salty

There has been a lot of talk on this board of specific players the Patriots should go after in free agency. What I'm wondering is, what areas of needs MUST the Patriots address by signing veteran free agents? These would be positions where a rookie, even a first round pick, could not be expected to step in and fill the void.

I would argue that the answer is ILB and WR. Both of these positions are missing a starter, and lack depth as well. At ILB, we should have Bruschi back next year at one position. He is getting old and is certainly not the playmaker he once was, but I think he is still solid against the run and, of course, a team leader. However, there is a gaping hole at the other ILB position. The only options on the team right now appear to be Eric Alexander or Barry Gardner, and I doubt either of those guys can hack it as an every down starter.

As for wide receiver, the lack of a potent down-field threat, or a playmaking threat, at that position severely handicapped our offense last year, IMO. Caldwell had a much better year than many expected, but I don't like him in the starting lineup. Jabar Gaffney has more promise and, after a monster post-season, is almost certainly qualified to be a starter. So that leaves the need for AT LEAST a viable downfield threat, though I would argue that they should be a starter as well.

Perhaps a rookie ILB could be effective, but it certainly seems as though the position requires a degree of football knowledge that can only be obtained through years of experience at the NFL level. As for wide receiver, we all know that rookie wide receivers rarely contribute much.

That is why I think that ILB and WR absolutely must be addressed through free agency (or perhaps a trade).

Thoughts? Comments?

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What an off-season!

BradyManny

We were ridicolously close to our 4th super bowl in 6 years, we need two things a) a little depth b) to slightly upgrade a few key spots.

I think depth can largely come in the draft rounds 3+, we need to use FA & draft rounds 1&2 to upgrade a couple spots. When you're team is already as good as the Pats are, and already on Super Bowl level, it's hard to get that much better. It's a tough task.

IMO, our main focus should be upgrading ILB. Troy Brown's decision and Chad Jackson's health would help answer the WR position somewhat, it's a need, but nearly not as pressing as ILB. If we went into the season with Gaffney, Caldwell, Jackson, Brown + one FA, I think we'd be set there.

satz

Getting 2 Guys
Polk OLB released from the chargers and harris the 27 yr old ILB or Donnie edwards ILB with bru and seau will solify our LB unit .Eric alxendar got 1 start and i do not know how good brushi /seau / ted johnson were on their first start ie where they better than 10 tackles , 1 FF and a Sack?[his numbers from the 1 game he played].If we would have won eric would have been hailed the second coming of brushi.

We have tonne on DB`s on IR .them returning will upgrade our defence and then on the offence get a OL , WR [realistically both will contribute next year] so that will set us for a few yrs .If ty warran is gone then a DE must be signed ini the first round.
Draft some db and rb again next year contibuters.

thanks
Satz

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salty

I like your optimism, but I'm going to have to disagree with your assessment.

The Patriots were quite close to another Superbowl win (I think we can assume they would've beat Wrecks Grossman and the Bears). However, the loss to the Colts was the result of weaknesses being exposed that had really been there all year long.

The Colts beat us offensively because we had very little depth behind an aging linebacker corps. The Patriots answer before the year was to bring in a 37 year old vet who predictably got injured. After that we were left with very little, and by the AFCCG we were starting a guy who was seeing his first ever significant playing time. Not a good situation to be in. So I feel like a MAJOR upgrade is necessary at the position, not just a couple band-aids.

As for wide receiver, by the end of the year teams were constantly stacking the line of scrimmage against the Pats because there was very little chance that we were going to beat them deep. This really limited the effectiveness of the offense, and we saw that harsh reality when the Patriots weren't able to move the ball with much effectiveness against the Colts in the second half, and were unable to get ONE friggin' first down that could have ended the game. Why did that happen? Because the Colts were sitting on the short routes and completely selling out against the run. You don't do that unless you know there is very little chance that the opposing offense can make you pay for it.

So I agree that we can add a lot of depth through the draft, but I think the Patriots MUST bring in a quality veteran at both the ILB and WR position in order to position themselves to compete for the title again next year.

satz

I thiink the colts game is a bad example as let say we were upgrade the team that played the colts all we have to do is get the players who could not play the full game
ie
Colvin
Brushi
seau
dillion
fault
maroney

put them back in the team that lost to the colts and thay would beat them.

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HarleyDavidson-Turning gas into noise for more than 100 yrs without the side effects of power and still making a tonne of money a great american business model.


