Don't let the door hit you

As Dorothy said in "The Wizard of Oz"... My, people come and go so quickly here.

My dream defensive line of Big Vince, Ty Warren, and Phat Albert -- which I predicted could be the best in the league for years (ha) -- lasted less than 24 hours. Warren was cut yesterday before he ever got to meet Mr. Haynesworth.

Warren's release was the biggest surprise among yesterday's list of departures. Others let go were Coach Crump (who might return for less money to continue mentoring the two young tight ends), offensive lineman Nick Kazcur, Tully Banta-Cain, Marcus Stroud, and Tony Carter. Kazcur, Banta-Cain, and Stroud all had injury issues that made them a bad investment salary-cap wise. Warren was also coming off an injury (hip) and also had a fairly high salary-cap price tag, but many (like me) expected the 30-year-old to return to form and help form a monster defensive line.

But he reportedly failed his physical and was sent packing. Another member of the Super Bowl run gone.

That's just one of the many ways the NFL is unlike all the other sports. You rarely see star players still in the prime of their careers just dropped from the team in baseball and basketball. Why? Because, unlike in the NFL, they would still have to pay them. So teams keep them and keep them and keep them... J.D. Drew ring a bell?

Not in the NFL. A player may sign a 5-year, $40 million dollar deal. But if he gets hurt or he falls out of favor with the coaching staff, he can be cut at any time after collecting only a small portion of that $40 million. Of course a small portion of $40 million is still better than most of us will ever see. But if you've already spent most of the $40 million... well, that's how players who sign $40 million contracts end up in a financial mess.

LAWYER: Another case closed.

Patriots fans have gotten used to these sudden departures. The most infamous of course was when Lawyer Milloy was cut right before the start of the '03 season. Milloy was a favorite of Belichick but for some reason -- we'll never really know -- the coach decided he wasn't a good fit for the team anymore. Back-to-back Super Bowl titles proved the coach was right.

But I was sad to see Lawyer go. I remember sitting in my basement watching the '96 draft with Mark. That was the one where the Pats took wide receiver Terry Glenn in the first round against the wishes of Parcells. The first crack in the Tuna-Kraft relationship. As the Pats second-round pick approached Mark looked up from his draft preview magazines and said "I think the Tuna will go for that safety out of the University of Washington. Lawyer Milloy. Great name and Tuna's type of hard-nose player."

"Never heard of him," I mumbled through my mouthful of chips.

A few minutes later, the commissioner stepped to the podium and said "With their second pick in the draft, the New England Patriots take safety Lawyer Milloy from the University of Washington."

Lawyer was a Parcells guy who became a Belichick guy. They had a father-son relationship. One of the best moments from the Pats first Super Bowl win was when the two were caught on tape embracing right after Vinatieri's kick sailed through the uprights.

Lawyer was a great Patriot and his sudden departure shook the team. He was Brady's best friend at the time. Warren leaving is less team-shaking but still a huge loss. He's been one of the team's most underrated players this decade. A rock in the team's foundation.

Now he's gone. Always a class act, he thanked the Pats on his way out.

Who will be shown the door next? It could be anyone. Well, except #12. That day will never come.

Ya. Right.

Crazy Ochos

Whatever words eventually are used to describe the 2011 New England Patriots, boring will not be one of them.

The Pats started yesterday off by trading for the NFL's notorious B.I.G. Albert Haynesworth. They closed out the day by adding Chad Johnson. That's Ochocinco to most of you.

Oh, and Tom Brady and the boys had their first practice of training camp at Gillette. What lockout? If this is any indication of the entertainment level in store for Pats fans this season we are in for quite a year.

Ochocinco and Belichick have had a long-distance love affair for years now. Ocho isn't shy about saying what's on his mind and he has been saying for a while now that he would love to play for the Pats. Now it has come to pass.

Ocho is 33 years old. How much does he have left? Two years ago he had nearly 1,100 yards catching and nine touchdowns. Last year his numbers dropped because he had to share the ball -- and the spotlight -- with T.O. Is Ocho's signing like last year's pick up of veteran Torry Holt? Hopefully not. I was optimistic that Holt would play a key role last year. Unfortunately he never made it out of training camp. Ocho is a few years younger and certainly in better condition. He doesn't have to be the center of the offensive attention. That could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how Ocho blends in. The guy likes the ball. That's fine. Brady will get him the ball. When it's the right time.

There will be lots of talk the next few days on Sports Blab radio about how the Pats have added two bad character guys. I've already heard the thinking that with the death of Myra Kraft, the Pats now are signing players they wouldn't have while she was alive. It's amazing what you can come up with when you have to talk on the radio for four or five hours.

