Bedard: It's time for Jonathan Kraft to step to the forefront for Patriots; NFL execs rave about Jayden Daniels
Boston Sports Journal

Bedard: It's time for Jonathan Kraft to step to the forefront for Patriots; NFL execs rave about Jayden Daniels

Like the modern NFL game for Belichick, times have changed for Patriots ownership. A lot of hard decisions are being made, some significant franchise-altering choices are being made. And it's time for some very tough questioning of Patriots ownership.

Greg A. Bedard
Greg A. Bedard
3/31/2024 10:00:00 AM

Let me preface this by saying that I have an enormous amount of respect for Robert Kraft, both professionally and personally. He should be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame for what he's done for the Patriots franchise — especially hiring Bill Belichick and the six Super Bowl titles — and the NFL at large, with his huge roles on multiple ownership committees and his crucial role in the 2011 labor lockout negotiations.

Kraft has been and continues to be one of the most powerful owners in the biggest professional sports league in North America.

But it's time for someone else to be the voice of ownership to the fans. It's time for Jonathan Kraft to step out of the shadows and to the forefront of this franchise.

This is not age-ism or anything like that. Just like players and coaches, there comes a time when the best days for NFL personnel are behind them. It was time for Belichick to depart, after more than a few down years. It's time for RKK to step aside for his son.

The biggest reason? This is no longer the heyday of the Patriots. For several years, nearly all of Belichick's tenure (again, a feather in the cap for Kraft), there weren't many hard questions. It was mostly ceremonial and taking a well-deserved victory lap. Even when things were controversial, during Spygate, Aaron Hernandez and Deflate-gate, Kraft didn't exactly rise to the moment. He basically got the benefit of the doubt from most, because of all the success. And I'm not saying I disagreed or disagree with that.

But like the modern NFL game for Belichick, times have changed for Patriots ownership. A lot of hard decisions are being made, some significant franchise-altering choices are being made. And it's time for some very tough questioning of Patriots ownership. There are huge questions that need to be answered, and it needs to be more than just a question ... and whatever ownership decides to say, expecting fans and media to just take it and run with it.

Nope. That's not good enough anymore.

Kraft's performance in front of the media at the league meetings was just not up to the moment. He didn't answer some questions, gave selective responses, played the hits and the time was extremely limited with a lot of things to answer for. Patriots fans, for the most part, are angry or at the very least concerned, and they want real answers.

To get those answers, there needs to be a real give-and-take between ownership and the media. This is not a time where Patriots fans want to hear ownership just give their selective responses and nary room for a follow-up. They want real answers. The only way that can happen is if the media feels like things are on a level playing field between the subject and the questioners.

And that's not happening anymore. I'm not saying that Kraft can't continue on with his role among NFL owners, or when it comes to league business, or even when it comes to weighing in on the big decisions for the Patriots. But he's 82 years old (83 in June), and he has earned a huge well of good feelings for his career and his great efforts philanthropically. You combine all that, and Kraft is basically a big teddy bear at this point, at least publicly (that's fine, he's earned it). How is the media supposed to do its job, asking the tough questions for a franchise at a crossroads, if we're going to look like we're trying to stick daggers in Paddington Bear? I mean, there were two follow-up questions asked in Orlando, both by me, and Kraft was not up to pivoting and providing real answers to legitimate questions.

At this point, it is not a fair fight, as we saw with some of his responses:***premium***

- On Eliot Wolf having final say: "We'll evaluate after the draft and see how that's gone and decide where we go from there."

That deserves a follow-up, or several.

What do you mean you'll decide ... you just had $100 million in cap space and have the No. 3 pick and you're going with a tryout? Why aren't you putting him in position now? What do you need to see? What would lead you think he can't do the job and needs to be let go? Does he have to appease just you? How to judge a draft in a month?

 - On drafting a QB at No. 3.

"I put my fan hat on and I definitely would. ... One way or another, I'd like to see us get a top-rate young quarterback."

So who's running this team, the owner or the fan? You don't think you saying that is going to influence Wolf? Is that in the best interest of the football team?

- There was the whole way he explained away not signing Calvin Ridley, which included his girlfriend (really his wife), taxes and the QB situation.

He just can't bring Ridley's family into this. Can't happen. So now in future negotiations, a player risks the Patriots bringing up the families in negotiations if he declines their offer? And the excuses need to stop. Just say you thought you offered up a fair offer, he didn't take it, and you didn't think free agency was worth it this year. Or, better yet, make Wolf available before April 18th, when he is due for a pre-draft press conference.

- On the NFLPA survey, Kraft maintained that he didn't know things were that bad, and some of them, like daycare, are fixable.

This deserved a whole host of follow-ups, namely: How could you not know about this ... the grades were bad last year, worse this year. Are you that out of touch? Is someone purposely withholding information from you? How do you think that reflects on your current level of ownership? 

 - He was asked a question related to Mac Jones and Kraft never mentioned Jones.

You just traded a 15th overall pick who was nearly offensive rookie of the year two years later for peanuts and you have no comment on that?

 - His answer about The Dynasty was just completely off the mark, never mind his Belichick response.

