Riddle: What’s the best way to make a small fortune?
Answer: Start with a large one.
One of the things that a lot of people forget about pro-team owners is that many of them begin as businessmen who have been successful in an industry, Robert Kraft is no exception having done very well in his Kraft Group of business holdings and even better with the Patriots with a lot of help from Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.
Right now however that investment in the New England Patriots does not seem all that grand as he has a team that is 1-6 and likely to finish so bad as to end up with, at worst a top 5 draft pick for the 2nd consecutive year which will be the first time since before he owned the team.
Given that eventuality there have been those who have questioned putting Rookie Quarterback Drake May on the field with an offensive line that is below average at best and a receiving corps that is almost as bad if not worse. After all while the playing time may be of use you are risking a prime asset without the prospect of a return in wins.
The problem of course is that with a team that has managed only a single win he doesn’t have the luxury that Connie Mack the owner/manager of the Philadelphia A’s for 50 years did.
The A’s were Mack’s business and his goal was to make a profit. On that subject he would say that in terms of business the best result for him would be a team that started strong but finished 4th (in a 8 team league with no wild cards). He explained why saying:
A team like that will draw well enough during the first part of the season to show a profit for the year, and you don’t have to give the players raises when they don’t win.
Alas for Mr. Kraft his team has started so badly that the danger of fans deciding it was not worth the price of tickets or the price of the parking. And with no stars of any note, that also meant no shirt sales and all the other gear with the Pats logo that they get a cut out of.
So what do you to keep the butts in the seats and the eyes on the screen. You give them a reason to watch and right now the only reason to do so is a young Quarterback by the name of Drake May.
No he’s going to win you many games with this team and yes you are going to have to risk your valuable 3rd round pick getting himself pummeled.
In the end however this is a business and the only way you’re going to hold the public’s interest long enough so they will still be there when there is a product worth paying for on the field is to give them hope and right now Drake Maye who has proved that he can produce some offense for a team that can’t win, is that hope.
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