Columnists
RSS Feed  RSS
Weei » Columnists » Christopher Price » Christopher Price Archive
ArchivesBlog
About Christopher Price

Christopher Price has covered the Boston sports scene for more then a dozen years, working for ESPN.com, SI.com and Baseball America as well as The Boston Globe, The Washington Post, The Miami Herald and Boston Metro. In that time, he’s established himself as an award-winning sportswriter who has been honored by Northeastern University, the New England Press Association and the North Carolina Press Association. In addition, he’s the author of the just published, “New England Patriots: The Complete Illustrated History” and two other books “Baseball by the Beach” and "The Blueprint: How the New England Patriots Beat the System to Create the Last Great NFL Superpower.”

 
COLUMNS
Christopher Price
04/27/2009 - 10:49pm
Sudden Impact: What To Expect From 2009 Rookie Class
On a team that’s traditionally been stocked with veterans, players right out of college haven’t been asked to make sizable contributions in New England -- last year’s first-round pick Jerod Mayo was the exception rather than the rule. The 2003 rookie class was the last to make a serious mark as a group in its first year, as Ty Warren, Eugene Wilson, Asante Samuel and Dan Koppen all saw extended action their rookie season.
Christopher Price
04/26/2009 - 11:39pm
Best And Worst of The Draft Weekend
Where to start? How about the seven deals? The trade of veteran cornerback and return man Ellis Hobbs to Philadelphia? Or the fact that in a Bill Belichick draft, the Patriots took just as many long snappers as they did linebackers? It was an exhausting weekend, chock full of surprises. In the end, New England added 12 new draftees -- the most ever since Belichick arrived in Foxborough as the head coach in 2000 – and picked up two more second-rounders in 2010, which right now, means the Patriots four picks in the first two rounds next year.
Christopher Price
04/26/2009 - 1:00am
A Day For Dealing In Foxborough
Well, no one can accuse Bill Belichick of being wasteful.
Christopher Price
04/23/2009 - 11:33pm
Potential Draftees Reach Final Frantic Stretch
Tom Petty was right: The waiting is the hardest part. This weekend will be alternately thrilling and terrifying for hundreds of college football players, most of whom will be sitting and waiting at home for their name to be called by Roger Goodell or any one of the other lower-level NFL executives who handle the later rounds of the NFL Draft.
Christopher Price
04/22/2009 - 11:47pm
Feeling a Draft: Mocking the NFL, Version 2.0
1. Detroit. QB Matthew Stafford, Georgia. The only reason the Lions would pass on Stafford is if they had questions about his signability. If they can come to an agreement on the money, there’s no reason to think Stafford won’t go to the Lions. No matter who goes here, the thing I’ll miss most over the debate about No. 1 is the months of on-air skirmishes between Mel Kiper and Todd McShay. It’s like the Lincoln-Douglas debates, only with better hair ... and if one of them was arguing from a sports bar.
Christopher Price
04/21/2009 - 8:30pm
Be Prepared, Patriots Fans: Something Is Going To Happen
Bill Belichick and the Patriots always execute deals on draft weekend. Some of them are seismic in nature -- Randy Moss and Drew Bledsoe, for example. Some of them are for future considerations -- the deals that secured Ty Warren and Jerod Mayo fall into this category. And some of them are smaller deals that really don’t end up making much of an impact.
Christopher Price
04/20/2009 - 11:03pm
The Hot List: What To Watch For This Weekend
Predicting what the Patriots will do in the NFL Draft the last few years has been a difficult task -- they’re famous for keeping their cards close to the vest, and the annual two-day team-building exercise in April is no exception. But over the years, they have provided a few hints as to the kinds of players they like and where they like to take them. If you’re a New England football fan, consider this week’s edition of The Hot List a GPS for a journey through draft weekend.
Christopher Price
04/19/2009 - 6:12pm
Morris Back For Another Season In New England
With all due respect to Matt Cassel, no one can bring it like Tom Brady. Patriots running back Sammy Morris was reminded of that during a recent workout in Foxborough. Brady was throwing passes to Morris, and got a quick reminder that even after last year’s knee injury, No. 12 is unlike anyone else. “He threw me a ball, and you could still hear that little whistle on the ball,” Morris said recently in between workouts at Gillette Stadium. “It’s been a while since I heard that.
Christopher Price
04/16/2009 - 8:00pm
Mayo Not Resting On Rookie Numbers
Jerod Mayo isn’t getting too comfortable. Not yet, anyway. Just because he’s coming off a first season in the pros where he was named Defensive Rookie of the Year, became one of the cornerstones of the New England defense and led the Patriots in tackles, it doesn’t mean he’s settled into what he’s calling “veteran status.”
Christopher Price
04/15/2009 - 6:53pm
Feeling a Draft: Mocking the NFL, Version 1.0
1. Detroit. QB Matthew Stafford, Georgia. The Lions and Stafford appear to be a compatible mix. Everything suggests that the Georgia product has the mental wherewithal to handle the pressure of being a No. 1 pick, and Detroit needs someone to deliver the ball to wide receiver Calvin Johnson on a regular basis. While he probably won't start the season as the No. 1 quarterback — "Don't you know who I am? I'm Daunte Culpepper! I made the Pro Bowl! You can't bench me!" — he'll likely be under center by the end of the year.
Christopher Price
04/13/2009 - 11:10pm
The Hot List: Best Late-Round Bargains
