Note: I experimented this morning using Storify to see what the layout would look like. As you can see below, it’s not perfect. You might see scroll bars, or the content may not load completely. I would just suggest reloading the page if it doesn’t work immediately.

If the content below isn’t showing up at all, or if you’re getting annoying scroll bars, click here to go to the full-size page on Storify.com:

Settling In For The Bye Week

With the bye week on us, there are a number of different approaches being taken to coverage. Here is a look at what is out there this morning:
http://storify.com/bruceallen/settling-in-for-the-bye-week.js?header=false&sharing=false&border=falseView the story “Settling In For The Bye Week” on Storify]

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Published by Bruce Allen

Automattician.

28 thoughts on “Morning Links, “Storified.””

  1. It took a refresh, but I personally like the new look.
    Burwell calls Belichick "Darth Patriot" and says Kroenke is planning on crafting his team like BB after reading Holley's book. If you can't beat them………..

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  2. I am not commenting on Bruce's Storify experiment…I sent those comments to him personally and suggest that if you have something constructive, positive or negative, you do the same so he gets good feedback to decide how he wants to go forward.

    I just read through Jerry Thornton's WEEI's posting on the Pats and the Patriots's way. What struck me about that posting is that none of the on air personalities at WEEI would expose a similar point of view. If they did it would be controversial but they would be too afraid of being called Patriot Fanboys. The think is Jerry got it right when it came to defining what has made the Patriots successful. They may not be the best bunch of athletes, although I will put their offense up against Green Bays and NO's any time, but what they do is play football as a team in the way their coaches instruct them to play.

    The theme on the air and in print this weeks seems to be explaining why the Patriots are successful when the Colts and Jets failed. With any luck this will lessen the criticism of the Pats personnel moves from hysteria (oh my god they traded out of the first round and did not get an average DL but instead got an average CB) to enlightened conversation.

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    1. LTD, I like how you comment about not commenting about Bruce’s experiment. Gave me a good laugh, but I’m just busting balls.

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  3. I don’t know if I can stand 10 more days of local Patriots bashing. It was nice to see SI’s Peter King mention GB finished last in pass defense. So any articles mentioning Pats can’t win due to their defense must also mention GB is doomed as well.

    I was a little put off thart there is very little Bruins mention anywhere considering they play tonight after being off since Saturday. I checked WEEI online and found 4 celtics stories including cover picture but no Bruins mention.

    Tonight represents the perfect opportunity to prove who is the top winter dog in town. Both the Bruins and C’s play NJ tonight at 730 and I’m guessing the B’s will double the Celtics TV ratings but local coverage will still favor the Celtics.

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  4. F&M and PP were discussing the Jane McManus tweet mentioned here yesterday. Not sure if they were discussing in relation to everyone here or in general. Anyways Felger along with his little toadie continue to sqawk about cap is crap in relation to the Jets. It seems they have even removed the chain of Sunshine.coms poster boy PP. He seems to be adopting their methods for laudish statements not based often in fact.

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    1. PP being a moron started a few weeks ago as he chafed at the "sunshine" label. I guess being a "true" journalist means you have to take contrary points of view that are not based in any rational thought. He even took an unwarranted shot at Bruce, my guess is because he wants to be part of the "in crowd" of Boston Media hacks rather than doing his job well. In any event, it does not matter how it is presented Felger is going to argue the cap is crap because he only see the adding of players side of the argument. He does not see or understand how getting rid of players effects the cap as well. Nor does he understand that with the new collective bargaining agreement they will not be adding 20% to 40% to the cap a year…at some point teams payrolls will catch up and like in the early days of the NFL cap…difficult decisions will have to be made. Like can the Jets cut Holmes and absorb $15 mill over the next two years…probably not. Can the Colts risk Manning passing a physical and thereby owing him $28 mill this year and another $20 mill next year even though he might be half the player he was before?

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      1. Perfectly put Late, Felger is the definition of can't see the forest for the trees. When he looks at the business of sport he sees just a couple of items like the franchise tag or releasing a player to free up money. He does not look at the ramifications of the CBA. He does not see the ramifications. What's funny when you hear Felger talk about the Jets or the Colts he still talks like they are fine and there is no real issues. He's completely oblivious to reality.

