Let’s talk about our feelings - whose departure impacted you the most?
- Thread starter BigSoxFan
- Start date
Bill. Maybe because when Tom left we could fall back on warm and fuzzies with Bill still being in charge. Now the era is over we're entering the great unknown.
Bill. Maybe because it’s the official end? Maybe because I just always loved BB’s I don’t know, persona or something more? I will openly cheer for whatever team he ends up with, whereas I couldn’t care less how Tommy did with Tampa. This kind of feels like a death 
Pretty simple, you expect player careers to end eventually. Of course the same is true for coaches, but the timeline is just longer. You could keep rationalizing that Belichick would be back, and I was one of those doing so. His departure is a surprise and a bummer.
It's Brady for me. Everybody had a feeling this was the end for BB. With Brady, I never thought he'd leave or they'd let him leave the Patriots. Brady is my favorite athlete of all-time and that was an absolute gut punch to see him leave.
It's very close, but it's Bill for me.
Because it means it's all over. Tout fini. Gone.
All I can hear is Don Meredith singing turn out the lights.
Because it means it's all over. Tout fini. Gone.
All I can hear is Don Meredith singing turn out the lights.
I am more surprised at Bill's departure, but Brady's hit harder for me because of how it affected Bill in its wake.
We all wanted Bill to carry on and find success with the next QB (naïve as that was), and it just didn't happen. It's not to say that it exposed Bill or affected his legacy, but it sowed some doubts at least.
I always assumed Kraft and Bill would be joined at the hip. I'm surprised that they're not riding off into the sunset at the same time.
We all wanted Bill to carry on and find success with the next QB (naïve as that was), and it just didn't happen. It's not to say that it exposed Bill or affected his legacy, but it sowed some doubts at least.
I always assumed Kraft and Bill would be joined at the hip. I'm surprised that they're not riding off into the sunset at the same time.
I go with Brady.
The end for Brady was bad - a home playoff loss that ended in a pick 6 if I remember correctly.
That was a bizarre season. Remember one game of Antonio Brown? The team cratered after a hot start and there was a big vibe shift.
Personally, I think having the best individual player at the most important position trumps everything. I also think that the combination of those 2 was a once in a lifetime experience that may never be replicated. Two maniacal competitors who we saw at the top of their game, and ran the league for 2 decades.
The end for Brady was bad - a home playoff loss that ended in a pick 6 if I remember correctly.
That was a bizarre season. Remember one game of Antonio Brown? The team cratered after a hot start and there was a big vibe shift.
Personally, I think having the best individual player at the most important position trumps everything. I also think that the combination of those 2 was a once in a lifetime experience that may never be replicated. Two maniacal competitors who we saw at the top of their game, and ran the league for 2 decades.
In a weird way I was ready for Tom to leave. I was tired of the talking heads screaming every time Pats didnt win a game. I was tired of the talking heads screaming everytime they won a game, but it wasnt convincing enough. And honestly I was a bit tired of Tom. I was ready for change.
Today, I find myself tired of bad football, and am again ready for change. But as others have alluded to, since this doesnt just feel like the possible end...but IS the actual end, today hurts more. I listened to my favorite version of "Black" by Pearl Jam on the way to work today and Id be lying if I didnt get a little choked up when Eddie belts out "WE...WE BELONG...WE BELONG TOGETHER."
Today, I find myself tired of bad football, and am again ready for change. But as others have alluded to, since this doesnt just feel like the possible end...but IS the actual end, today hurts more. I listened to my favorite version of "Black" by Pearl Jam on the way to work today and Id be lying if I didnt get a little choked up when Eddie belts out "WE...WE BELONG...WE BELONG TOGETHER."
At the end of the day, they both should have retired here (and that's purely me speaking as a fan, with all the stupid irrationality tied to that).
Tom leaving was harder for me because it felt like the wrong decision at the time. That move probably ultimately led to today's decision, which given the last few years doesn't feel as much like the wrong move, but it also feels like it didn't have to end the way it has.
Tom leaving was harder for me because it felt like the wrong decision at the time. That move probably ultimately led to today's decision, which given the last few years doesn't feel as much like the wrong move, but it also feels like it didn't have to end the way it has.
Neither I guess in that for both it seemed inevitable.
Maybe slightly more Bill, just because Brady was a 40+ QB and I'd kind of been assuming he was close to done for a couple years, and at some point the team needed to rebuild.
Maybe slightly more Bill, just because Brady was a 40+ QB and I'd kind of been assuming he was close to done for a couple years, and at some point the team needed to rebuild.
Both guys were the absolute best at what they did. But the sequence matters, as CR67 says. With Bill's departure, now it's truly over, and that is gut level painful. "In Bill we trusted". No more.
Brady departure shocked me, whether it should have or not, but Bill’s didn’t. However, Bill’s departure closes the book on the era.
Still sorting this one out, but if I had to say I think both hit equally hard but for different reasons.
Still sorting this one out, but if I had to say I think both hit equally hard but for different reasons.
