Bledsoe fits the Bill(s)

As of last week, the QB controversy in New England came to an end with the Pats getting what they wanted from the Bills...

...A first round draft pick for next year's draft to go along with the one from Green Bay for Terry Glenn.

Now if you have to know, I have been a Bledsoe supporter from day one. Too bad over the years I've come to know some guys (they know who they are), who verbally molested Bledsoe so bad, they might as well be Catholic priests.

From my heart, I'm sorry to see Bledsoe go, but it's a win-win situation for each team.

Now to be honest, I could care less about the hapless Bills, but I guess I'm going to have to explain my views on the deal.

The Bills and Bledsoe

The Bills trade for a proven QB, and fill all those empty seats the Flutie fans left sitting around.

As for the future of the team, it will rest in the hands of Drew Bledsoe. He has had his share of memorable moments, and the good certainly outweigh the bad. Unfortunately, everyone here (in New England) only seems to remember the interception he threw during that Steelers game years ago.

To me, Bledsoe carried the brunt of everything that was wrong with the Patriots until Belichick arrived. When he was taking all those sacks, running for his life, and trying to learn different offensive systems for five years, no one ever wanted to believe me that it was the offensive line.

Then they finally got rid of Max "Fast" Lane, Bruce Armstrong and Todd Rucci. O-Line improvment began almost over night with the development of a running game.

At the end of Bledsoe's last full season, the O-Line was beginning to gel, and the Pats were showing some signs of a solid running game.

Bledsoe was looking forward to the next season, but he only played one game and was knocked out of his second game. Tom Brady may have come in to replace Bledsoe and make history, but Bledsoe made sure he left a footnote on the season when he made three completions in a row in the AFC Championship Game, which resulted in a David Patten TD reception. It was a play that pretty much did in the Steeler's morale in that game.

Still, Drew got a raw deal from the Bledsoe Bashers, as they instantly jumped on the Brady bandwagon, and made him look like the second coming. None of these idiots will remember that in week one against the Bengals, the Patriots were without five starters, while losing Matt Light and Lawyer Milloy during that game. The loss to the Jets in week three was a toss up on all emotional levels, but it was the Colts game when the team was functioning as a whole, and remained pretty much injury free with the exception of Bledsoe. The Colts ended up with a strong win.

So what does this have to do with Drew? Well, I feel that all of this would have still happened if Bledsoe was at the helm, because it was a team effort all season and not just Brady.

Bledsoe vs. Brady

This is where I go deep. Both teams benefit from this deal, but the television markets and the NFL are bigger winners in this match up. The New England television market is highly profitable for this deal. Two match ups a year, with a possible playoff, means huge revenue from advertising spots and a guaranteed ratings blowout, locally and nationwide. I can see it now, Bledsoe will be the veteran QB run out of New England by the young student he once gave advice to in Brady.

So who is the better?

Physically, I believe hands down that Bledsoe has the stronger arm and bigger build. While mentally, I'd say that Brady slides up into the pocket to make better throwing decisions. He also looks over all his receivers, while Bledsoe forces the ball to his favorites, thus causing turnovers. If you could combine the pros of the two, you'd have the ultimate QB, but if I had to choose, I would have stuck with Bledsoe because of experience. Now, unless the team was unhappy with him behind closed doors, then I'd stick with the glue that holds the seams.

Bledsoe will do fine in Buffalo. He's got weapons Eric Moulds, Jay Riemersma, Peerless Price, and an easy schedule. He still has to learn how to scramble with that young o-line. He's had enough practice in New England and should survive if he can remember to get out of bounds.

Well, I guess it's good luck to Bledsoe and his new team. The only downside to the trade is that next year, he'll be playing against us now. Nothing like having your passes batted down by Seymour, getting sacked by Lawyer Milloy or Willie McGinest, getting picked for int's by Ty Law, and moving from one Foxboro Stadium into another.

Don't take it personal Drew, you're a Bill now and anything goes in trash talk.