Julius

I was thinking about something Jimmy Johnson said to BB about staying on top and keeping a team together. He said you have to figure out the players that you can't win without and keep them together.
Right now we are seeing the last of the core Patriots from the 1996 superbowl run go. First Woody than Milloy,Bledsoe,Johnson,Law, and now Mcginest,and likely Brown and Adam too. That leaves Bruschi as the last of the Mohicans.
My question is who of the newer Pats is worth locking up for the next five years and being the new core veterans to build a team around. My guess is
1. Brady
2. Seymour (He makes everyone around him a better player)
3. Branch (When he was hurt we didn't have a very good offense)
4. Light (Already signed might not be the best but gets it done)
5. Vrabel (Smart player and still young)
6. Warren,Wilfork,and Green (It's hard finding D linemen and it would be nice for this group to stay together and develop together.
I would have put Wilson on the list but I see Safety as a position that is not worth locking up a lot of money in and he is replacable. The same logic goes for guard and center. Whats missing from the above group is more young linebackers.

italian pat patriot

i agree on yr 'top 3' list (Brady, Seymour, Branch).

Fanfrom1960

You guess Brady? He's a newer Patriot? Anyway, I don't think the powers that be necessarily think about a "core" for the team. Sure, some players are a lot more important to keep than others (your list, but there must be more guys on the offensive side of the ball that are very key), but I would think Belichick and Pioli look at the entire payroll and start allocating the bucks until the whole thing is spent. I envision a "warroom" with lots of whiteboards, and some other coaches and advisors come and go but food is only slid under the door for the head guys. There may not be exact names next to all the blocks of cash for a while, rather, player positions.

CrazyDave

Wilson, Colvin Vrabel (still) hopefully Watson? obviously Brady.

R_T26

woody wasnt on the 96 team.

Pats Fanatic

I think that Wilfork should go into the 4th spot, he starting to become an impact player, Seymour like. If he continues the improvement that he made at the end of last year he will move up into the top three.

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pats1

Offense:

Brady
Branch
Graham
Watson
Light
Mankins
Koppen
Kaczur

Defense:

Seymour
Wilfork
Warren
Samuel
Hobbs
Gay
Wilson
Sanders
Scott

Julius

I totally forgot about Daniel Graham. He may go the way of Givens since tight end is a position that can be replaced and we have Watson coming up.

richpats

Our "core" for the next few seasons:

OFFENSE

Brady
Faulk
Branch
Light
Mankins
Koppen
Kaczur
Watson

DEFENSE

Seymour
Green
Wilfork
Warren
Bruschi
Vrabel
Colvin
Harrison
Hobbs
Sanders

SPECIAL TEAMS

Vinatieri
Miller
Paxton

mgteich

I like this core. I would note that this requires several extensions/re-signings, not all of which will or should happen. You need to re-sign Koppen, Branch, Seymour, and Vinatieri.

I don't know what we mean when we say "few". If we are going beyond 2007, Bruschi must also be re-signed.