Shut up Shula.

[Leroy]

As a young child, I loved the Dolphins and thought Don Shula was great. And I despise the Patriots, but enough already.

Don Shula: Patriots* Deserve an Asterisk

Hall of Fame coach Don Shula, who graduated from John Carroll University and is a former Cleveland Brown, isn't a big fan of Bill Belichick. He told the New York Daily News if they match the 1972 Miami Dolphins and go undefeated they should have an asterisk besides their name because of the "Spygate" scandal earlier this year.

"The Spygate thing has diminished what they've accomplished. You would hate to have that attached to your accomplishments. They've got it," Shula told the Daily News. "Belichick was fined $500,000, the team was fined $250,00 and they lost a first-round draft choice. That tells you the seriousness or significance of what they found.

"I guess you got the same thing as putting an asterisk by Barry Bonds' home run record. I guess it will be noted that the Patriots were fined and a No.1 draft choice was taken away during that year of accomplishment. The sad thing is Tom Brady looks so good, it doesn't look like he needs any help."

"You have to acknowledge what they accomplished, but I don't know how you disregard Spygate," Shula said. "It's there. It happened. You don't know what was on those tapes and how much it helped. I think the commissioner just wanted it to go away."

[Popeye_Card]

He was on Mike and Mike this morning, and clearly stated that he's not saying they deserve an asterisk. He was just pointing out that the league obviously took spygate very seriously, and wonders how the fans and history might judge the Patriots' 2007 season.

--P--

[clevername]

I'm sure the Dolphins under Shula never tried to gain an advantage over the other team by nefarious means.

It's always interesting when they trot out the players and coaches from that team and they try to act like they were the greatest thing ever and they're on some pedestal.

They were a great team for the time. They would lose more than a few games if they played the caliber of competition the NFL has today.

[Popeye_Card]

I'm sure the Dolphins under Shula never tried to gain an advantage over the other team by nefarious means.

It's always interesting when they trot out the players and coaches from that team and they try to act like they were the greatest thing ever and they're on some pedestal.

They were a great team for the time. They would lose more than a few games if they played the caliber of competition the NFL has today.

I don't think that they're really even considered by many to be the greatest team of all time, or even in the top 5. They're simply the only ones that went undefeated.

I really don't see a problem with what Shula has said. They've asked him about it, he's stated his opinion, and I think it's a fairly valid one. Some people are going to consider this tainted. And the way the Patriots are carrying themselves this season, I don't know that many people outside of New England are going to be very happy to see them go undefeated, so they'll be more than willing to view it with a bit of skepticism because of spygate.

It's not like Shula is calling up people and giving his unsolicited opinion.

--P--

[UK]

If the Patriots had lost, this would not have been an article.

I'm hoping the Patriots go undefeated so all those losers on that '72 Dolphins team can go privately to rot and look for another meaningless accomplishment to try and hang their hats on, since their purpose in life will be null and void.

What a bunch of pathetic ex-jocks.

[clevername]

the media (ESPN in particular) seems to want to play them up as one of the best teams ever. Every year when a team is undefeated after 5 or 6 games we get retrospectives on that season with the players trotted out to boast about how they went undefeated. Heck, they had them introduce the Pats/Colts game last week.

The Patriots hate is a lot like the Manny hate. I understand it but I don't get it. They're a great football team. They have an assholish coach (I think a lot of that is misunderstood, I just take the guy as being pretty introverted)...but I'd love for my team to have a coach like that if his players love him for it. I refuse to believe that just because they got caught we're supposed to villify them as the only team in the league who tries to gain an advantage by skirting the lines of vague rules.

[Popeye_Card]

the media (ESPN in particular) seems to want to play them up as one of the best teams ever. Every year when a team is undefeated after 5 or 6 games we get retrospectives on that season with the players trotted out to boast about how they went undefeated. Heck, they had them introduce the Pats/Colts game last week.

The Patriots hate is a lot like the Manny hate. I understand it but I don't get it. They're a great football team. They have an assholish coach (I think a lot of that is misunderstood, I just take the guy as being pretty introverted)...but I'd love for my team to have a coach like that if his players love him for it. I refuse to believe that just because they got caught we're supposed to villify them as the only team in the league who tries to gain an advantage by skirting the lines of vague rules.

Eh, they mention them every year when a team goes 8-0 or better, but while they consider them a very good team, they don't put them on a pedastal with the very best. I don't get that from them anyway.

I very much dislike the Patriots because of the way they're going about this season. There's virtually no joy in their accomplishments, and very little sportsmanship. They're good--incredibly good--and B.B. is a great coach. But I very much wanted to see them lose against the Colts. And I'm not sure they would have won if both teams were completely healthy. But with the AFC Championship on the road, it's tough to envision Indy winning that game.

--P--

[Leroy]

I don't hate the Patriots for any of the reasons stated. I hate them for about 15 seconds in the snow, and some jerk quarterback laughing about it afterward.

[Bo Hart]

They were caught in week ****ing 1. Maybe this puts a damper on the last few seasons, but I don't really think it does. That's about the only argument you could make. Certainly not this year, though.

If, say, the Spygate thing came out after last week's game (the four-point win), this maybe would have meant something. It didn't. I don't see how something that happened in the first game of the season -- a blowout, no less -- can put a damper on the whole year.

Shula is a baby.

[JL21]

If the Patriots had lost, this would not have been an article.

I'm hoping the Patriots go undefeated so all those losers on that '72 Dolphins team can go privately to rot and look for another meaningless accomplishment to try and hang their hats on, since their purpose in life will be null and void.

What a bunch of pathetic ex-jocks.

Wait a second. 17-0, the only perfect season in professional sports... that's not meaningless. Or are you saying that sports in general are meaningless in the face of actual accomplishment? That, I could understand. But a perfect season is pretty amazing, IMO.