Tuesday Patriots Notebook 3/10: Patriots Interested in Helu? Vereen to Become a Giant? More Notes
 All eyes will be on Revis when free agency opens later today. (USA TODAY Images) |
On Monday the Patriots reportedly opted not to pick Darrelle Revis' $20 million option on his contract, which now means he'll hit the free agent market. As a result, now the waiting game will begin to find out if he'll be back in the fold for 2015.
They're expected to remain in contention for his services but all indications are that the New York Jets will make a full-on blitz for the veteran defensive back, which could complicate the situation and it remains to be seen if another team will join the fray and set up a scenario where the offers climb to a point that the Patriots are forced to decide to let him move on.
The Jets are ready to try and bring him back and according to Kristin Dyer of Metro New York, they know Revis 'never wanted to leave' and now plan on doing what they can to bring him back.
“Darrelle would be open to the Jets,” Metro’s source reportedly said. “He never wanted to leave. And the team is planning accordingly.”
That will be a tough pill to swallow, especially given the fact that Revis was a key reason why this team won their fourth championship last month. After locking up Devin McCourty for five years Sunday night, if they were to re-sign Revis, their secondary would more or less be set heading into next season and they'd, once again, have one of the more formidable units in the NFL.
But it all hinges on his return. According to the Boston Herald's Jeff Howe, Monday saw New England tell Brandon Browner that he's free to explore his value around the NFL, which likely means that the team may not opt to trigger his $2 million roster bonus, which would cause him to count $4.8 million against the team's salary cap and instead will try and restructure his deal. Receiving that bonus would lock in his contract for 2015 and 2016, and now with his situation being a little more uncertain, the interesting thing about that is the fact one would believe the Patriots wouldn't let Browner walk unless they felt they were confident they'd be able to retain Revis.
Over the coming days we'll find out. Revis has talked on more than one occasion about how much he's enjoyed his time here and he knows the opportunity he has with this football team if his goal is to continue building his legacy and become a 2-time - or more - Super Bowl Champion. He knows he's going to get paid. Now it's just a matter of whether or not the Patriots end up in the same vicinity numbers-wise as the teams that will begin trying to lure him out of Foxboro when free agency begins.
Hopefully it will work out, but it's ultimately his decision. But how the Patriots conduct themselves in the coming months personnel-wise hinges on how this plays out and this will be the story everyone will follow until we find out if he'll remain part of this defense for the foreseeable future.
PATRIOTS INTERESTED IN ROY HELU?
With Shane Vereen likely expected to potentially be lost when the free agent market period opens, it appears the Patriots are exploring their options.
According to Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald the Patriots are reportedly among three teams interested in Washington Redskins running back Roy Helu, who has a similar skillset to Vereen and could be an option in the event the bidding war for Vereen reaches a point that the Patriots are forced to walk away from.
Helu has accumulated 1,132 yards on 255 carries in his four seasons, including 129 receptions for 1,152 yards and 10 touchdowns and his price tag is expected to be more reasonable and would likely be no where near the $3.5 million - or higher - that Vereen may potentially be commanding on the open market.
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
- Speaking of Vereen it appears there are already a variety of teams showing interest in his services, including the New York Giants. According to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News the Giants are "very serious" about signing Vereen and adding him to their backfield. According to the report the deal could get done soon after the market opens today at 4pm.
- Chris Mortenson reported yesterday that Ndamukong Suh is expected to sign a contract with Miami based off parameters around $114 million and $60 million guaranteed, per sources. That obviously creates a problem for the Patriots, who just saw their division rival become a little more dangerous.
- Some fans wondered why the Patriots didn't initially give McCourty the franchise designation but when the details emerged regarding the five year deal he recently reached it made a little more sense from a financial standpoint. According to reports McCourty will count just $6-million toward to the salary cap, which is much lower than the $9.5 million he would have counted had the Patriots tagged him and he had signed the tender.
- The news about Wilfork hit fans pretty hard, but it also hit players hard as well and McCourty told ESPN's Mike & Mike that he plans on doing what he can to make sure Wilfork comes back. “It’s tough to think about [Wilfork leaving], especially for me," said McCourty via WEEI.com. "I’ve grown very close with him over the last couple of years and I’ve been talking to him throughout the whole process, but I think you have to try to move on. Obviously with me returning, I’m going to do everything I can do to get him back there playing in New England. It’ll be cool just to see what happens over the next month and hopefully he’s still back there helping out.”
- McCourty also admitted that having a guy like Tom Brady also influenced his decision. In an interview with SiriusXM NFL Radio McCourty admitted that having a group of guys like this is a motivating factor since he knows they'll consistently be competitive. “It was definitely one of the main factors, being able to play with the group of guys that are there,” said McCourty via the Boston Globe. “When you got a quarterback like that, you know you always have a chance to win.”
- According to the Tennessean, the Titans were heavily involved and made a major push at trying to lure McCourty out of New England. The newspaper reported that the team "did everything they could" to try and convince him to join his brother Jason, but in the end, he obviously picked the Patriots.
"The Titans were definitely considered,'' agent Andy Simms told the newspaper. "They made a strong pitch, and did everything they could. We had some good conversations with them. And Devin was definitely interested in Tennessee. But the Patriots organization stepped up."
- The Patriots posted a funny "save the date" wedding letter to Bill Belichick, with one caption saying "Let's Party" and a stone faced photo of Belichick. You can view it here.
- The summer of Gronk continues, with Rob Gronkowski shown twerking at a recent L.A. Clippers game Monday night. The Washington Post has the video clip, which shows him getting down and having a little fun as he was captured on the scoreboard.
