Why Do I Continue to Read Peter King?

[Leather]

Ugh.  I bet he was such a pretentious asshole.  
 
$50 says he tried to hang out with the athletes he "reported" on in college, but they never really liked him, yet he presented himself to all of his acquaintances as being "in" with them.
 
King: "Hey man, what are you doing this weekend?"
English Major: "Dunno.  Maybe go into town, get a few beers.  There's a Jim Croce show in Columbus me and Rob might try to catch.  You interested?"
King: "Nah, man.  I got invited to a party by the FOOTBALL TEAM.  I know some of the guys, you know."
English Major: "Oh.  Well, hey, if this concert falls through, mind if we tag along?"
King: "Well, man, I...Look, it just might be kind of WEIRD, you know? I mean, they KNOW me."
English Major: "Um.  Ok, nevermind.  See you around, I guess."

 

[Ray Culp]

Reminds me of Frank LaGrotta.

 

[( . ) ( . ) and (_!_)]

Ugh.  I bet he was such a pretentious asshole.  

 
 
Was?

 

[Shelterdog]

 

[E5 Yaz]

His aggravating travel notes about public transit would make for thrilling reading

 

[Leather]

King doing his best Shank.
 

Calculating Patriots got math wrong with Wes Welker

Well, wait a minute.  All of the reports I've heard indicate that the Patriots were given a chance to match the Broncos' offer, and elected not to.  So, perhaps they are misjudging Welker's "value" (your opinion), but, it's not like they made some sort of miscalculation of what he would be offered.  This headline is terribly misleading and, well, dumb.
 

It is highly unlikely that Wes Welker signing in Denver for a relative pittance is what Tom Brady had in mind when he gave the Patriots $15 million in cap relief two weeks ago.

You know what's even more unlikely? That Brady expected the Patriots to break from their tradition of being unsentimental when building the team in order to sign Welker.  Or that the Patriots said "Hey, can you give us a break so we can sign your Welker buddy?".   Moreover, how about asking Brady what he thinks?  How the fuck do you know what Brady had in mind?  Do your fucking job and give him a buzz.
 

Well, $12 million for two years' work might not be your idea of a relative pittance. But for a player who has averaged 112 catches a year over his six-year New England career -- and who clearly was Brady's go-to compadre -- the move of Welker to Denver has to be a crushing blow.

Yes.  Tom Brady, two-time Super Bowl MVP (pre Welker), three-time SB Champion, fucker of actresses and models, Certified Winner at Life, is likely saying to himself, at this very moment: "How can I go on?  How can I ever compete without Wes Welker on my team?  Dear God....Help me.  I am lost without him!"  
 
"Disappointed"? Maybe.  "Frustrated"?  Perhaps.  "Resigned to the fact that Belichick knows what he's doing, and sometimes that means letting guys go that Brady personally would rather keep on the team"?  Definitely.  "Crushed"?  Not a fucking chance.
 

The Patriots have proven over the years, as the Steelers have done historically and the Ravens are doing this offseason, that they're comfortable reloading instead of paying for aging has-beens. I get that. Good, forward-thinking business sense. But this isn't Rodney Harrison or Tedy Bruschi. They were really at the end. Welker isn't.

So...Belichick's judgment has almost always been sound on these matters (letting guys go when he thinks it's "the end."  But this time, Peter King is correct, and Belichick isn't.  Is that what he's saying?  I mean, yea, I see the difference in the situations (they are obvious) but Welker is certainly getting pretty close to the end, in all likelihood, isn't he?
 

That's what has Pats' fans enraged tonight.

 
I am not enraged.  In fact, aside from one or two idiots like some guy who refers to himself as Old Saint John, I don't know if anyone on this particular fan board is "enraged."  Perplexed, or concerned, or worried, or pessimistic...yea.  There's a fair share of that.  But come on.  
 

New England seemed to respond to Welker inking in Denver with a five-year, $31 million deal for Amendola. The ex-Rams receiver is five years younger and more explosive than Welker, but he's struggled to stay healthy and there is no guarantee he will mesh with Brady.

This is just disingenuous shit.  There's no guarantee that Welker will stay healthy, either.  King is saying that the move is a mistake because Welker will definitely continue to be awesome, and Amendola probably won't be very good, or will be broken.  That's two pretty big assumptions.
 
