What to expect from Pioli: Explaining the "Patriot Way"

[OnTheWarpath15]

Since there's been so much talk about what to expect from Pioli, especially regarding the draft, I thought I'd share some excerpts from the book "Patriot Reign" in which author Michael Holley is given 2 years of access to all parts of the organization.

It's a really good read for those of you who want to see how a championship organization is built.

Belichick and Pioli have a "manual" that they abide by regarding the organization.

Part of this manual is expectations for their QB:

1) Be the mentally toughest and hardest working player on the team.

2) Be able to take a big hit, and then walk into the huddle and call the next play.

3) Have his head screwed on straight enough to handle all the pressure and scrutiny to which all NFL QB's are subjected. (A Ryan Leaf fiasco can cripple a franchise for years - "You couldn't get anyone to say anything nice about Leaf when he was leaving," Pioli said. "His teammates were happy to see him leave Washington State. He was an asshole.")

4) If you want to know who the good QB's are, watch the passes they complete under a heavy rush. Watch the 1st downs they get on 3rd and long, passing into heavy coverage. Listen to what their teammates say about them.

Regarding the combine:

The Patriots were getting a feel for the players they wanted in the draft. None was a workout star.

They liked a center from BC, Dan Koppen, who had short arms and whose forty-times averaged 5.26. They needed help on the DL, that wasn't news. But who would have guessed they were falling for the shortest lineman there? A kid from Temple named Dan Klecko that wasn't quite 5-11?

They were eyeing Asante Samuel, who was one of the lightest CB's at 185 pounds. On his strength reps, Samuel bench-pressed 225 pounds nine times, which tied for the fewest among DB's. Not good.

It wasn't about numbers and stats. The Patriots said it, and they lived it.

Regarding the draft:

They love picks. Lots of picks. They had traded Tebucky Jones to New Orleans for picks, the night befor the draft, they took one of those picks from the Saints and made a swap with the Dolphins: The Patriots 3rd round pick for the Dolphins 2nd round pick the following year.

They were going into this day with 13 picks, and the plan was not to use them all. Those picks are your passport, allowing you to go wherever you wanted. You could stalk the board, getting who you wanted, and where you wanted them.

More on the draft:

Belichick and Pioli apply a theory to the draft. Write down the names of 25 college players they wanted to see on the Patriots. Put them into two categories, 1st day draftees and 2nd day draftees. If they needed to move up they had enough capital to control the board. They had a plan to strengthen the Patriots with draft choices.

[DeezNutz]

Does this dude ever sleep?

[OnTheWarpath15]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

Does this dude ever sleep?

Pioli?

Doesn't seem like it.

80-100 hour work weeks seem to be the norm.

[DeezNutz]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath58

Pioli?

Doesn't seem like it.

80-100 hour work weeks seem to be the norm.

Yeah.

This sets the bar high for everyone in the organization. I like it.

[Hootie]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

Does this dude ever sleep?

I hope not.

[Zouk]

Originally Posted by Buehler445

It has been documented that Herm doesn't watch much game tape.

Where?

The perception does not match reality at all.

[DeezNutz]

I wonder how long Carl was typically in the office, especially during the last 5 years or so?

[Nightfyre]

What I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall in the Chief's war room during draft day...
















and then morph back into human form and yell, "GENTLEMEN, YOU CAN'T FIGHT HERE! THIS IS THE WAR ROOM!"

[OnTheWarpath15]

Regarding Pioli, and one of the rare times he didn't trust his instincts:

In the Jabari Holloway case (who Pioli pushed for) Pioli says he should have trusted his instincts. The TE from Notre Dame made him nervous as soon as he realized why he had been late for practice.

Chemistry class.

"By your Senior year, football had better be a priority if you're going to be a NFl player," he says. "And i don't care about chemistry labs. You know what? You can come back and get your grades. To me that explained that something larger was going on. That there weer other things in life clearly more important than football. He could have done it some other way where it didn't interfere with football. That bothered me.

[Ebolapox]

sounds to me like he'll be one of those guys who works harder than the other guy. that gets results most of the time, IMO.

[Buehler445]

Originally Posted by Zouk

Where?

The perception does not match reality at all.

There was an article that quoted a scout that said he wasn't patient enough to sit and watch film. I'd dig it up, but it is most certainly not worth arguing about.

[OnTheWarpath15]

This is one of my favorite excerpts, speaking about Pioli and the scouting department:

Pioli's opinions are so clear and blunt that there's little if any room for misunderstandings. In fact, it's written in the manual that all scouts must have a clear opinion. Neutrality or passive-aggressiveness can get you fired. You actually get credit when you logically disagree with the boss.

"I want them to know their opinion is important," says Pioli. "As a matter of fact, it's so important that part of the evaluation of you is going to be whether or not you have one."

Former Patriots scout Jason Licht:

If I said a guy is a 1st round pick, the Colts picked him, and he turned out to be a bust, they wouldn't have looked down on me. They wouldn't have said I'm a bad grader. Because that player in the Patriots system might have been successful."

[Ebolapox]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath58

This is one of my favorite excerpts, speaking about Pioli and the scouting department:




Former Patriots scout Jason Licht:

that's the way it should be. there's no room, in a successful organization, for bullshit. and we've been swimming in it for twenty years.

[OnTheWarpath15]

Originally Posted by H5N1

that's the way it should be. there's no room, in a successful organization, for bullshit. and we've been swimming in it for twenty years.

Damn right.

[Fish]

Great compilation OTW.... very informative. And the thread isn't even watered down with BS rumors... Nice break from the girl's locker room mentality around here lately.

I have to say though, the more I learn about Pioli, the more I'm convinced that Herm isn't smart enough to keep up with him. It's pretty clear that Pioli is incredibly professional and very meticulous. And I can't see him finding those qualities in much of the current coaching staff.

[OnTheWarpath15]

Originally Posted by KC Fish

Great compilation OTW.... very informative. And the thread isn't even watered down with BS rumors... Nice break from the girl's locker room mentality around here lately.

I have to say though, the more I learn about Pioli, the more I'm convinced that Herm isn't smart enough to keep up with him. It's pretty clear that Pioli is incredibly professional and very meticulous. And I can't see him finding those qualities in much of the current coaching staff.

Agree, 100%

Speaking of Herm, here's the coup de grâce as far as I'm concerned. Herm can't come close to this:

The team was smartly built, with one eye on the cap and the other on the field. They were good at figuring out how much better one player was than another, and seeing if the price matched the production. Jonathan Kraft is amazed at their ability to do that.

"Let's say there's a player who has a 100 rating, with really no upside beyond that. He's a solid 100, he'll be here a few years, he's making $4M. They can see another player who's a 75, making $500K, and has upside. They know they can put that kid in a system where the deficiencies between a 75 and 100 can be protected."

"They're never going to get into salary cap hell chasing that last elusive guy, or believing that one person makes your team. They are completely focused on team."