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salty

Well yes, but its not as if it should've been a surprise that we lost some of those players. Seau was 37, it was only a matter of time until he fell apart. Ditto on Dillon with his age and apparent lack of conditioning. Faulk has never been the most reliable guy, Maroney hit the rookie wall.

Point is, we should not have been relying on a 37 year old linebacker, an aging safety (Harrison), an aging RB, and the most pathetic WR corps in the league. Steps need to be taken to rectify those situations in order to get back to the Superbowl next year.

Johnny Handsome

Brian Simmons was released by the Bengals. Played ILB and OLB. Quality guy. 31 yrs. old. hurt his neck last year and missed considerable time but has always been productive prior to that. Neck is healed. Can play multiple positions, quality locker room guy. Sounds like a perfect PAT!!!

The 12th Man

My opinion on this:

1) ILB-One more year out of Seau would be great. He'd fill that other ILB next to Bruschi and draft 1(or even 2) high to develop for next year.
2) S-Draft 1 high (maybe M.Griffin but who knows if BB likes him enough). Also bring in a veteran FS (wishful thinking here, but maybe K.Hamlin from Seattle if they don't resign him-he is a beast when healthy and could easily overtake Wilson spot in case Eugene goes down again). I think J.Sanders is a pretty good SS backup for now and still not sure why we let Tebucky go, he could have been that backup unless it's due to his injury.
3) CB-Assuming everything goes well with Asante's extension, we have our two solid starters for next few years in him and Hobbs. Clements is out of the question. Now we need some depth here and drafting one would be a clear option (maybe second or third round knowing BB can find good CB talent later in the draft). Also, Gay coming back next year should help a lot. He is easily a great #3 for us when healthy.
4) WR-Veteran needed here absolutely. C.Jackson probably wont play most if not the entire year (I see BB placing him on the IR because roster spots will be very important early) and he's not fully developed yet anyway. Caldwell and Gaffney are GOOD, not great. Only improvements in FA from them that I see (which will be difficult to sign) are Stallworth and Bennett. Some say Curtis also for his speed, I guess that it would hurt, but signing one of these 3 will be very important.
5) TE (or simply D.Graham)-we NEED him to come back. Very important part of our offense. There aren't many other options in FA and the you can't rely on a rookie too much to come in and do the things Graham did (especially blocking) right away. Please, Daniel, come back. $4 mil a year is not bad at all. Watson and Thomas are both mainly receiving TEs. Not sure if Mills can fill in the void either if Graham does leave.
6)OLB-prefer by draft here. It also all depends on who is available at #24 and #28. We can get two spots taken care of here out of ILB,OLB,CB,S, or WR). Like I said, all depends on who is still there. The next two rounds should address another two of those positions, IMO. Colvin and Vrabel still have it, even though they are slighty over 30 now. Tully (hoping he resigns) would be a back up, along with Alexander, Woods, Mays.
7) RB -of course, Maroney will be a fine starter and Faulk is an exceptional third down back for us and returner. We do need a veteran who can take a few carries to behind Maroney, nobody big (J.Lewis or A.Green) but simply a veteran who understands his duty for the team (maybe N.Goings or N.Davenport, not sure)
8) QB-3rd string veteran. Not sure on this one. We don't really NEED one, but anything could happen. Some say B.Johnson would be the perfect solution and he might, just depends we sign him. Other than him though there isn't anyone special that I can think of now. Bledsoe's return? Just kidding.
9) Special Teams- Larry Izzo come back, can't wait to see Mel Mitchell finally play this year (hopefully), another good tackler? Personally that is why I was dissappointed when we released Tebucky, he's great on ST and a solid backup at the same time. There must have been more to his injury or personal reasons, not sure, but sad to see him go.
10) DL-Obviously our starters are set (including J.Green). This is mainly concerning depth, with M.Hill coming into question. I like Wright, Smith and Thomas as backups.

The OL looks good, of course K is set, P is relatively set (I assume Miller is our guy, even though Sauerbrun had good playoffs, he'll most likely get a lot of looks elsewhere), FB is Evans, no doubt.

The 12th Man

I don't think we really need another aging LB, do we?

Johnny Handsome

For the right price he could definitely help. He should have a few good years left. Heck, Seau helped us before he went down. Add a smart versatile vet and add a couple in the draft.