, Mike and Mike have gone non-stop about it today, as well. I'm not sure how much T+R were spending on it. Until JoePa/Spanier step down, it's gonna continue like this.

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      1. I have come to Mike Felger's position on this. Paterno should not be allowed to control his departure and "retire" at the end of the season. He should be led out of his office in Happy Valley in hand cuffs. The university should fire him. He should be disgraced. I am at the point where if I hear anyone in the media defending him and his actions I get irate. Anyone who thinks a college football legacy is more important than the mental and physical health of 10 to 12 year old children seriously has their priorities out of whack. 1000 people turned up outside of Joe Pat's house last night to voice their support for him. Can we arrest all of those idiots also?

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        1. I don't understand why people are choosing to focus on Paterno. If Paterno's AD and the VP in charge of Campus Security had, you know, DONE THEIR JOBS, Paterno would be lauded for courageously turning in his friend for the crimes he had heinously committed.

          But THEY didn't do their jobs. I totally agree that Paterno could have, and should have, done more. And I agree that this is a Grady Little moment: whether or not Paterno acted properly, he's gotta go. But take HIM away in handcuffs, when he's the only one who actually did something (albeit not enough) to try and stop this??? Maybe after the AD, the VP of Security, and the PSU President are lined up and shot — but not a second before. That's just ridiculous.

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          1. Dave:I don't see it that way. In 1998 when the first allegations came up something happened andJerry Sandusky “retired” as heir apparent at the age of 58. He no longer was officially employed by the university but he had an office in the sports complex. He still had keys and access to the building. I don't care who Paterno told. He was directly responsible for Sandusky having access. We can also argue if Paterno actually had superiors but that is an argument for a different thread. We will never know why Sandusky originally retired. My supposition is Paterno said to him it would not look good for the team if he were implicated as a pedophile. So Sandusky starts that “charity” and leaves the team. Joe P knew then. Nothing was actually done about the crime. If Paterno wanted resolution he was Joe Pat…there would have been a police investigation, an arrest and then closure. Paterno has always been more interested in his legacy than anything else. Heck he coached till he was 84 just to get the wins record. He should have retired 15 years ago. When the allegations resurfaced in 2000 (Janitors) and 2002 (Grad assistant) Paterno might have gone to his superiors…but I will bet the $8.15 in my pocket that he told them Jerry was a friend of his and for the good of the program all this needed to go way quietly. I strongly believe Paterno not only knew but worked to cover up the incidents out of fear that his reputation and legacy would be ruined. As an aside I am not sure Paterno did the right thing. Yes he reported the incident to his superior but a 10 year old was getting raped. He had a legal (I am sure you will correct me if I am wrong), moral, ethical, and human obligation to report this to the police, as well as stop Sandusky from doing this again. Instead he did nothing. I am finding it hard to believe two university employees with no relationship to Sandusky decided to cover this up on their own. Paterno had a 30 year relationship with the guy. Even a Penn State Grad could figure out who was calling those shots.Lastly, the AD and VP were taken out in handcuffs. The university president will not survive this and he will probably join them. Paterno should not be allowed to coach Saturday never mind retire at the end of this season. It is guys like Paterno who are deified, who think the rules and laws do not apply to them, who think they are entitled to “perks” that make me sick to my stomach. Fire him, then prosecute. He needs to be made an example.

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          2. If you have the time, and haven't done so already, I'd suggest reading the grand jury report. There is no evidence at all linking Sandusky's retirement to any accusations being brought up at that time (specifically, the 1998 shower incident). To the contrary, the report indicates that what prompted Sandusky's retirement was Paterno telling him point blank that he wasn't going to be the next coach at PSU, combined with the pending expiration of a generous buyout program to encourage early retirement of PSU staff. Also, the investigators of that incident didn't inform the athletic department or Paterno, per their testimony. Paterno had nothing to do with Sandusky's continued access to PSU facilities — that was a benefit negotiated with the HR people pursuant to his retirement package. The incident with the graduate assistant was in 2002 — that's the first instance where testimony indicated that Paterno was told about anything untoward happening. He met with the grad assistant, and after hearing his story, called the AD. The AD (Curley) and the security VP (Schultz) then met with the grad assistant, heard his story, and told him they would investigate. The AD called him a couple of weeks later and said that Sandusky's keys were taken away and the charity had been notified. And that was the end of that.

            There's questions as to what the grad assistant specifically told Paterno. Both Paterno and the grad assistant say that Paterno was not told the specifics of what the grad assistant saw. Paterno testified that the grad assistant said he saw "inappropriate contact", whereas the grad assistant testified that he told Paterno he saw "inappropriate sexual contact".

            But the AD and the VP's testimony was very different from the grad assistant's testimony with respect to their meeting — so different that the AD and the VP have been indicted for perjury. They testifed that the grad assistant said he saw "horsing around". The grad assistant testified that he specifically described the acts he witnessed.

