Patriots cowboy up

Page 4 of 8 -- If TB tanks the rest of the year will BB consider Kurt Warner?
-- Paul Sadowski

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A: Don't worry about that. He showed you some things against Tennessee, didn't he? He made a beautiful long throw to Troy Brown.

I'd like to ask what you know about Tully Banta-Cain. Some people thought he was a great draft pick. Presumably it was his lack of size that meant that he did not go as early as expected. What position did the Patriots draft him for? What are his prospects? Is he gone for the season or might he help out later?
-- Michael Rosen

A: Banta-Cain should begin practicing after the Giants game. He's on the PUP list. When he returns he'll be a pass-rushing linebacker, similar to Willie McGinest.

Hi Nick, I think your column is a great way to provide content that the fans really want. My question is; what has Brady really done to earn his sterling reputation? He was the quarter back on the Super Bowl team, but so were a lot of other guys who've been tossed out since. A lot of his high QB rating comes from completing countless passes for little or no yards. All you sports writers adamantly defend his deep passing ability, even though he seldom completes throws of 15 yards during an actual game. The offense under Brady has had difficulty scoring TD's consistently since the playoffs 2001- 2002 season. Not to reopen the Brady - Bledsoe debate, (I think they both have there strengths and weaknesses), but when Bledsoe was here and the team was down by 14 or more points in the 4th quarter, there was still hope. How many 4th quarter comebacks did he engineer? I'm not saying Brady is bad, just that he shouldn't be untouchable. Why didn't Belichick play Huard when Brady was injured? I don't care how tough he is, i want to win the game. Also on the last drive of the in Washington, why count on and injured QB with a poor record on long passes to complete a long pass rather than bet on Vinatieri who usually comes through in these situations? It seems as if Belichick is unwilling to allow anyone to succeed where Brady doesn't.
-- Jim Doucette

A: Believe me when I say this, if Tom Brady was stinking out the joint on a regular basis, Belichick wouldn't think twice about yanking him. The coach has no commitment like that to any player if he's not doing the job. I think Belichick watched the film of some of Brady's poor moments and he decided it wasn't that bad. maybe it was the receiver running the wrong route. Maybe it was a defensive back making a great play. I haven't heard too much criticism of Brady from the coach even when he's going bad, which leads me to believe he doesn't think it's all Brady's fault.   Continued...