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Indefinite New England Patriots Thread (9 Viewers)

Depending upon who you believe, the Patriots had some level of interested in WR Marvin Jones. Jones himself said he chose the Lions over the Patriots and Bengals.

Safety Tavon Wilson will apparently become a UFA and won't be back.

Pats said to be interested in RB Bilal Powell.

 
Not interested in Forte... yet.

Hear they are interested in Sanu and Rishard Matthews. Kendall Wright might be a cap casualty in Tennessee, he would be another good target.

At least they are looking at WRs, might actually sign one.

Ladarius Green flying to Pittsburgh, would have liked NE to take a shot at him.
 

 
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I don't think there will be anything coming out of Forte. I expect him to sign within 48 hours of the started of free agency. Maybe 72 hours tops. NE rarely signs guys when the bell rings, as they prefer to wait people out, wait for other teams' cuts, and let opponents overpay in the first and second waves of signings. Maybe they will change how they operate and mix things up a little. Revis, Adelius Thomas, and Roosevelt Colvin being more the exception than the rule.

 
Forte won't be signed until Miller and Martin get signed.  Need to set the market price, and the Ivory deal may have made it harder for the RBs to sign so quickly.

 
Scraping the barrel at WR, TE and RB coming off a season where having no depth defined the season.

Got around 20 million minus the Develin and Waddle deals.

I don't think they can afford to sit and wait this offseason.

 
Doug Martin resigned with TB, so that's one back off the list. Miller will be gone quickly.

I would still rather they resigned the key cogs they have than overpay for guys. Can't see them paying an imported WR more than Edelman (getting $3.5 million total this year).

 
Lafell, Gibson and chandler all gone.   Looks like Amendola is the wr2.  Healthy Edelman Amendola gronk and Lewis would be formidable,  but they have so little depth it's ridiculous. 

You're not getting a good pass catching tight end.   We've had very little success finding cheap receivers to step in.  I tend to agree with David that they're not going to get Forte.   But if lewis goes down they would be a perfect fit for Arian foster later in the year.  

 
Said to be talking to Sanu, but I have never felt he was anything special. I like Rishard Matthews better, but so will other teams with more money to spend. I hope they don't go for the one step from being out of the league, old timer, stop gap option at receiver. Rumored to really like Braxton Miller. I wonder how Jared Cook would fare in NE, although he's another one that probably isn't ready to take what NE would offer him this early in free agency.

Would be interesting if they made an offer to C.J. Anderson. Blount wants to come back, but I am not sure the Patriots really want him. He'd be one of the later signings for dirt cheap, as I don't see there being a big market for his services. If CJ2K were interested in leaving ARI, he might be a decent RB option for lower type dollars.

 
And I can't wait for the sky is falling crowd that will be yapping what every other team is doing to better their rosters while NE will likely sit around and observe the first few days of free agency. I have friends who are connived NE will fall to 6-10 based on free agent signings and NE player losses each year. I tell them to wait until opening day to see how rosters will shape up, but that never gets me anywhere.

 
Well that didn't take long. Forte, Martin, Miller, and Ivory all off the board and free agency hasn't even officially started. Despite being linked to all of them (or at least speculated by reporters), I did not see them ponying up the money for a RB.

 
Anarchy99 said:
And I can't wait for the sky is falling crowd that will be yapping what every other team is doing to better their rosters while NE will likely sit around and observe the first few days of free agency. I have friends who are connived NE will fall to 6-10 based on free agent signings and NE player losses each year. I tell them to wait until opening day to see how rosters will shape up, but that never gets me anywhere.
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Well, thats two seasons now that the Dolphins and Jets have added a ton of pieces.

Granted they missed the playoffs but both teams looked improved at the end of last season. While the Pats limped into the AFCCG from week 10 onwards with no depth.

There were a lot of opportunities to go after some guys and its looking like very little left at this point.

Sproles assuming he gets cut, Powell, Foster. Rishard Matthews, Rueban Randle, Kendall Wright if he gets cut.

Nothing in the TE department with Green going to Pitt, maybe Gresham?

 
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The Pats had only marginal personnel losses this off season and when healthy were the best team in the league last year. They will be fine. At a certain point, the goal is to keep a core together and plug and play role players and acquire depth.

They almost always come up with some unexpected help. Look at Lewis and Sheard last year. Just because bigger names get signed by lower tier teams for big money doesn't mean the Pats got dramatically worse.

Stay the course, extend the play makers on defense, get some depth on both lines, and take a flyer on a WR, RB, and CB.

 
I didn't say they got dramatically worse, or worse at all even. They just need some depth and a couple pieces to start, not no depth and barely a full roster.

Pats just signed another STer that we can throw on top of the pile.

Might be different if they had the picks to draft weapons, but they don't.

At this point, Sanu and Powell is probably best case. 

 
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Sounds like Powell was a kick the tires and check the asking price kind of a thing. Pats said to no longer in on Powell. Don't see them paying Sanu twice what Edelman gets, so stories of him coming for a visit seem odd (unless the numbers being reported are wrong).