Why do I suspect King's love for Welker is, in part, in order to keep King in good graces in the Denver locker room? 
 

Either Bill Belichick vastly underestimated Welker's relevance on the open market...

Again, this is factually incorrect.  Belichick knew the offer from the Broncos.  He opted not to match it.  As delicious as it would be to think that the evil Belichick got pantsed on this one, and just whiffed on something, it's not true.  It didn't happen.  It was his decision not to take Welker back at that price.   
 

...or he was convinced Danny Amendola can sufficiently replace Welker. Maybe it was both

No.  It's clearly the latter.  Because, as is being reported elsewhere (and noted above), Belichick declined to...oh whatever.  Jesus Christ, this guy isn't even reading the sports news before writing his columns anymore.
 
EDIT: misread "Explosive" as "Expensive."


 

 

[Leather]

Con't...
 

I'll ask the same question I asked about Anquan Boldin the other day: On what football planet are Boldin and Welker not worth $6 million a year to winning teams like Baltimore and New England?

If you actually did some asking around and/or thinking, fathead, you'd come to these answers:
 
1) The Ravens need to fill a bunch of holes and have limited cap space to do it.  Hence, Boldin had to go; and
2) The Patriots thought that, for $6 MM/yr, Amendola was a better deal than Welker.   
 
This is not fucking rocket science.
 

The Patriots have made it abundantly clear that only Tom Brady is irreplaceable among players in their world. They're going to have to figure a way to tell the Irrepleaceable One how they let his favorite weapon get away after Brady did the team such a favor two weeks ago
.

Yea, well, I mean, shit.  They've really had a shitty run of it while using this philosophy, right?  And Brady has never had a guy he liked leave under similar circumstances, right?  Branch?  Moss?  Remember those guys?  He's done pretty well since losing them, right?  
 

Bad, bad decision by New England.

Yea, we'll see.  Fuck face. 

 

[Red(s)HawksFan]

Again, this is factually incorrect.  Belichick knew the offer from the Broncos.  He opted not to match it.  As delicious as it would be to think that the evil Belichick got pantsed on this one, and just whiffed on something, it's not true.  It didn't happen.  It was his decision not to take Welker back at that price.
 

 
There have been conflicting reports as to whether Welker did go back to the Pats for them to match.  I don't think it's a matter of Belichick getting pantsed, but it's as likely the Patriots were not given the opportunity to match as it is that they were.  In either case, the fact that they had the Amendola deal in place seems to indicate they didn't care one way or the other about retaining Welker, at any price.

 

[Leather]

Right.  They were pursuing Amendola at the start of free agency.  
 
King makes it out as if the Patriots were sitting back with cigars going "Heh heh...we lowballed him, but he'll be back!  Nobody out there wants him! *cackle*" and they were taken aback, then "reacted" by signing Amendola really quickly, as if they were scared of being left out in the cold.
 
It's complete bullshit.  

 

[cornwalls@6]

This was one of the laziest, most predictable piles of turd King's ever pressed "send" on. And he has set the bar pretty low. Full of half-baked conjecture, unqualified analysis, and reactionary hysteria. The nonsense that he and others in the media continue to traffic in, that there was some quid pro quo between Brady and the team whereby they would promise to re-sing Welker after his contract re-structuring, and now Brady has been horribly betrayed, is completely absurd. A fantasy, based on zero evidence, and in fact contradicted by precedent. Somebody mentioned in the BBTL thread that the worst part of this move is the orgy of stupidity it will un-leash in the media. It is on in full-force.         

 

[weeba]

Con't...
 

If you actually did some asking around and/or thinking, fathead, you'd come to these answers:
 
1) The Ravens need to fill a bunch of holes and have limited cap space to do it.  Hence, Boldin had to go; and
2) The Patriots thought that, for $6 MM/yr, Amendola was a better deal than Welker.   

 
Plus, if they did sign Welker and miss on Amendola, in 2 years time, Welker is gone and Amendola isn't available and they're left looking for a new slot WR anyways.

 

[OmarGradyLittle]

Either Bill Belichick vastly underestimated Welker's relevance on the open market, or he was convinced Danny Amendola can sufficiently replace Welker. Maybe it was both.

 
I don't get this at all. Based on what he ended up signing for and what the Pats offered, weren't they spot on with estimating his relevance on the market? 