            There's nothing — nothing — in the grand jury report that even begins to lead to the conclusion that Paterno participated in some kind of cover-up. On the other hand, there's massive implications that the AD and the VP actively covered up the crime. Yet everyone wants to rail against Paterno. I just don't get it.

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          3. Dave,The issue is whether you or you believe arguably the most powerful man at Penn State and maybe in all of Western PA was complicit in a cover up or you believe it happened around him. Do you honestly believe a severance deal was made with Sandusky that allowed him to stay around the team and keep an office int he building without Paterno knowing? Further do you honestly believe Paterno did not know about the 1998 or 2000 allegations? I think he did, I think he arranged the cover up, and I think others were willingly complicit because protecting Blue Football was more important to these people than the health and safety of 10 year old boys.

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          4. No, LTD — the issue is whether you believe that arguably the most powerful man in all of Pennsylvania (you're underestimating JoePa's stature) would and did risk his then 34-year coaching career and the entire program he basically built from the ground up in order to protect a guy who raped a 10-year-old in the shower.

            I can see why the AD and the security guy would have a strong motivation to cover it up — it was the only chance of avoiding multi-million dollar lawsuits against the state and the university that would absolutely, positively cost them their jobs.

            What did Paterno stand to gain? Say everything comes to light in 2002. The AD and the security guy go down — this happened on their watch, and the resources used were under their direct supervision and management. The victims all come out of the woodwork and sue Penn State, the charity, Sandusky, and anyone else they can attach to the suit. The Commonwealth of PA makes hefty payments. Do recruits stop coming to Penn State? Is the football program disbanded? NO! None of the revelations have anything to do with the football team, other than the fact that the criminal had access to PSU facilities because he was a longtime former coach. There weren't any football players procuring youths to be raped. Paterno didn't sit in a corner with a cigar while children were raped in front of him. Nothing touches the program at all.

            Why, under any circumstance, would Paterno have a motivation to cover this up?

            There's a vast gap between "Paterno should have done more" and "Paterno knew everything that was going on early on and didn't bother stopping it because he wanted to protect the program." And there's neither evidence nor logic to fill that gap.

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          5. Two theories on why Paterno covered this up.1) Sandusky knew about recruiting and other issues surrounding PSU's football program.2) Sandusky was Paterno's heir apparent until the 1998 incident. After that the relationship was strained but Paterno had a 30 year friendship with the guy and felt a warped sense of loyalty to the guy.I don't see Joe Pat being smart/savy enough to keep isolated from everything. I don't believe he did not know because we both agree he was the most powerful guy in PA, as such the only theory that makes sense is every action was taken to protect Paterno and the football program at the expense of the kids. In 2002, it took 10 days for the AD and VP to interview the grad assistant after Paterno “tells” them of the allegations. Why? They ALL had to make sure this would not blow back on Paterno. It then takes 3 more weeks for an investigation not run by the state police (PSU is a state institution the State Police should have investigated) to be initiated. The Grad assistant is promoted. The cover up is on like Donkey Kong.Paterno is complicit and guilty.

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          6. The police DID investigate the 1998 incident. (Technical note — I think it's still under the primary jurisdiction of the local police even though it's state property.) The DA didn't bring charges.

            I admit that your theories are definitely plausible. But I'm pretty sure they didn't happen. And here's why: you may be right about the extent to which various PSU officials would go out of their way to protect Paterno over a child rapist, but I guarantee that there's one group who couldn't give a rat's ass about protecting the program — the prosecutors in the AG's office in Harrisburg.

            Grand juries aren't subject to messy things like rules of evidence and discovery and defendant's rights, and they have plenary and extremely wide powers to obtain information. So I know that if there was even a hint of the sort of organized cover-up that you're suggesting, it would have been outed by the GJ. I mean, they dug up a bunch of janitor temps who saw Sandusky abusing kids in the locker room — guys who couldn't afford to lose their jobs, so they kept their mouths shut. Until now. If McQueary (the grad assistant) had been promoted to keep quiet, that would absolutely have come out in the grand jury investigation. It's a highly relevant fact, and one of the first things the prosecutor would ask McQueary about when he was testifying. Because remember, the grand jury isn't just looking to pin Sandusky with a crime — it's looking to pin crimes on everyone who's criminally liable. It is more difficult to pin a crime on somebody who just fails to report things, compared to a person who actively hinders an ongoing police investigation and/or lies directly when questioned, but it's certainly possible.

            So from my perspective, although your theories are plausible, I now have to believe that, ultimately, the entire Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is conspiring to protect the PSU football program. That's a bit much.

            Hey someone out there — give LTD and me a TV show so we can argue this out and get some of that sweet, sweet appearance money!