Everyone knows about the first-round studs that have had long and successful careers in New England -- Richard Seymour, Vince Wilfork, etc. But despite what Forbes Magazine may lead you to believe, the Patriots have had more than their share of success throughout all stages of the draft, including in the late rounds. And with the understanding that a true late-round success story can only come from pick No.
Christopher Price
04/06/2009 - 10:16pm
The Hot List: The readers sound off
I got a ton of mail about last week’s edition of The Hot List, which looked at the top five first-round flops in Patriots’ history. Everyone from Tony Eason to Ken “Game Day” Sims to Gerhardt Schwedes and Ron Sellers was called into question.
Christopher Price
03/31/2009 - 12:12pm
Ten Questions With Tim Thomas
By Drew Scott With a little less than two weeks until the end of the NHL regular season, WEEI.com goes one-on-one with the man who will be guarding the net for the Bruins throughout the playoffs, goaltender Tim Thomas. 
Christopher Price
03/30/2009 - 11:17pm
The Hot List: The Worst No. 1 Picks in Patriots History
The Patriots haven’t really swung and missed on a first-round pick in several years, but history tells us that when they’ve missed, they’ve missed badly. Here’s our list of the five worst first-round picks in franchise history:
Christopher Price
03/30/2009 - 1:02am
Quick change: Patriots' template for success means hard decisions
Item No. 1: New Denver coach Josh McDaniels allegedly seeks out a trade for Matt Cassel before speaking with incumbent Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler. Cutler feels alienated, lashes out at organization and demands a trade. Angry Denver fans launch www.savejaycutler.com and www.keepjayfiremcdaniels.com.
Christopher Price
03/24/2009 - 7:27pm
The Son Also Rises: Matthews on cusp of NFL
(The second in an occasional series that looks at college players who could be selected by the Patriots in next month’s draft.) Clay Matthews III has heard it all his life. Most 5-foot-7, 120-pound high school freshmen aren’t entertaining thoughts of life in the NFL. They’re not even thinking about playing high school football. They’re more concerned with not getting stuffed into a locker. Football? Really? Maybe you want to give something else a try. I hear the chess team is having tryouts tomorrow.
Christopher Price
03/23/2009 - 9:36pm
The Hot List: In the spotlight
The Patriots will open their 2009 training camp in just over four months. With the understanding this list may need to be tweaked between now and the last week of July because of personnel decisions, here’s our take on who’s going to be drawing extra attention when the heat is on this summer.
Christopher Price
03/22/2009 - 8:42pm
Ex-BC star Silva finding his way with Colts
Jamie Silva no longer feels like a stranger in a strange land. The former Boston College safety grew up in New England as a Patriots fan, but after a year with the Colts, he’s right at home in Indianapolis.
Christopher Price
03/17/2009 - 10:29pm
The Hot List: Reborn under Belichick
Jason Taylor could be the next player to attempt a career renaissance under Bill Belichick. Since the coach first took over in New England before the 2000 season, several other players have been rejuvenated with the Patriots. In no particular order, here’s our Top 5:
Christopher Price
03/17/2009 - 12:00am
The price -- and payoff -- of Julius Peppers
After making a big move at the end of last month where they traded away Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel, the Patriots could be on the verge of another blockbuster deal. A report yesterday from Vic Carucci of NFL.com indicated New England and Carolina are discussing a deal that would send Julius Peppers to the Patriots for the 34th overall pick in next month’s draft, a selection New England got from Kansas City in exchange for Cassel and Vrabel. According to Carucci, the deal would be done between the league meetings on March 22-25 and the NFL Draft on April 25.
Christopher Price
03/14/2009 - 1:58am
Barwin busting out of traditional mold
While in New England, Troy Brown and Mike Vrabel resisted labels: Under Bill Belichick, they were wide receivers or linebackers in names only. In truth, they were football players who could be moved from offense to defense and back again at a moments notice. Is Connor Barwin the evolution of the species? Some believe the 22-year-old — a defensive end/linebacker/tight end from the University of Cincinnati who will almost certainly be taken on the first day of next month’s NFL Draft — is Mike Vrabel for a new generation.
Christopher Price
03/03/2009 - 1:00am
The Hot List: The art of the deal
The lightning bolt that came of the clear blue sky this past weekend — Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel to Kansas City for a second-round draft pick — got us thinking about the biggest deals in Patriots history. In no particular order, here’s our list of the five biggest trades in the history of the franchise, and how they worked out for New England:
Christopher Price
03/01/2009 - 6:58am
No conspiracy: Pats, Chiefs were perfect partners
In the end, it didn’t come down to a favor, two old pals pulling one over on the rest of the league or one guy feeling all sentimental about the other.
Christopher Price
02/27/2009 - 8:07am
As free agency opens, will Patriots stand pat?
First, let’s make things abundantly clear: Ray Lewis, Albert Haynesworth or T.J. Houshmandzadeh aren’t walking through that door.
Christopher Price
02/27/2009 - 5:13am
Busy First Day for the Pats
While the Patriots didn’t sign a marquee name on the first day of free agency yesterday, they were still involved in one of the most active offseason days in the recent history of the franchise. They bid farewell to a defensive mainstay, were raided by a former coordinator, and gave the offense a boost with the addition of a veteran running back and tight end.