 

[ifmanis5]

I thought Gronk qualified as Brady's favorite weapon? Also, I hate it when writers, particularly out of town writers, do their reading of the fans reaction thing like King did there. They usually get it wrong and King is no exception. Great take down by Leather, as always.

 

[mandro ramtinez]

I thought Gronk qualified as Brady's favorite weapon? Also, I hate it when writers, particularly out of town writers, do their reading of the fans reaction thing like King did there. They usually get it wrong and King is no exception. Great take down by Leather, as always.

I feel like the loudest contingent on twitter, or wherever King is gauging reaction, has to be the group that hates letting Welker go and doesn't trust BB's judgement this time.  The chance that King stopped to consider whether that contingent is a good representation of the fans at large is just about nil.

 

[Bucknahs Bum Ankle]

 

The Patriots have proven
over the years, as the Steelers have done historically and the Ravens
are doing this offseason, that they're comfortable reloading instead of
paying for aging has-beens. I get that. Good, forward-thinking business
sense. But this isn't Rodney Harrison or Tedy Bruschi. They were really
at the end. Welker isn't.
 

 

So...Belichick's judgment has almost always been sound on these matters
(letting guys go when he thinks it's "the end."  But this time, Peter
King is correct, and Belichick isn't.  Is that what he's saying?  I
mean, yea, I see the difference in the situations (they are obvious) but
Welker is certainly getting pretty close to the end, in all likelihood, isn't he?

 
And he doesn't even mention parting ways with the likes of Lawyer Milloy, Randy Moss, or Richard Seymour (debatable). All of these moves were similarly decried in the media and by Joe Fan at the time they were made, but when analyzed now it becomes apparent that BB has a pretty damn good track record when it comes to timing these things.

 

[pappymojo]

Maybe im misremembering but didnt Rodney and Bruschi retire as Patriots? Why does he use them as the comparables? It makes no sense.

Well I guess it makes as much sense as comparing the cash strapped Ravens trading an under contract Bodden to the fiscally okay Patriots not resigning a free agen Welker.

 

[MyDaughterLovesTomGordon]

Really, the only free agent they let go where they probably regret it is Samuel. Every other time, the Pats have pretty much nailed it. Why doesn't Bill get the benefit of the doubt on letting players walk?

 

[pappymojo]

You know, if he were inclined, a national writer with access to people within the industry could really write an interesting piece comparing what happened with the Ravens/Bodden and the Patriots/Welker and provided some insight into how good teams build teams and evaluate talent and how they balance free agency, the draft and trades.  The Ravens and the Patriots do some things in similar ways but they do some other things in very different ways.  Not saying one way is better or more successful but they have different philosophies.  Of course, the Ravens are champions this off season, but are undergoing major changes.  The Patriots are in the same spot this off season that they have been for far too often, having come so close but not achieving the ultimate goal.  The Patriots aren't undergoing the major overhaul that the Ravens are, but are they just treading water, staying at a very good level without taking the steps to make that next jump up? 
 
At the same time Welker and Bodden while both receivers are vastly different creatures, and yet they both find themselves in similar scenarios, playing for new teams where their new team is a very good team and where their old team was a very good team, but they're both in a position of having to move on.  Bodden didn't seem to have much of a choice (his choice was whether to restructure his contract or not).  Welker seems to have been given a choice too.
 
THis could be a really thought provoking and insightful story. 
 
But Peter King is lazy, fat and any thing but insightful.  It's really a shame. 

 

[MyDaughterLovesTomGordon]

Your point would be a lot more persuasive if it was clear you knew who Anquan Boldin actually was. Who's Bodden? You can't go calling people names if you, yourself, are too lazy to figure out how to spell someone's name. 

 

[SydneySox]

Why not? He's not writing for a newspaper.
 
Do you think
 
a) He doesn't actually know who Anakin Bodden is and so made up some words to make a point; or
 
b) Through laziness and interneterry he misspelled Anchorman Bolding's name but actually has watched football and made a more general point?
 
You love defending the media but that's a strawman defence. You can attack his point seperately to also attacking his lazy misspelling of the name. Unless you actually think he does believe option A and in that case you're cray cray like Peter King.

 

[pappymojo]

My first post was from a cell phone on the train ride home.  My second one on my computer after putting my kids to bed.  I'm just tired.   

