Could the Patriots beat the Giants without Tom Brady?
Jan 23rd, 2008 by Bill Burt
This is a great question.
On the surface, I would say yes. The Patriots are loaded with playmakers.
But you know a team like the Giants would feel like a gorilla was off their shoulders facing the Patriots without Brady.
Let me know what you think … and why?
15 reader comments to “Could the Patriots beat the Giants without Tom Brady?”
-
1Tim said:
I really find it hard to believe that the Pats would beat the Giants without Brady. Could they, yes. That’s the same as saying the Giants could beat the Pats with Brady in the lineup. But is it likely that the Pats could win without Brady? No.
The main reason for this being, no other Pats QB has taken enough meaningful reps over the past two or even three years to be ready to take that stage and shine. If Testaverde or Flutie or a Dilfer or some proven veteran type player were the back up, I may feel different. But to put that much on Gonzalez or Cassell is too much.
-
Pingback:
2Brady and the Super Bowl « Scattered BrillianceBrady and the Super Bowl « Scattered Brilliance said:
[…] patriots, new york giants, nfl, sports, super bowl, tom brady So, Bill Burt asks whether the New England Patriots could still beat the New York Giants in the Super Bowl without the services of one Tom Brady. As we know and have been beaten to death […]
-
4Dave said:
Yes I believe they could. Maroney and Faulk have shown in the playoffs that the Pats can play ball control if they need to. If the D can keep the Giants to field goals, I can see Cassell being able to throw screens effectively and short passes. However, I would feel more confident if Vinny T was still with the team and was able to come in and manage the game!!
-
5Tim said:
Great call on the two examples Bill. I guess the question is “are the Pats backups the quality of a Hostetler”? My big problem is, I don’t know, because we haven’t seen enough of them in real situations to be able to tell?
Overall…your point is well taken. They are a good enough team that they “could”. But is it likely?
-
7Jim-red sox nation west said:
Eli took the giants to the bowl and he is only a little above average as a QB. We really dont know about Cassell except that he is being taught by the best. The Pats are much better at every other position…so i would have to say that the pats would still win w/out Brady…but lets not try it!
-
8Aaron said:
Could they beat the Giants? Of course they could. They wouldn’t be the favorite, but of all the teams with annonymous backup quarterbacks, the Pats are best equipped. With receivers like Moss and Welker and one of the best offensive lines in the league, any NFL backup would feel pretty comfortable stepping in.
-
9Max Kliman said:
The pats would probably win without Brady. They have too many good players to lose to the Giants. But no, if the Patriots didn’t have Brady they would definatly not be a great team. To tell you the truth, I think that the Pats would go 8-8 or 9-7 without Brady.
-
12JasonW said:
Let’s take a trip in the Wayback Machine, set for 4 weeks ago. The question is: can the Patriots beat the Giants WITH Tom Brady?
The answer is: barely.Here’s hoping for another exciting game.
-
14Max Kliman said:
Well maybe Matt Cassel is a lousy quarterback. We haven’t had a lot of time to look at him. If he is in the Patriots orginazation than he probably isn’t that bad but you never know.
-
15Michael Daly said:
From what I’ve seen of Cassel he can play, albiet not at the level of Brady.
We’re kind of assuming Brady may not play in the Superbowl here - I don’t buy that; I think he’ll be there healed up enough that his mechanics won’t hurt him.