Brady finally signed his extension. $28 million signing bonus and $41 million in new money. I have no idea how that impacts this year's salary cap yet.

Said to be in the mix for CJ Anderson.Speculation that they should go after James Jones or Anquan Boldin.

 
Field Yates is the one saying $41 million for Brady. Bert Breer said only $30 million. Not sure what correct number is. Contract may have Brady making only $1 million base salary this year and next year.

 
Everything I've seen suggests his Salary will be $1 million this and next year, then $14 million the two seasons after that.

With his new signing bonus combined with his old signing bonus, they will save $1 million this year and $2 million the year after. Additionally, if Brady were to be suspended either of those seasons, he just reduced the amount of money he would lose from missing games by 90%.

 
Per Mike Reiss . . .

Tom Brady extension has $28 million bonus, sets up 2018 as key markerFOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's two-year contract extension through 2019 includes a $28 million signing bonus and creates $1 million in salary-cap space this year and $2 million in space for 2017, reports ESPN NFL Insider Field Yates.The deal, which includes $41 million in "new money," has officially been filed with the league and breaks down as follows:

Signing bonus: $28 million

2016
Base salary: $1 million
Cap hit: $14 million

2017
Base salary: $1 million
Cap hit: $14 million

2018
Base salary: $14 million
Roster bonus: $1 million (paid per game)
Cap hit: $22 million

2019
Base salary: $14 million
Roster bonus: $1 million (paid per game)
Cap hit: $22 million

Analysis: Brady and the Patriots have a unique business relationship built off trust and the first thing to know is that his pacts have traditionally been extended/altered with two years remaining. So while it's natural to look at the spike in his salary-cap charge for 2018 and 2019 and wonder how those numbers will fit in the squad's team-building model, chances are the deal will be reworked before those cap hits ever become a factor. And if the deal isn't reworked, the question then becomes, "Does a $22 million cap hit for the 40-year-old quarterback still work for all parties involved?" Given the increase in the NFL salary cap on a yearly basis, that number might still be viewed as a bargain if Brady is still playing at a high level. If he isn't playing at a high level, that could be a transition point when the team has a challenging decision to make with Jimmy Garoppolo's contract scheduled to expire after the 2017 season. We just saw a situation in Denver that had some of those dynamics in play, as backup Brock Osweiler's contract expired after four seasons and he landed a four-year, $72 million deal in Houston.

 
Never exciting being a Pats fan these first few days of free agency...that being said there is some real stupid money being thrown around (and the Pats aren't losing anyone this year)...they definitely have holes to fill (RB-WR-TE-OLine-#3 CB) but their main priority moneywise has to be next year's free agent class...Hightower/Collins/Butler are must-signs and there are quite a few other valuable pieces that are up...they can't screw themselves for short-term gain...once the smoke clears with the high-ticket players I think you'll see them be very active (they have to be...the state of the current rosters dictates that) and start adding guys like a Benny Cunningham, Chris Hogan or Rueben Randle for team-friendly contracts...CJ Anderson is very intriguing but gotta believe it will be tough to give him a deal that Denver doesn't match (or they may simply be outbid by someone else)...

 
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The problem which isn't guaranteed, but is still unsettling is that if they don't fill those gaps then they are in even worse shape going into this season as they were last. Lafell gets hurt during the off season and suddenly they're playing catchup all year and it just kept getting worse and they still almost made it back to the superbowl, they could have won that Denver game. They just needed something, anything for a little insulation from that.

So here we are, waiting for them to make a move, any move. It's unsettling, I have faith but it's still disappointing.

 
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Just a reminder that free agency hasn't even opened yet.  Local media speculating that Goodell set it up this way so the Jets could get Forte and the Patriots couldn't get anyone.   

 
Run It Up said:
The problem which isn't guaranteed, but is still unsettling is that if they don't fill those gaps then they are in even worse shape going into this season as they were last. Lafell gets hurt during the off season and suddenly they're playing catchup all year and it just kept getting worse and they still almost made it back to the superbowl, they could have won that Denver game. They just needed something, anything for a little insulation from that.

So here we are, waiting for them to make a move, any move. It's unsettling, I have faith but it's still disappointing.
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Not point in paying steakhouse prices for McDonald's hamburgers. They will add pieces one way or another. Many of the players getting big raises will end up doing more damage than good in their new environments. Fiscal restraint is the methodology to implement for a lot of these free agents. I would much rather they pay the guys they have that they know are good rather than overpay for guys that haven't proven much and would be new to the team.

They will add at least 1-2 each at RB and WR. They will draft 1-2 OL men. They will add a CB from somewhere.

 
Anarchy99 said:
Not point in paying steakhouse prices for McDonald's hamburgers. They will add pieces one way or another. Many of the players getting big raises will end up doing more damage than good in their new environments. Fiscal restraint is the methodology to implement for a lot of these free agents. I would much rather they pay the guys they have that they know are good rather than overpay for guys that haven't proven much and would be new to the team.