Ocho and Haynesworth are completely different stories. Haynesworth is a definite reclamation project. His rep as a problem child is well earned. But his talent at one of the key positions in the game makes it a no-brainer of a gamble. If he can't get his act together he'll be heading out of Foxborough as quickly as he arrived. If he can, then it's the move of the year.

Ocho is colorful. Not controversial. Fun-loving. Not shit-stirring. He should fit in great with Brady. He loves playing the game and he's now playing with one of the best teams in the NFL.

It won't be boring.

Phat Albert

So I guess we know now where the pass rush is going to come from.

The Patriots entered the player free-for-all today, reportedly trading a fifth-round pick to the Redskins for Albert Haynesworth. That's right, Albert Haynesworth.

Take a look at the video above. The Pats haven't had a D lineman who can bull-rush like that since... well, I can't remember anyone in a Patriots' uniform who could do that.

But Mr. Haynesworth comes with some baggage. A steamer trunk actually.

HEY! ALBERT!

Here's a quote from Jim Haslett, Haynesworth's defensive coach in Washington last season: "Obviously, if the guy's not willing to do what you want them to do and you're the head coach, and the guy doesn't practice well on Thursday -- about as poor as I've ever seen -- and then Friday, a so-called illness that he doesn't practice. Then, if I'm the head coach on Saturday, getting ready for Sunday, you've got to make a decision: What's best for the football club?''

Not exactly a ringing endorsement.

And there's that little sexual assault court date he's facing in late August. But this is the NFL and that kind of thing happens. Who am I to judge?

As a football player, Haynesworth is a monster. When he's in the mood. If Belichick can get him in the mood then the 14-2 Patriots may have just lapped the field. If not... well they'll be no worse off than they were yesterday. And they were in fine shape yesterday.

The acquisition is being compared to when the team picked up disgruntled Cincy running back Corey Dillon before the 2004 season and the trade of Randy Moss before '07. Those two moves worked out pretty well. Awesomely in fact. And Haynesworth, at his best, is better than either Dillon or Moss. At a position that can be a game changer.

Once again the consensus was that the Pats would be pretty quiet during this frantic period of player moves. Once again the consensus was wrong. Once again the Patriots have stolen the spotlight from the rest of the NFL.

If Haynesworth can return to the level he showed in Tennessee, he along with Big Vince and a returning Ty Warren could form the best defensive front in the league for years. If not the best, then certainly the nastiest.

I'm sure Rex Ryan took note of that.

Free-for-all

"Football is back," says the clueless commissioner.

Wow. It sure took them a long time to figure out how to divvy up $9 billion. I guess that's a lot tougher than it sounds. Being active in the unions at the newspapers I've worked at and having been part of contract negotiations where we were trying to divvy up nothing or less than that, I could go on about how today's players -- like yesterday's players and the day-before-that's players -- did very little to help past and future players and how the owners and Goodell did nothing to help the ticket and T-shirt buying fans (I'll still be paying $175 to watch practice games) ... but screw it. I watch the NFL to distract me from that kind of nonsense. It's over. The fall will be fun. Especially since Belichick, Brady, and the Pats are coming off a 14-2 season and are due to win a playoff game. I mean really due.

Pats camp starts Thursday. I can't wait to see the video from the first practice to get a look at our new offensive lineman.

Free agency starts the day after that. I can't wait to see who Belichick is prepared to add to the roster. A pass rusher maybe? Please. Usually free agency is pretty much completed before the NFL draft. This year, thanks to the lockout, things are reversed. So the Pats roster may look very different in a few days. Or not. We'll have to see how deep the Pats want to dive in the free agency free-for-all.

If they do, there are several interesting possibilities. Linebacker Paul Posluszny of the Bills would really strengthen the middle of the defense. On offense the Pats could at once strengthen themselves and weaken the Jets by grabbing one of their key wide receivers. (But please, no T.O.) A month's worth of free agent fun packed into a few days. Should be entertaining. As will be the 2011 season. Now that they figured out what to do with that $9B.

There's another big financial decision going on in this country, of course. In Washington. And a little more important. I've only got one thing to say about that.

Pats season starts in Miami on September 12th on Monday Night Football.

I can hear Hank Jr. now...

A great catch

I was listening to the Sports Hub on the drive to work Saturday. Two guys whose names I can't remember (which is why they are working Saturdays too) were talking about the news that Mike Vrabel, three-time Super Bowl champ linebacker for the Pats, had announced he was retiring from the NFL.