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        1. The country just watched the Jets self-destruct due to talent issues (cap-related) and character issues. You stated it perfectly that Felger just doesn't get it. He thinks by just adding new pieces the Jets will be fine. But my question is, isn't that what the Jets did after Magini. They added Scott, Holmes, LT, Edwards, etc. How did that play out? So we are all to assume they can just add new replacement pieces and once again they will be fine? Its not the simple matter of just adding, but adding quality talent and character guys.

          We as Sox fans know best that character goes a long way. The Jets are the RedSox 2.0 Football version with a talented bunch with several character flaws, with those counted on for success failing down the stretch.

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          1. Winning you are spot on. Don't forget addition by subtraction. It is the subtraction that is the real problem for the Jets. They really can't get out of Holmes contract unless they find someone dumb enough to trade for him, and they can't get out of Sanchez's….well technically they could but the money that would accelerate to the cap would be exorbitant. Of course because the Cap is Crap this does not really effect the Jets ability to go out and spend $28 mill on Peyton Manning. Here is an idea for Felger…if the Cap is Crap why doesn't he explain how the Jets can acquire Manning without the Colts taking a bath and without the Jets cutting players? Maybe he thinks Manning will come and play for a back loaded contract because history has shown that Manning is always all about the team…oh wait…that is Brady…manning has always had to be the highest paid guy int he league even demanding a contract his owner could not afford….literally…until the lockout was over.

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          2. During free agency period all we heard from Felger was how the Jets were going to sign Asomughua and how much the Patriots were cheap and how the Jets were passing them by. So why didn't the Jets get Asomughua if the cap is crap? Felger acted for quite a bit that it was a foregone conclusion that they were getting him, then as soon as the Eagles signed him acts as if he never said a thing about it. 😛

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  5. Speaking of Felger and Parakeet, I caught the first couple of minutes of their show. The first thing they brought up was the weather. They said if you are a Patriots fan you should worry about bad weather because this team will have trouble in it. Really? I seem to remember a game in Chicago last year in which the Patriots won 36-7 in a BLIZZARD. Snow was coming down sideways and the wind was at points fifty miles per hour. Yeah the Patriots have no chance in bad weather.

    A few small items:

    1) When listening to 98.5, every time there is a caller there is significant static at some point in the call. It is awful and has been going on for two weeks.

    2) I have noticed Kyle Draper has been doing the sideline reporting for the Celtics early in the season. Is there an issue with Greg Dickerson?

    3) I watched some of the Basketball game between Providence and number one Syracuse. Don Orsillo was calling the game for ESPN and the Big East Network. He did a good job.

    4) I agree with those who enjoyed the Jerry Thornton Piece on WEEI.com. I have said it before, I will say it again, he is as good a writer locally as there is. Thornton also wrote this funny piece on the collapse of the Jets for Barstool Sports. http://boston.barstoolsports.com/random-thoughts/…

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    1. yeah im with you on #2, wheres slicky dickerson been? bruce please investigate! did i mention kirk minihane sucks?

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    3. I posed the same question a few days ago but didn't get a response. I have no idea what happened to Greg D.

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      1. I heard Gary T say Gregg was sick, but that was at least 3 weeks ago. Otherwise no mention of him even during C's games. His twitter account has no posts since mid december.

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  6. The Crap is Crap is just the tip the crap iceberg for FELGER AND SANCHO PANZA

    Not only did they say that the Colts and Jets had passed the Patriots as organizations a year and a half ago, they promoted Mike Tannebaum as a genius and much more astute than Bill for giving up a number of draft choices for Sanchez and Tomlinson, paying Holmes a $45 million dollar contract, calling the Pats cheap for trading Seymour (he has cost the raiders well over $4o million dollars for the past three years , while LEADING the team to NO Playoffs, costing his team a number of games with untimely personal fouls and leading the team in fines. His salary also forced the raiders to give up Asomughua and two other valuable starters. Now ewe have valuable backup O linemen with the money saved and a 21 year old Solder for the future. They also questioned whether thee game had passed Bill by. They called the Pats cheap, even after Mike Reiss posted real statistics the revealed that the Pats had been right up there with the Colts and Jets in spending. They have said repeatedly that there was no Patriot Way. One time Toni said it and the next day at the Superbowl, as if on cue, Sean Payton said to the assembled national and international media that he had patterned his Saints, after “the patriot Way”. Good timing Toni. By the way , yesterday, Toni admitted that he was rooting for the Ravens this year. I’ll give him credit for honesty, in this case, but I can’t think of anything else to credit him for apart from being Mikes’ foil. Felger and Maz, REAL LEGIT, if you get the Drift.