 

[MyDaughterLovesTomGordon]

Why not? He's not writing for a newspaper.
 
Do you think
 
a) He doesn't actually know who Anakin Bodden is and so made up some words to make a point; or
 
b) Through laziness and interneterry he misspelled Anchorman Bolding's name but actually has watched football and made a more general point?
 
You love defending the media but that's a strawman defence. You can attack his point seperately to also attacking his lazy misspelling of the name. Unless you actually think he does believe option A and in that case you're cray cray like Peter King.

It's not a fucking typo - he spelled it the same way three times. My point was pretty clearly that it's a bit rich to call someone fat and lazy when you can't even be bothered to take 30 seconds to google the player in question.

 

[pappymojo]

The difference is that writing posts on this board isn't my job and that I don't live in a million dollar apartment based on what I write.

 

[SydneySox]

It's not a fucking typo - he spelled it the same way three times. My point was pretty clearly that it's a bit rich to call someone fat and lazy when you can't even be bothered to take 30 seconds to google the player in question.

 
Who called it a typo besides you?
 
Anyway, good job you got him on that one. But you also said he didn't know who Baulden was. Do you think he didn't know that? Or was that question as irrelevant as his spelling when it comes to the other couple hundred words he wrote?
 
I don't even care about the dude's argument, I just care that your response to it was to tell him he was irrelevant because he spelled it real bad.

 

[SydneySox]

My first post was from a cell phone on the train ride home.  My second one on my computer after putting my kids to bed.  I'm just tired.   

 
Your grammar sucks, your post is wrong.

 

[E5 Yaz]

Your grammar sucks

 
Hey, no grammars! Besides, since she lost her teef

 

[SydneySox]

Look, I don't want to get into a semantic argument, I just want the protein.

 

[CoffeeNerdness]

Thanks for polluting a fun thread with your cool internet argument.

 

[joe dokes]

Hey guys, my agent said someone, somewhere was talking about me. What's up?

 
Now everyone get yer coffee and get back to the task of analyzing Peter King.
 

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

Maybe im misremembering but didnt Rodney and Bruschi retire as Patriots? Why does he use them as the comparables? It makes no sense.
 

 
Of course it doesn't make sense, he's talking out of his enormous ass. I'm sure he was thinking of Willie and Vrabel and messed up the names.

 

[Leather]

It's not a fucking typo - he spelled it the same way three times. My point was pretty clearly that it's a bit rich to call someone fat and lazy when you can't even be bothered to take 30 seconds to google the player in question.

 
This is boring.  Boldin/Bodden are close enough where a mistake is plausible.   Have you never made a typo in a post? Moreover, anyone that posts here should be able to A) spot/understand the typo and B) be reasonable enough to let it slide without feeling the need to shit on another poster like an internet tough guy.  You know what would have been awesome?  If you just said "I think you mean Boldin, right?"  Problem solved!
 
Anyway, Peter King has an ax to grind with Belichick and at the same time wants to have access in Denver.  Hence, he kills two birds with one stone.  My guess is he presses Welker for some inside dirt on the Patriots' recent "failings" and uses his "Aww, I can't believe they dumped you.  They don't know what a catch you are!" schtick to get it.
 
King isn't interested in news; he's interested in maintaining his status as a guy who can chum around with famous athletes.
 
EDIT: I misspelled "Boldin".  Ain't that a kick in the head!

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

Your point would be a lot more persuasive if it was clear you knew who Anquan Boldin actually was. Who's Bodden? You can't go calling people names if you, yourself, are too lazy to figure out how to spell someone's name. 

 
Argue the message not the medium, E.B. White.

 

[Dogman]

Look, I don't want to get into a semantic argument, I just want the protein.

 
Minnie Driver would never, ever be interested in you.
 
One of my favorite movies.

 

[mt8thsw9th]

Your grammar sucks, your post is wrong.

 
This is better with the comma splice.

 

[Corsi]

h. Hey Pope Francis: The more you talk, the more I love hearing you talk about the poor. Keep it up.

j. Coffeenerdness: Yes, the Arizona Biltmore is fabulously overpriced. But it has the best hotel coffee I've had in forever.

 
CLUELESS.

 

[jmcc5400]

My bracket philosophy? Simple -- since the days when I followed the game. I pick the favorite in every game

 
Tells you everything you need to know about the guy.