One of the nameless voices said "Vrabel made a lot of big plays for the Patriots. He was a good player but not one of the all-time great Pats." Vrabel not a great Patriot? That's why he's working the radio on Saturdays.

Mike Vrabel is not only one of the all-time great Pats, he is one of the all-time great stories. The Patriots listed him as a member of the team's 50th anniversary lineup. SI put him on their all-decade team for the '00s. In my rankings of the best players during the Belichick era, I have Vrabel at number six.

VRABEL: A key piece.

Vrabel was one in a long line of great Ohio St. linebackers. He stood out almost every Saturday afternoon that I watched. I loved the Big Ten back when it still only had ten teams. I was a big fan. Vrabel was a guy I wanted the Pats to take. I always want them to take the Buckeye linebacker.The Steelers took him in the third round in '97 and he played four disappointing seasons. Except whenever he played the Pats and Drew Bledsoe. He killed Bledsoe. But he didn't do enough of that against the rest of the league's QBs to earn a new contract. That's where Belichick and Pioli made one of the key moves that turned the team into a champion.

The Pats signed Vrabel prior to the 2001 season. He was added to a linebacking corp that had Bruschi, McGinnest, and Ted Johnson. Three players who were entering the prime of their careers and who -- if they could all stay healthy -- were capable of making lots of plays. Vrabel made four players on the verge of developing into stars. And on the verge of becoming leaders. At the time of the signing it was seen as a low-risk, high-reward move. Nobody knew just how high that reward would be. Not even Belichick.

Vrabel started every game at outside linebacker that season. He teamed up with a rejuvenated McGinnest to make a formidable pass rush. They may not have had as many sacks as some other great LB tandems, but they had more clutch sacks. And more clutch plays.

Vrabel and Buschi became the brains of the team. McGinnest and Harrison were the intimidators. Brown and Faulk were the heart. Brady was the fire. But Vrabel and Bruschi were the brains. They connected with their coach on a level not often seen. It translated to almost always being in the right place at the right time. The feeling was always that the Pats were a step ahead of the other team. (I know, that illegal video library might have had something to do with it, but not much). The main reason the Pats were the smarter team was because Vrabel and Bruschi were always the most prepared players on the field on every play. And that spread through the whole team. That quality defined the team's dynasty.

Vrabel not an all-time great Patriot? Just a good player?

The video above is full of game-changing sacks, tips, tackles, and picks. Oh. And 10 touchdown catches. There were so many great plays with #50. Go to the 4:10 mark and you will see his biggest play. The Pats were trailing the Rams 3-0 early in the second quarter of Super Bowl XXXVI. The heavy underdogs were delivering big hits all over the field but to that point the Rams were still carrying the play. That all changed with one swipe of Vrabel's arm. As QB Kurt Warner rared back to fire a pass, Vrabel was on top of him and -- in a move he learned from Willie -- he raised his right arm and smashed it into Warner's facemask. The hit forced a weak pass that Ty Law cut in front of and took down the sideline for a touchdown. Pats 7-3. That play was the moment that the Pats -- and their fans -- knew that they could win.

Should there have been a blow-to-the-head flag thrown? Oh, yes there should have been. But like a lot of things over the past 10-plus years, the call went the Pats way on that play. Just like things went the Pats way the day Belichick and Pioli signed Vrabel.

One last honor for Vrabel... NFL Network ranks him seventh on the list of 10 most versatile players.

Ya. You got that right.

Now that is more like it.

The NFL Network has been counting down it's Top 100 current NFL players as chosen by the only people that count when it comes to these things... the NFL players. It hasn't been quite the outstanding sports television that the list of all-time 100 Greatest Players was. I guess it's just not as interesting to see where Mike Vick is ranked as opposed to NFL legends like Joe Theisman or Gayle Sayers.

But the list of best players of 2011 accomplished one thing... righting a wrong. The ranking of one Tom Brady. The all-time list that was unveiled last year placed the Pats future hall-of-famer at #21. That's right. Not even in the Top 20. That's what happens when you let fans and the media start voting.

Brady was in the middle of his greatest season yet when the rankings came out. He finished the year without his fourth Lombardi Trophy, but did become the first player ever unanimously awarded the league's MVP trophy. There really is no reason to debate his place in NFL history. He is one of the five greatest quarterbacks to ever throw a pass and certainly in the Top 10 of all players.

And at the moment, he is certainly the best player in the game.

As Ray Lewis says (first Derek Jeter as Brady spokesman, now Ray Lewis? Wasn't anyone from Boston available?) in the video below... "I'll tell my kids I played against one of the great ones... I mean the greatest of the greats."

Thanks for setting that straight, Ray.