Audio On Demand

It Is What It Is Cast: Ex…

It Is What It Is Cast: Examining the New England Patriots offseason

In the latest edition of the "It Is What It Is" podcast, Chris Price and CSNNE's Mike Giardi take a look at the Patriots offseason on both sides of the ball, try and get a handle on which new guys will make an impact first, and whether or not the Patriots have altered their style when it comes to drafting and developing wide receivers.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk on Tebow's release

Mike Florio joined the program to discuss the Jets decision to release Tim Tebow, he said the situation is as disaster all around for the Jets and that the problems begins with owner Woody Johnson. Mike also said that he was disappointed with the Pats moving back in the first round.

Mike Petraglia, WEEI.com, Sits Down with Butch Stearns to Help Break Down the Pats Draft

One of the hardest working men in the biz, Mike Petraglia aka "Trags", sits down with Butch Stearns live in Foxborough to help break down all the latest Pats moves. He discusses his reaction to the trade in Round 1 and the guys those picks produced. Also, the boys talk about the decent trade the Pats made in acquiring LeGarrette Blount from Tampa Bay for Jeff Demps and a 7th rounder.

Celtics President Danny A…

Celtics President Danny Ainge with Salk and Holley

We check in with Danny Ainge for our first talk to him since the Celtics season ended last weekend. We talk about the future of the team, KG, Pierce, Doc Rivers and more, as Danny directly answers the rumors being floated by ESPN's Stephen A. Smith.

Jackie MacMullan, ESPNBoston.com: "Gut" tells me Doc will stay

Jackie Mac joins the show to discuss the trade rumors swirling around Paul Pierce, KG, Doc Rivers and the Celtics. She also discusses the future of the Celtics head coach.

ESPN's Stephen A. Smith on his rumored Celtics Clippers trade

Stephen A. joined the program to discuss the trade rumors he has reported regarding a possible trade including Doc Rivers and the Clippers. Stephen A. also told the guys that he has heard that Danny and Doc may be tiring of working together.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia pos…

Jarrod Saltalamacchia postgame with Joe and Dave

Salty spoke with Joe Castiglione & Dave O'Brien after he helped his team to a 6-2 victory over the Chicago White Sox tonight. The Red Sox return to Fenway after going 6-3 on the road trip.

