
Asante Samuel spent the first five seasons of his NFL career with the New England Patriots, where he won two Super Bowls and got to another.
So it was a little bit of a surprise when, after signing with the Philadelphia Eagles in March, he said, "I just want to be able to win and get back to the Super Bowl.'' After all, if his real motivation was to get back to the Super Bowl, wouldn't he have been better off staying in New England?
His former teammate, Wes Welker, thinks so.
Says Welker:
"Asante's a great player, so it hurts not to have a guy like that. But then again, it's part of the business of the game," Welker said. "He chose money over championships, and that's the way it goes sometimes."That quote comes across as though Welker disapproves of Samuel's choice, but personally, I don't begrudge a player for getting as much money as he can. If money was Samuel's primary motivation, more power to him.
Via PFT.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
6-29-2008 @ 4:32PM
rob said...
What championships?
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6-29-2008 @ 4:44PM
Mr.G said...
rob; I am no Patriots fan,but maybe you've been out of the country for a while.Many might believe their SB Titles are tainted,due to the cheating scandal,but I don't see Goodell removing their trophies,or altering the record book.
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6-29-2008 @ 4:58PM
LB said...
What championships does welker have?
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6-29-2008 @ 5:04PM
rick said...
and how many trophys do eagles have, samuel should have said its about the money, eagles have no chance of winning in his career, and if history repeats itself a player who has left the ne pats has never won unless your a kicker
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6-29-2008 @ 5:45PM
jsharpe0047 said...
Probably not what Welker was hoping for but the AFC Championship trophy is still better than what the Eagles put up last season.
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6-29-2008 @ 6:05PM
joe said...
maybe he doesnt want to play for a cheating team, afterall he wants to be remember as a member of a cheating team.
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6-29-2008 @ 6:07PM
joe said...
correction who wants to be remember as part of a cheating team.
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6-29-2008 @ 6:42PM
Gene said...
hey, Wes how many rings do you have....... I would have to say approximately one less than Eli Manning.........18-1!!!! 18-1!!!! 18-1!!!!
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6-29-2008 @ 7:12PM
JackB said...
The Eagles did win the NFL Championship several times Rick. Last in 1960. I know that was before the Combined League and when you were born.
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6-29-2008 @ 8:53PM
T said...
ugh...here we go with the cheating comments again. last season the pats won all of their games except the super bowl. they did this without having to cheat. i don't understand why some of you fail to comprehend that. But anywho...Wes is entitled to his opinion, but I personally don't blame Asante for getting that money. One never know how a player's stint will be in the NFL. He could suffer a major injury and be done, so get it while you can.
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6-29-2008 @ 9:54PM
jhc said...
@T: the pats did cheat last year: game 1 against the jets. they should have started the season 0-1...i can't believe the league didn't have them forfeit that game. i can only imagine what goodell would have done if it was the raiders instead of the pats.
what an incredibly presumptuous comment by welker. it makes anthony smith look modest.
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6-29-2008 @ 10:47PM
Ryan said...
Wes Welker is godlike, don't hate on him
http://www.collegefastbreak.com/
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6-30-2008 @ 1:10AM
MOE said...
so what. dont cheat just WIN baby E. A. G. L. E. S. eagles
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6-30-2008 @ 1:49AM
NeedMoreFootball said...
Doesn't matter. The Pats are going to stumble this season. Yes they might have the easiest schedule, but there are teams very capable of beating them. - this isn't the same pats as last year and their defense is older and isn't as strong. I also believe their offense wont be as strong and history may play a part in how they finish.
The pats do have these teams that are very capable of beating them:
San Fran - Stronger defense and a healthy Gore with Martz in there.... a surprise team.
San D. - If healthy they could be in the Super Bowl.
Denver - Rough time last year but that was Culters debute...It's up to him to mature if this team goes anywhere.
Indi - No need to go any further.
Pitt - As long as Anthony Smith doesn't play the Steelers should win.
Arizona - Stronger D this year and possibly an offense. Another surprise?
so yeah, there are at least 6 teams very capable of beating the "Great" Pats. Plus, you never know about the division teams. I think one of the teams might surprise people as well, maybe not a super bowl team but a team to take away wins from others.
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6-30-2008 @ 3:18AM
Steve said...
I think he's got just as good of a chance with the Eagles as he does with the Patriots. The Pats are clearly a better team, but they've got to contend with Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Pittsburgh, and some other quality teams in the AFC. In the NFC, only Dallas really stands out as a team that could be really tough to beat in the playoffs (sorry NYG, you had your Super Bowl win, but there's no way Eli is going for #2 this year)
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6-30-2008 @ 3:55AM
claytor said...
so welker, with his 0 championships and "look at how great i can be when half the secondary is keyed on randy moss!" decides to throw samuel, whos a 2 time super bowl winner, under the bus?
lets see....football, no matter how much of a team game it is? is a business.
how many players like samuel get railroaded into settling for low money like the whipping boy troy brown?
and look how tragic hes been. like a bad hanger on, cmon coach! let me play, sir! lapdog.
how many people has bellichik used to attain personal glory, and if you even for a second try to tell me otherwise, that it was ALL about the team? then i suggest you ditch your crack habit.
so yeah, very hypocritical coming from a guy who wouldnt have jack for career numbers, or even a career outside of returning punts and doing tim dwight impressions in miami, if he wasnt paired with randy moss, all world receiver.
even worse for bellichik and brady, two people who have personally made sure their futures are secured with outlandish contracts, to say its all about the "team". well if thats the case....why didnt brady take a pay cut from 11 mil a year to give some back for samuel?
theyd best be served to shut this fruitcake up. well see how good welker does against samuel.
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6-30-2008 @ 7:38AM
racendirt said...
Another case of looking for greener pastures but don't know what you've got til it's gone.
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6-30-2008 @ 9:17AM
sal cunningham said...
Samuel lost the Super Bowl when he let Manning's pass slip through his hands with just over a minute left. How come no one puts the "Bill Buckner" label on him???
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6-30-2008 @ 9:23AM
kevin reed said...
Pats have a 95% chance to getting back to the superbowl and everybody on this page just do not want to say it.
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6-30-2008 @ 9:47AM
Budo said...
So what!!?? All these guys are are cry babies playing a children's game for monies that are ludicrously high. Fans can hardly afford to watch these "entertainers" but what do they acre as long as they get paid their exhorbitant salaries. Opps, I have a hang nail and can't play today.
What narcissistic jokes!
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