They will add at least 1-2 each at RB and WR. They will draft 1-2 OL men. They will add a CB from somewhere.
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Agreed...the price for the guys getting signed is silly...I like a guy like Sanu but to get him here you would have to pay him much more than Edelman and Edelman gets more targets in a game than Sanu gets in a year...the Pats are (finally) on the verge of having a dominant defense but it's not going to happen unless they have the money to keep the young guys...that is the first priority...like you said, they will be adding pieces...they won't be flashy names and some of them won't work out but they won't put them in a position where they hurt their cap space next year...this team is real close...I think they are the best team in football if last year's injury disaster doesn't repeat itself...there is zero doubt they need some reinforcements but they are the type you can get without breaking the bank...as a fan it does kind of suck missing out on all the big names but more often than not that formula doesn't work out in the long run...

 
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The WR deals have been bad, but Forte for 3 years at 4m a year is not bad.

Anderson just signed an offer sheet with Miami. Can't think of a RB available at this point, Ridley? Sproles hasn't been cut, yet.

The Jets added Khiry Robinson AND Powell to go with Forte. They lost there entire backfield, and now have a great backfield, for peanuts.

 
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Run It Up said:
The WR deals have been bad, but Forte for 3 years at 4m a year is not bad.

Anderson just signed with Miami. Can't think of a RB available at this point, Ridley? Sproles hasn't been cut, yet.

The Jets added Khiry Robinson AND Powell to go with Forte. They lost there entire backfield, and now have a great backfield, for peanuts.
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I would love to have Forte but that is decent money for a 30 year old RB...I would rather it go to keeping a young CB like Logan Ryan...there are still RBs out there like Starks (who I like), Foster, Joique Bell and Alfred Morris...if they grab one of them, add another in the draft and Lewis is healthy they will be good...WR will be interesting because they are razor thin there and counting on a rookie WR is dicey...I would like to see them grab a couple of viable WRs because if Edelman goes down they are screwed...

 
Yeah, they are sitting on Keshawn Martin, Jules and Dola. All 3 have terrible injury histories. Jules and Dola play a violent role fearlessly. Its just not good to be this thin.

 
You can cross CJ Anderson off the candidate list. The Fins signed him to an offer sheet for 4 years and 18 million. So he will either be a Dolphin or a Bronco  

 
Chris Hogan seems like a perfect Patriot fit. Underrated contributor who simply makes plays when given the chance. Pats never panic and never fall in love. They just continue to find value and contributors to their squad. Love the way they handle free agency.

 
How do you prepare in March for a playoff game? 

Because they'll be in the playoffs, certainly. They've done it emphatically with far less talent than what they have now. It all boils down to whether they have what it takes to beat the latest "flavour-of-the-month" team that sucked before, and will suck again, but rules for the time being (e.g. Denver, Baltimore, etc.)

 
Run It Up said:
By ensuring you have enough depth to avoid a repeat of the 2015 season where they should have made the Superbowl back to back again.
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And you expect them to predict injuries? You expect them to be perfectly, bulletproof deep at EVERY position?

I'll bet anything that the offense, with nothing but the usual names, will be as awesome as always this season, and the defense will see serious injuries... or not, who knows!

 
Run It Up said:
By ensuring you have enough depth to avoid a repeat of the 2015 season where they should have made the Superbowl back to back again.
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While I agree with this concept I don't think it's fair to pass normal judgement on this past season...the amount of injuries was just ridiculous and it seemed like it happened to almost every key player not named Brady...Solder, Volmer, Stork, Wendel, Jackson, Edelman, Amendola, Blount, Lewis, Gronk, Jones, Easley, Hightower, Collins, Sheard and Chung all got either dinged up or lost for the season at some point...the fact they got to the AFC Championship and were very competitive in it was a minor miracle...I think there is zero doubt that one of the main goals for this offseason is depth...some positions need it badly...yet this is an area that you can be patient with because it will be filled thru the draft, team-friendly contracts and maybe a trade or two...they just don't need to be throwing big time money around this offseason (unless it is to extend players) to solve their issues...

 
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Chris Hogan seems like the most Patriots player ever:  Lacrosse player, two-way football player, undrafted, scrappy, smart, sneaky athlete. He will fit right in.

 
I do agree that it would have been unrealistic to expect something like last season to happen. But now that it has and they cut half of their receivers, it seemed like a pretty clear path.

 
I do agree that it would have been unrealistic to expect something like last season to happen. But now that it has and they cut half of their receivers, it seemed like a pretty clear path.

 
The Patriots received 4 compensatory picks: a third rounder (No. 96 overall) and three sixth rounders (No’s. 208, 214 and 221 overall).

 
Run It Up said:
I do agree that it would have been unrealistic to expect something like last season to happen. But now that it has and they cut half of their receivers, it seemed like a pretty clear path.
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Those half weren't doing much of anything.  Other than body count, I don't see the current WR corps being any different right now than it was during the season.

 
Lafell, injured, was a pretty big piece, granted he obviously fell off a huge cliff.

Hogan officially a Pat.

Now does Dola take a pay cut? Do the Pats go after another WR or look to draft one - both?

 
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