Red Sox Manager John Farrell with Salk and Holley

We check in with Red Sox Manager John Farrell live from Chicago and get his take on a good week for the Sox, a tough series since then in Chicago, and other team related notes.

Buster Olney, ESPN, on Ellsbury's future with Sox

Buster Olney joins Mut and Merloni to talk about the struggling Ellsbury and what that is doing to his contract value when he becomes a free agent.

Pierre McGuire, NBC Sport…

Pierre McGuire, NBC Sports: B's have instilled "fear" "concern" and "doubt" into Rangers

McGuire joins Mut and Merloni to discuss the Bruins game 3 win, the Rangers awful power play, and the Shawn Thornton Derek Dorsett altercation.

Shawn Thornton on his big game three

Shawn joined the program to discuss his big night at MSG. He told the guys that it is not Marchand's job to fight and that he needs to be on the ice and out of the penalty box.

NESN's Barry Pederson on the Bruins dominance

Cleveland Indians hottest team in baseball, yet remain last in attendance May 19, 2013 By AJ Kaufman 6 Comments There’s a scene in Major League where Bob Uecker, portraying the radio voice of the Indians, bemoans, “In case you haven’t noticed, and judging by the attendance you haven’t, the Indians have managed to win a few here and there, and are threatening to climb out of the cellar.” Well, that was nearly 25 years ago and fictional, but today’s reality is that Cleveland has won 17 of its last 21, and currently tops the AL Central with a mark of 25-17. No one in the majors is better than the Indians in the past month (20-7). That’s great news. The bad news, however, is the Tribe somehow remain in the MLB cellar when it comes to attendance. How can this be? The fact that I wrote on this same topic almost to the day last year – when only Tampa Bay drew fewer fans than Cleveland - may be even more troubling. Though roughly 34,000 watched a walk-off win Friday night against Seattle, perfect weather and free caps weren’t enough to draw more than 36,000 Saturday and Sunday combined. What did the Indians do in those tilts? They nabbed another walk-off win on Saturday, then the Indians crushed the great Felix Hernandez Sunday behind Justin Masterson, arguably the AL’s best pitcher right now. Fun fact: The Indians have already faced eight Cy Young Award winners in 2013: Bartolo Colon, R.A. Dickey, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Jake Peavy, David Price, Justin Verlander and Hernandez. They have won seven out those eight matchups. Simply astounding. This offseason, the much-maligned Indians front office finally made a legitimate attempt to improve the team through free agency. I’m not talking an Ubaldo Jimenez-like trade, but rather smart acquisitions that brought veterans Mike Aviles, Michael Bourn, Jason Giambi, Scott Kazmir, Brett Myers, Mark Reynolds, Drew Stubbs and Nick Swisher to Cleveland. In addition to being a fantastic place to watch a game due to great egress and ingress, with extremely affordable tickets, the best promo lineup anywhere, Jacobs Field boasts overall, cooler, less muggy summer weather than most Midwestern locales. The team also lowered beer and hot dog prices to $4 and $3 respectively. What other professional stadium in any sport offers that? I have visited 28 of the 30 current Major League Baseball stadia, and few top The Jake when all angles are considered. I say that as a baseball fan, not an Indians fan. As for the putative “economic” angle, these are the same people who spend insane amounts of money to watch terrible football every fall and show up in decent numbers for putrid basketball in the winter. Irrespective of season length, those sports charge up to 10 times the price for a ticket, and the atmosphere isn’t half as fan-friendly as baseball. I understand fans’ lack of willingness to get on board to some degree. A decent recap of Cleveland’s decade of “rebuilding” can be read here and the team suffered a horrific collapse last August. However, in addition to all the benefits of attending games at Jacobs (now Progressive) Field, fans should also realize the team has potential and often exceeds preseason aspirations at any point without warning. Cleveland hosts the rival Detroit Tigers — heavy favorites to repeat as AL Central champs — Tuesday and Wednesday nights before hitting the road. The temperature should be pleasant at first pitch each evening so you’d expect The Jake to be full to watch the best hitter on the planet right now — but don’t count on it.

Former Red Sox manager Te…

Former Red Sox manager Terry Francona catches up with D&C

Terry Francona joins the Dennis and Callahan Show to discuss his first-place Indians team as well as his time in Boston. The former Boston manager also touches on his recent book co-authored by Dan Shaughnessy and Shaughnessy's recent dust-up with David Ortiz.