It's copyrighted by Kraft Dynasty LLC, you commissioned the book, you helped book all the guests for the series ... and it was out of your hands? You had no power? You expect people to believe that?

 - I had to squeeze the Belichick question in and he never answered it. He just talked about Tom Brady Day.

SAY SOMETHING ABOUT THE WAY BILL WAS DEPICTED.

 - To say nothing of some of the hard-hitting questions that BSJ members wanted to be asked that were on my list:

Why didn’t you conduct a full interview process to name a GM? Who has the ultimate decision-making power on free agents and draft picks? What happens to Eliot Wolf and Matt Groh after the 2024 draft?

2024 Active Cap Spending = 27th in league.
Patriots 2023 Ticket Price 5th Costliest.
NFLPA ranked Kraft 29th in ownership Rankings.
WHAT WILL IT TAKE FOR KRAFT TO START DELIVERING TO HIS FAN BASE?

What is your response to the lack of spending in free agency this offseason? You have previously said Belichick was in charge of the budget but he is no longer around. Why did Jerod have to roll back his comments related to spending? 

Elliot Wolf is acting like a GM, so why is he still “Director of Scouting?”

RKK, what is your realistic time frame for the rebuild to produce a championship-caliber team?

BB led the Patriots to the greatest run of success the NFL has ever seen, so why did you choose to produce a documentary that has been universally panned as a hit job on BB?

When Kraft and Mayo signed their agreement that Mayo was 'Coach in waiting',  was BB aware of these discussions Did he sit in on the meetings, or was he in any way consulted? (I'll add, Do you think that decision adversely affected the 2023 team? Do you think you were responsible for the reported dysfunction on the coaching staff?)

Why is Mayo a better choice for HC than Vrabel?

You were quoted in the dynasty as saying you firmly believe Tom Brady would have remained a Patriot if Belichick wasn’t the coach. Do you regret not doing more to keep Tom Brady in a Patriots uniform?

Those are all legitimate questions that deserve real answers from ownership. The fans can't get those hearing from ownership at Mayo's introductory press conference/pep rally with his family in attendance, nor can they get them in 16 minutes at the league meeting when Kraft was probably dealing with intense league matters for hours on end.

It's time for the fans to get real answers from someone in ownership. Nearly the entire league believes Jonathan Kraft is overseeing football operations — not directing it — and Robyn Glaser is basically his eyes and ears as his top lieutenant in the building. 

To compare the Patriots to another team, Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti hasn't spoken to the media in years. But he has a team president, (it used to be Dick Cass) Sashi Brown, who speaks on behalf of the owner. The president knows exactly what's going, he knows the feelings of the owner, and he conveys that to the media. Jonathan Kraft is president of the Patriots - he should take on the public role. General manager Eric DeCosta is the executive vice president of the Ravens as well, and speaks all the time on all Ravens topics.

Obviously Wolf won't rise to that level anytime soon (if ever). Glaser is executive vice president of football business: she's second in command and should also be able to speak to the media. She did speak for the documentary, let alone carry a hammer. Why can't she be made available to the media?

There is no reason Kraft and Glaser can't be the ones facing the music for the current state of the Patriots. It's the way most other NFL teams operate. With each passing day, it seems like the real power behind the New Patriots are using Robert Kraft as a shield and that is not fair to him, and it's certainly not fair to the fans who pay among the highest ticket prices in the league.

It's time for a change. It's time for the Patriots to face the music - for real.

(USA Today Sports)

NICKEL PACKAGE

1. I polled six personnel executives at the league meetings who I have enormous respect for, especially in relation to quarterbacks, to ask them who are the top three quarterbacks in this draft.

They were unanimous that Caleb Williams was No. 1. And they were in lock-step that Jayden Daniels was No. 2, and it wasn't really close.

Special and rare talent were tossed around. And there was this from another executive: "He's like Lamar (Jackson) with better throwing ability."

That's high praise from where it came from. No, I'm not saying where.

2. Opinions were very mixed on Drake Maye. They all respect the talent but his inconsistency seems to be a huge worry. For some, J.J. McCarthy was next because he makes better decisions under duress. The final vote for No. 3 was two for Maye, two for McCarthy and two said they would trade down.

3. That being said, especially after Maye showed ridiculous arm and athletic talent at his pro day ... as of today, and I reserve the right to change my mind, I'm taking Daniels or Maye at 3 if I'm the Patriots. There is just too much natural talent to pass up. It's just Alex Van Pelt better be as good as Wolf thinks he is.

4. On Bill Belichick's reported upcoming book, the word at the league meetings is that it will be on leadership geared towards businesses — not his Patriots tell-all — and that it's being written (perhaps ghostwritten) by Berj Najarian, Belichick's former director of football/head coach administration with the Patriots, who is now Bill O'Brien's chief of staff at Boston College.

5. The Dynasty documentary was largely panned at the league meetings in private conversations, including more than a few owners who laughed at Kraft's thinly veiled vanity project to enhance his prospects for the Hall of Fame. It was the butt of more than a few jokes. One league source said Kraft recently showed off The Dynasty and said, "Let's watch my documentary."