March 22, 2006

Dear Bill,

You know we trust you, right? And it's not like we're ungrateful for all that you've done for us. At one time this franchise was a laughingstock, the "Patsies." Saints fans wore bags over their heads. Patriots fans, well, they just sat in the stands of their pseudo-high school stadium or watched on TV and waited for disaster to strike. It always did, and usually without a very long wait.

But then our forty years wandering the NFL desert came to an end. You, along with Robert Kraft and the rest of the management and coaching staff, led us to the promised land. Not once, or even twice, but three times!

You showed us it wasn't about superstarpower, it was about the team. Let T.O. tear some other team apart. Let some other team just give Keyshawn the damn ball. We'll be satisfied with getting introduced as a team and winning. And winning.

"In Bill we trust," we said. When you released Lawyer Milloy the week before the season-opening game, then proceeded to lose, 31-0 to the team that signed him, we trusted. Oh, sure, there were questions, people wondered about you, but did we panic? No. In Bill we trust.

We understand that the way the Patriots operate is not to break the bank for anyone. We get it. We do. This is why when Willie McGinest, a Patriot since 1994 (A lifetime in the NFL), was cut, nobody batted an eye. Ditto david Givens, a tough, reliable, intelligent receiver. We'll replace them. In Bill we trust.

But, um, Bill, uh, Mr. Belichick, excuse me, sir? Adam Vinatieri? As legendary a placekicker as has ever played in the NFL? Lou Groza in high-def? The guy that kicked the 43-yarder in a blizzard in the playoffs against Oakland? The guy that won two Super Bowls with clutch last-second kicks? For crying out loud, the guy that ran down Herschel Walker from behind? Because you wanted to save a million bucks or two? In the economics of the modern NFL, that's like me eating in instead of going out to dinner this Friday night.

I'm trying to stay calm, Bill, I really am. But the sidelines are going to be awfully deserted next year unless we start SIGNING SOME PLAYERS! Oh God, I think I'm hyperventilating....

I'm not going to panic. I'm not going to panic. I'm not going to panic. I wonder if there are any bags left over from the old Saints days. In Bill we trust.

Sincerely,
HalfBaked