Shawn Thornton on his big game three

Shawn joined the program to discuss his big night at MSG. He told the guys that it is not Marchand's job to fight and that he needs to be on the ice and out of the penalty box.

The boys respond to Salk's attack

Our afternoon host Mike Salk was offended at Gerry and Kirk's conversation on his favorite band Rush, the guys responded.

Pierre McGuire, NBC Sport…

Pierre McGuire, NBC Sports: B's have instilled "fear" "concern" and "doubt" into Rangers

McGuire joins Mut and Merloni to discuss the Bruins game 3 win, the Rangers awful power play, and the Shawn Thornton Derek Dorsett altercation.

Buster Olney, ESPN, on Ellsbury's future with Sox

Buster Olney joins Mut and Merloni to talk about the struggling Ellsbury and what that is doing to his contract value when he becomes a free agent.

Shawn Thornton sticks up for Marchand as Derek Dorsett backs down

Mut and Merloni discuss the Derek Dorsett, Brad Marchand, and Shawn Thornton altercation and how great it was.

An hour with Jack Edwards…

An hour with Jack Edwards: Bruins win all four line match-ups with Rangers

With the Bruins up 3-0 in the series, we talk to Jack Edwards and take your calls. We touch on all things B's-Rangers and also focus on the future of the Bruins three promising young defensemen.

Salk and Holley's Four at Four - 05/22/13

We touch on four topics we haven't talked about today... topics today include: Brian Urlacher retires, NFL schedule expansion, Sergio Garcia and more...

Golfer Sergio Garcia goes 'Fuzzy Zoeller' and gets racial against Tiger Woods

We discuss Spain's Sergio Garcia and his ignorant, racist comments against Tiger Woods.

Daily Planet Tuesday May …

Daily Planet Tuesday May 21st

The Bruins look to take a 3-0 series lead, Jon Lester gets his first loss, Dwight Howard has options in free agency.

Daily Planet Monday May 20th

Today on the Daily Planet the Bruins have a 2-0 lead over the New york Rangers, the Red Sox are back on the winning sde of things, and the noteable birthdays of the day.

Daily Planet Thursday May 9th

The Bruins have almost finished raking the Leafs, the Red Sox struggle from the mound, Miami Heat fans show their level of class.

Salk and Holley's Miked U…

Salk and Holley's Miked Up and Answer the Question - 05/22/13

The Jerks are joined by another, Jerk Minihane.

Salk and Holley's Miked Up and Answer the Question - 05/21/13

They're like a ray of morning sunshine on an otherwise gloomy day.

Salk and Holley's Miked Up and Answer the Question 05/21/13

....uhhhh.....a bunch of bombs over there....

Linda calls in to describ…

Linda calls in to describe the scene on Dexter St in Watertown

Linda explains how the shootout transpired in Watertown during the early morning hours. She saw the first suspect mortally wounded and police beginning the manhunt for the second suspect.

More from this show

Boston bombing hero Jeff …

Boston bombing hero Jeff Bauman: "He's dead and I'm still here"

Jeff Bauman, a victim of the Boston Marathon bombing, joined the show to give the guys an update of his condition and a first-hand account of that terrible day. Jeff told the guys how he wrote the description of the bomber as soon as he could. Mr. Bauman added that he is aided every day with the knowledge that he is alive and the terrorist that detonated the bomb is dead.

More from this show

Elliotte Friedman of CBC …

Elliotte Friedman of CBC on the Bruins dominance of the Rangers

Elliotte Friedman joined the show to discuss the Bruins domination of the series thus far. He said that while nothing is certain he cannot see a way in which the Rangers come back and win the series.

More from this show

Former Red Sox manager Te…

Former Red Sox manager Terry Francona catches up with D&C

Terry Francona joins the Dennis and Callahan Show to discuss his first-place Indians team as well as his time in Boston. The former Boston manager also touches on his recent book co-authored by Dan Shaughnessy and Shaughnessy's recent dust-up with David Ortiz.

More from this show

Steve Zipay of Newsday on…

Steve Zipay of Newsday on the Rangers

Steve joined the show to discuss the Rangers and their coach John Tortorella. Steve said that the Bruins have been the far better team thus far in the series.

More from this show

Weei Writers