Brady, but probably because he was leaving while still dominant and they wanted him to return. With Bill, we started hearing the rumors before the season was over, and save for some brief enthusiasm for Mac, his tenure post-Brady just wasn't good. Still a very bittersweet day regardless, but I was far more devastated by Marcus Smart's trade, and that was undeniably a good move for the Celtics.
Bill’s, but in a funny way, it was because of the last four years. It’s akin to seeing a parent or grandparent close to the end, seeing the vibrant way they were always there ebb away and the last memories being the worst ones, the ones that remind you of time’s merciless march forward (h/t to @CR67dream and his feelings on it).
It's close--but Brady's departure was easier, in part because he seemed miserable and in part because Belichick and the football operation were still in place. Belichick takes a wealth of knowledge and experience with him, even allowing for the enormous amount of those attributes that departed with Scar, Fears, Ernie, Josh et al.
Bill
Boils down to this
If TB12 played the Pats as a TBB, I’d root for the Pats
If BB goes to TBB, I’d root for Bill’s TBB
Boils down to this
If TB12 played the Pats as a TBB, I’d root for the Pats
If BB goes to TBB, I’d root for Bill’s TBB
Bill. Maybe because it’s the official end? Maybe because I just always loved BB’s I don’t know, persona or something more? I will openly cheer for whatever team he ends up with, whereas I couldn’t care less how Tommy did with Tampa. This kind of feels like a death
Co-signing these
Brady chose to leave, Bill has been pushed out. Simple as that. This hurts way worse.
I'm also salty about the way TB handled himself in Tampa, it felt disrespectful to BB and the Patriots. He was dead to me until he retired, but I will actively root for BB wherever he ends up.
I'm also salty about the way TB handled himself in Tampa, it felt disrespectful to BB and the Patriots. He was dead to me until he retired, but I will actively root for BB wherever he ends up.
Sure, Brady chose to leave. He could've always opted to keep taking 1yr/20 million dollar contracts with no further guarantees as a top 5 QB in football. Put that arrangement on the table for Bill as a condition for him to stay in 2018 and see how he acts.
My raw emotional reaction to Brady leaving was that he was abandoning us. Meanwhile, today it feels like we are abandoning Bill.
Both were shocking and made my stomach wrench. This one is perhaps sadder in that way?
Both were shocking and made my stomach wrench. This one is perhaps sadder in that way?
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From a very high level I think it's kind of simple - Brady leaving didnt feel like the end at the time, there was still hope Bill could extend the dynasty (even if in hindsight that turned out not to be true). Ill repeat myself but today doesnt FEEL like the end, it IS the end. And we know it this time.
I mean, hadn't we figured out it had already ended with Brady leaving? I thought it became consensus right around February, 2021. We don't have anyone left who symbolizes those days, but the end of that era came when Tom left. I get it, at the time maybe it was understandable not to feel that way, but not just the on field success, but the whole aura left with Tom. The 2024 Patriots will have a whole lot more to do with the 2023 Patriots than the 2020 team did with 2019.
Yeah but I was talking about perspective when Tom actually left, which was about a year before Feb 2021...
Just to be unequivocal about it - Brady means more to me than Bill exactly because of the bolded. And when some time passes, and I tell my little nephews (or if I ever have my own kids...sorry mom!) about the pats dynasty Tom will get top, and second, billing. But specifically regarding how I feel when each left, I (and it appears plenty of others) felt like Bill could march the team on. That hope is primarily why I wasn't as upset the day that Tom left as I am today...because there is no hope. It's just over.
Right now its 38-38. Makes sense.
It was Brady for me because when he left, I still felt (and was correct) he had some good football left. And I think it was possible he could have played it in Foxboro if things broke right.
With Belichick, I truly believe, while he may have good football coaching remaining in him, I think given where he is in his career, how he coaches, and the current makeup of the now rebuilding Patriots, his best opportunities to do so are elsewhere.
It was Brady for me because when he left, I still felt (and was correct) he had some good football left. And I think it was possible he could have played it in Foxboro if things broke right.
With Belichick, I truly believe, while he may have good football coaching remaining in him, I think given where he is in his career, how he coaches, and the current makeup of the now rebuilding Patriots, his best opportunities to do so are elsewhere.
Tom Brady is my second favorite athlete of all time, behind only Pedro Martinez. But this hits me harder for reasons that others have given; namely, that this represents THE END of the golden era of Patriots football. Honestly, it was over when Brady departed, but I had hopes that BB would build another championship team.
I'm still bullish on this organization. They've made so many right moves with this ownership. I think they'll figure it out and we will once again be rooting for a good team. But this is the end of an era, for sure. So it hits me harder.
And no, this is absolutely no disrespect to Tom Brady. At all.
I'm still bullish on this organization. They've made so many right moves with this ownership. I think they'll figure it out and we will once again be rooting for a good team. But this is the end of an era, for sure. So it hits me harder.
And no, this is absolutely no disrespect to Tom Brady. At all.
Bill because it truly is the end of the era completely. Also when Black Monday passed I kind of believed he would be back and then I got to work today and my buddy told me he was done, I was stunned.