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  7. Felger, yesterday, also relegated the Pats to the Falcons. On paper, he's absolutely right. Great regular season team (if you look only 5 years back), horrible in the postseason.

    However, lets look at what Atlanta did in the draft last year to get Julio Jones: pulled a Jets to get him. How's that working out for them? They dropped not only in wins and offensive production (search for this since ESPN has documented it and other sites have). Remember who their GM is, as well.

    I'll take what we have right now instead of mortgaging the future.

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    1. The 2011 draft – including Dimitroff's trading up for Jones ("urgent athleticism") – was featured towards the end of Michael Holley's War Room, which I read in two days. What did everyone else think of it?

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      1. Can you give a rough summary of what was written? I do have plans to grab the book but I am wondering what was said/

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  8. Question for the day. Why isn't the pick of Marcus Cannon in the 5th round getting more play in the media in Boston. Had the cancer not been discovered he most likely goes end of first/early second round…probably in the spot the Pats took Solder. Seems to me the Pats…who can't draft got 2 stud OL's in the 2011 draft as well as at least 1 stud running back in Ridley, another that we will have to see on in Vereen (he shows promise), a developable QB in Mallet (always good for trade bait) and a DB that some want to label a bust in Dowling who when he was on the field looked pretty good. If they only hit on Solder, Cannon and Ridley it was a great draft. If they get to add in Dowling, Vereen and Mallet it was an awesome draft coming on the heals of the 2010 draft that netted them McCourty, Gronk, Hernandez, Mesko, Spikes, Cunningham (who might be a bust although he is hurt this year) and Daederick (clearly a player). Kind of goes against the theory the Pats can't draft…maybe it was Pioli?

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  9. What a waste of 4 hours today. Felger finally found his Aikman clip and spent basically the entire 4 hours playing it. It's like he discovered god and is spreading some new scripture: "Hey everyone, Troy Aikman thinks the Pats have the worst DEF in the league." It's like really???? I didn't know that the Pats DEF was bad. Thanks for the insight. You continue to tell me things I didn't know. Meanwhile, Mazz thinks the DEF sucks too!

    I really just don't get the logic behind reinforcing this Aikman thing. We need Troy Aikmans opinion before anythin can really be concluded. I think Aikman is accurate (relatively) but am taking more of an issue with Felgers propaganda. I'm mad at myself for even getting mad at him for it. It's what he wants. He's only saying this to get us mad, and it worked. I'm giving myself thumbs down for even giving him credit and my 4 hours.

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  10. So, even with callers (most, unfortunately, very unarticulate) trying to convince Felger that the cap isn't crap, I've tried to do something sane and sent an email + text to SportsHub suggesting that F+M Get Andrew Brandt from http://nationalfootballpost.com or @adbrandt .

    It's almost insane the "cap is crap" stuff goes on when he could have an expert and former GM/consultant that would sort through what is true or not.

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    1. Good luck, if Felger see's the email, he'll probably delete it. Even though he tries to say they admit when they're wrong, he doesn't want to accept that he's wrong.

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      1. Well, I posted the proposition here because if they do take it seriously, it would both potentially validate him and dispell some of the myths. Honestly, I'm surprised that they didn't do this in the first place because Brandt, during the lock out, really raised his profile as one of the experts who can legitimately talk about the cap.

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  11. On this O'Brien news, I feel worse for Penn State. The record of Pats coordinators taking jobs elsewhere is not good but he also has not had a great record. I brought this up to my PSU alumni and they are NOT happy at all with the news because of the aforementioned reasons.
    http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/01/05/o…

    Todd Blacklidge, as quoted, has many questions himself and sounds unhappy:
    http://mobile.pennlive.com/advpenn/db_272508/cont…

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