 

[Leather]

1. Denver: WR Wes Welker, two years, $12 million. I've heard all the stories about Welker, and the anger and bitterness about his departure from New England. 

The only tale of anger and bitterness I've read is from King himself.  
 

If Welker breaks down, which he's shown no sign of doing, the grade will have to be revised here. But if Welker plays 16 games and doesn't catch 100 balls, my name's Joe Don Looney.

 
"I'm not going to consider Welker's age or the fact that he's got a lot of tread on his tires, and in so doing will deliberately ignore the logical counter-argument to my position, except to say, that, well, if I'm wrong, I get to retroactively change my opinion."
 

Belichick. Smart coach. 
That doesn't mean he can't err. 
Wes Welker: E-Bill

I hate to say that I'm going to root against Welker now, but I just might.

 

[Corsi]

KINGLANDIA, AHOY!
 
 

SI is developing a new brand and website with King as the centerpiece, sources told us. The in-house nickname for the new site is Kinglandia. The actual name for the site is still under discussion. (SI, please stick with Kinglandia.)
 
Unlike Bill Simmons's general-interest Grantland, King's site will be football-only. It'll launch in the next few month, and SI will own it.
 
The site was surely one of the sweeteners that SI offered King after a recent contract negotiation in which the veteran NFL writer was quite openly thinking about leaving. We're told he'll have his own stable of writers working with him. Here's one name: A source tells us Kinglandia is going hard after The Boston Globe's excellent NFL writer, Greg Bedard. 

 

http://deadspin.com/welcome-kinglandia-em-sports-illustrated-em-is-g-455849787

 

[pedro1918]

King's site will be football-only.

 
More proof that no one at SI reads his column.

 

[Leather]

Can someone tip him off about my portfolio?

 

[E5 Yaz]

Can someone tip him off about my portfolio?

 
You'd be surprised

 

[Leather]

 
You'd be surprised

Don't be coy, Roy.

 

[epraz]

KINGLANDIA, AHOY!
 
 

 

http://deadspin.com/welcome-kinglandia-em-sports-illustrated-em-is-g-455849787

 
I've been thinking recently that King needs a bigger platform.

 

[Bucknahs Bum Ankle]

I've been thinking recently that King needs a bigger platform.

 
To support his giant melon?

 

[soxfan121]

Can someone tip him off about my portfolio?

 
Get in line behind Magary. 
 
And I think Bedard is quite good. If there's going to be an NFL-content site from SI, I'm all for it. Even if I have to wade through Peter King's ugly mug plastered all over the site design.

 

[pappymojo]

Unlike Bill Simmons's general-interest Grantland, King's site will be football-only.

 
I can do without the coverage of American Idol, MTV Real World, Survivor, etc. that you see in Grantland, but I can't live without Peter's thoughts on Starbucks, Allagash White, the hotel service in some city I'll never visit, and what it's like to fly on an airplane. 

 

[pappymojo]

Also, if they are taking suggestions for names of the site, I would like to suggest The Kinghattan Project.

 

[JimD]

It makes me sad that King is clearly considered is considered a much more valauble media commodity than Joe Posnanski.

 

[SunkToANewLowell]

Hopefully Kinglandia has a section devoted to asking him questions which he doesnt answer, beats a dead horse, and then asks u a question
 

WHAT EXTRA MONEY? "Do you realize that if the Patriots score 100 fewer points without Welker, they still would have been the third highest-scoring team in 2012? On the other hand, if they improve their defense by just 25 points it would have been sixth overall? I love Welker and agree this will be a step back for the New England offense, but the Patriots can afford it if they use the extra money to improve on D.''
-- Eric Moore, Anchorage
 
Well, the Patriots will not devote a significantly different amount of money to Danny Amendola than they would have Welker, so the money part of this is moot. If you mean they should have spent a couple of extra million on Welker than they would have paid for Amendola, you could turnout to be absolutely right ... but that is dependent on two things: Can a player who has missed 20 games due to injury in the last two seasons produce like Welker? And can the Patriots buy, say, a Dwight Freeney or John Abraham to help that defense?

 

[lostjumper]

Can a player who has missed 20 games due to injury in the last two seasons produce like Welker?

Is a player who just turned 32 and hasn't missed any games in the last 2 years going to able to keep up that pace? That entire reply was a mess. He is terrible at his job.