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          7. Dave…The scary thing our discussion is more informed and better argued than most of what I have heard on the air. It would have to be a radio show…I clearly have a face for radio. :-)One point I disagree with you on. I have spent considerable time in Union County and specifically Harrisburg over the past 10 years (I have a few customers down there)…my understanding in talking to people and being down there is the AG would not have gone after Paterno and the PSU football program unless he absolutely was forced to. I believe that Paterno had the juice to get them to loo the other way. I can see as a lawyer you looking at this from the grand jury's perspective. But honestly there is so much smoke around Paterno that I think either the AG did what needed to be done to either drag his feet or avoid implicating Paterno. For the life of me, other than a fix, I can't see why charges were not brought in 1998 or 2002 other than again a fix of some sort. You may not want to believe the State of PA would try to protect PSU football…let me ask you…would you believe the FBI would actively try and protect Whitey? Or that to date no one has gone to jail over the Big Dig? Wagons get circled, those with power get special treatment. Just ask the family of Mary Jo Kopechne.

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          8. I defer to your knowledge of Harrisburg politics. I grew up in Philly, and as I'm sure you well know, from our perspective, Ohio begins a little west of King of Prussia. Harrisburg is somewhere in Kansas or Iowa or thereabouts….

            I'm not sure what to think any more, to be blunt. I think a LOT of questions remain to be asked, and I hope this is just the beginning of the investigation.

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          9. I laughed out loud at that one. When I was first doing business in Harrisburg I innocently asked someone why the Amish settled in PA and Ohio and the person, obviously from Philly said…Western PA, Ohio…its all the same.This morning on WEEI a caller made an absolutely great point. The grand jury investigates for 3 years. All of a sudden its findings are made known 3 days after Paterno hits win 409. You said earlier you did not think the entire State of PA would try and protect Blue Football…I am not sure the evidence agrees with your conclusion.

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          10. Looks like the Penn State Board of Trustees did the right thing afterall. The fired Paterno and the University president last night. Paterno will not coach the Nebraska game on Saturday. This is really a sad story all around…it starts with the psychological and physical trauma the kids were exposed to and ends with the completely mixed up set of priorities that allowed grown adults to believe that a football program, its coach and legacy was more important than the health and welfare of children.

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  2. I wish I could lurk at the oft-rumored forum, but I guess I need to cash in some EBT cards to wire some drachmas to Bruce. Oh well.

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  4. Why is Hector Luongo's piece his "usual hack job" on Mayo, yet Jeremy Gottlieb (who I enjoy) crushes Mayo the same way each week, but that's not a hack job?

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    1. Simple. When Mayo played well, (which has happened once or twice, despite what you and the other Mayo-haters claim) Jeremy will acknowledge it. Hector never will, and every single week has nothing but incredibly negative things – well beyond anything Jeremy has ever said – to say about him.

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      1. Oh yeah, once or twice…awesome. Bruce, let me know when he makes a big play…a sack, an interception….heck, at this point, I'd even take a tackle for a loss.

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        1. …and when you finally settle on a posting handle, please let me know. I see you're back to tl;dr, earlier today it was oldskool138, You go back and forth all the time. Why? Pick one and stick to it.

          Must be nice to have two different personas to use to push your opinions.

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          1. What a clever detective you are, Sherlock. How did you ever crack my elaborate subterfuge?

            I'm sorry you can't see that Mayo is…well, I wouldn't go so far as to call him a bust but a non-impact player on the Pats defense. Care to address that issue rather than trying to embarrass me?…I'm guessing that was the whole point. Am I right? Or am I way off base?

            You can't embarrass someone who couldn't care less if people know I use two screennames.

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          3. Yawn.

            What are your thoughts on Mayo Bruce? Why do you keep avoiding the question?

            I know, I get it. You bought a Mayo jersey when they drafted him and now you look the fool when you wear it when you're watching the games.

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  5. Wow the jersey rebuke. So clever. Is that you, Mazz?

    The thing with Mayo is you have no idea what he is actually asked to do on the defense. None. You sit there and whine that he's not making plays, when they're not sending him on blitzes, he's not going in coverage that much, so what opportunities does he have to make these big impact plays? His job is to read and react and tackle. He led the NFL in tackles last season. He was voted All-Pro (not just Pro Bowl, which can be a joke – see Brandon Meriweather – but All-Pro.) ahead of guys like Brian Urlacher and Ray Lewis. He's doing his job. He's not flashy, which is apparently all that you care about.

    We saw in the preseason they did some different things with him, and he made plays when given those opportunities. For whatever reason, they've decided not to go that route in the regular season. If you want to make the argument that they're not using him correctly, or that he should be given a chance to make those type of plays, that's a different story.

    And no, I don't have a Mayo jersey, or any other player jersey for that matter.

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    1. Exactly.

      I ran track with Mike Croel, who was the 4th pick in the draft at LB out of Nebraska. He was AFC Defensive ROY in '91, with 10 sacks. He had 5 sacks each of the next two years, and then none in 1994. What happened? He did have some knee issues — but mainly, what happened is that the Broncos changed their defensive scheme. When he was a rookie, they used him as a rushing OLB on virtually every play. They switched to a scheme where he played mostly zone coverages, rushing only on blitz calls. Strangely enough, his sack totals dropped! Go figure! He was the same player; he was just tasked with doing something that didn't generate "sexy" stats. And for that — for actually running the plays as they were called — Mel Kiper called him a "draft bust". Eff you, Mel!

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