I said both are the same, but I'm not sure if that's still the case with a couple of hours to let it sit. Brady seemed like more of a surprise, but didn't hurt as much because it felt like the right move at the time (the team didn't feel like a contender and he seemed almost done, the latter was obviously way off), plus the world was falling apart (3/17/2020) and I literally had bigger concerns. Belichick leaving seems like it's been coming for months, but I hate the move and it feels like the end of the Pats being a relevant franchise, which is a major bummer (thank god for the Celtics).
Red Sox: last place, finding a new GM, team seems to have little direction.
Patriots: last place, finding a new GM and HC and QB, team seems to have little direction.
Bruins: first place, but not a dominant team at this point.
Celtics: first place, and probably the best team in the world right now. So that's nice.
Patriots: last place, finding a new GM and HC and QB, team seems to have little direction.
Bruins: first place, but not a dominant team at this point.
Celtics: first place, and probably the best team in the world right now. So that's nice.
The Patriots are definitely ahead of the Red Sox, unless I guess the new GM trades the #3 pick, Christian Barmore and Gonzalez to CLE for WAtson or something
Finality though.
Brady's never here without Belichick.
We could do this all day. There's no wrong answer here.
This is hitting me harder than Brady. I thought we were lucky to have Brady as long as we did. That he didn't chase big money elsewhere prior to leaving is mind-boggling.
With Belichick, this is the hard end of the era. He still has some records I want to see him break, but it almost feels like Tim Wakefield's last season, where it just wasn't going to happen... at least not here. Like when Tito left, I will root for Bill pretty much wherever he ends up going. There are limits to my generosity, but going to a team in the NFC and watch him wreak havoc over there would be my preference.
With Belichick, this is the hard end of the era. He still has some records I want to see him break, but it almost feels like Tim Wakefield's last season, where it just wasn't going to happen... at least not here. Like when Tito left, I will root for Bill pretty much wherever he ends up going. There are limits to my generosity, but going to a team in the NFC and watch him wreak havoc over there would be my preference.
Definitely no wrong answers. Feelings are feelings.
But Tom Brady. I feel like the era ended last season when Mac Jones was yelling at everyone and punching everyone in the balls and Patricia was bumbling around and the team should have been better but they did laterals and made mistakes they usually didn't make. This year was just the coup de grace.
Belichick, because his departure pretty much closes the book on the dynasty era once and for all. Had hoped that BB could coach the team to an upset playoff win or two over the past few seasons and put the talk radio mediots and mouthbreathers in their place, but the roster was too depleted.
Example of needing to be careful of what you ask for if you prefer to keep the thread readable. Although I was going to ask if Claude Julien could be added as an answer.....
not gonna lie, while so many threads turn upside down IMO by going too much at Mac...the bolded gave me a good chuckle.
I was a legit Zombie when Brady left. I'm having the same feelings now.
It is both for me as both brought so much happiness in my sports following life.
This doesn't even feel like a new chapter. It's a new book with a different writer, a different plot, and definitely a different ending.
The river definitely does not run through this.
It is both for me as both brought so much happiness in my sports following life.
This doesn't even feel like a new chapter. It's a new book with a different writer, a different plot, and definitely a different ending.
The river definitely does not run through this.
Between the two, I always thought that Bellichick had the biggest share of success, so I 've voted for Bill. The irony is that I usually am one of the few who thinks that coaches are overrated -especially in sports other than football- but I 've fully drunk the Bellichick kool-aid.
There are two types of coaches IMO, the ones that develop a system or method of how the game should be played and ride it all the way to eventual decline once their opponents figure out the counters and the ones who try to play football like the sophisticated game of rock-papers-scissors that is and try to build their tactics based on what their opponent tries to do. Belichick obviously in the latter category and no one that I know -in any sport- did it better than him.
Having said that, the past few years serve as counter-evidence to my way of thinking with Brady being more successful than Bellichick.
All the same, in sports like in life, it's very easy to build narratives; you just need a subject, a verb and an object. But if really getting to the bottom of things and really understanding what accounts for some things working and some things failing is extremely hard. So although most people would have an answer about who was more responsible for the Pats success will be certain, I won't.
I wish Bill all the best.
There are two types of coaches IMO, the ones that develop a system or method of how the game should be played and ride it all the way to eventual decline once their opponents figure out the counters and the ones who try to play football like the sophisticated game of rock-papers-scissors that is and try to build their tactics based on what their opponent tries to do. Belichick obviously in the latter category and no one that I know -in any sport- did it better than him.
Having said that, the past few years serve as counter-evidence to my way of thinking with Brady being more successful than Bellichick.
All the same, in sports like in life, it's very easy to build narratives; you just need a subject, a verb and an object. But if really getting to the bottom of things and really understanding what accounts for some things working and some things failing is extremely hard. So although most people would have an answer about who was more responsible for the Pats success will be certain, I won't.
I wish Bill all the best.
I was obviously joking. And you are obviously correct. I concede the point and apologize.