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With the Pats season over and free agency (hopefully) and the draft still a ways away, I figured this would be a good time to look back - and look forward - with some discussion at each position on the team.
Offensive Line
Matt Light (free agent)
Logan Mankins (free agent)
Dan Koppen
Stephen Neal (injured reserve)
Sebastian Vollmer
Dan Connolly
Nick Kaczur (injured reserve)
Quinn Ojinnaka (free agent)
Ryan Wendell
Mark LeVoir
Rich Ohrnberger
Steve Maneri (practice squad)
Thomas Austin (practice squad)
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Hot Topic Light and Mankins are free agents, and the belief is that the Patriots will work to keep both of them in town. Mankins should be the top priority, but there's no telling how much ill will remains between Mankins and the organization. If he is interested in returning to New England, the Patriots have the resources to make it happen. Light shouldn't demand as much money as Mankins, and if the left tackle is willing to take a hometown discount to finish his career in New England, the two sides should have an easy time working it out. But if Light is looking to find the biggest payday possible, it seems like an almost-certainty that another team will bowl over the three-time Pro Bowler with an enticing contract offer.
Offseason Question Will Stephen Neal retire?
For the first time in the last 12 months, Neal seemed a little perturbed with the retirement questions he faced as he cleaned out his locker last week. We can read into that a million different ways, but the fact is that Neal said he wouldn't make a decision on his future until he finished rehabbing his right shoulder, which required season-ending surgery. The 34-year-old has missed 28 regular-season games since 2006, and he has only played a full season twice in his career (2004 and 2005).
When healthy, the right guard has been a valuable member of the Patriots' offensive line. His contract runs through 2011, so the decision is his. If both Neal and Mankins return next season, Neal and Connolly would battle for the starting job at right guard.
Key Rankings for Pats O-line
2nd in rushing touchdowns
9th in rushing yards
10th in yards per carry
4th fewest in sacks allowed
I want Mankins back and Vollmer at LT, plus a whole new right 60% of the line. Koppen needs to go, Connolly needs competition, and it's probably not best to plan on Kaczur as the RT for the whole season.
My first move would be to talk with Dante.....which of our backups can start in this league? If we have to take a small step backwards to get younger so be it, as long as TB remains upright.
I dont see how anyone would pay Mankins the same $$ that we could go get Woodley for.... Big money guys make plays! I know what Mankins does but he does not make plays. Sorry. I think Light is well-liked and is more likely to take the home town discount.....but coming off a Pro Bowl year his cost is going up too. Vollmer can easily play LT, Light cant play RT. We do have Kazcur coming back, and I think he is the wildcard. Connolly is servicable if unspectacular. If Neal is healthy I think he comes back, he is GOOD if he is healthy. Koppen is starting to look bad and sloppy. He is under contract so he is back but if Ornberger or one of the backups cant step up soon Dante will have to train a new pleeb. If it were my money...
LT-Vollmer
LG-Connolly--maybe RG/C next year
C-Koppen--last year
RG-Neal--last year
RT-Kaczur--or LG
Draft 1 interior and 1 OT, a highly drafted RT may kick Kaczur back to competing for LG but it still looks like we should have options without Mankins and Light. With our multiple TE formations our Tackles wont be left on islands all that much anyways.
My first move would be to talk with Dante.....which of our backups can start in this league? If we have to take a small step backwards to get younger so be it, as long as TB remains upright.
I dont see how anyone would pay Mankins the same $$ that we could go get Woodley for.... Big money guys make plays! I know what Mankins does but he does not make plays. Sorry. I think Light is well-liked and is more likely to take the home town discount.....but coming off a Pro Bowl year his cost is going up too. Vollmer can easily play LT, Light cant play RT. We do have Kazcur coming back, and I think he is the wildcard. Connolly is servicable if unspectacular. If Neal is healthy I think he comes back, he is GOOD if he is healthy. Koppen is starting to look bad and sloppy. He is under contract so he is back but if Ornberger or one of the backups cant step up soon Dante will have to train a new pleeb. If it were my money...
LT-Vollmer
LG-Connolly--maybe RG/C next year
C-Koppen--last year
RG-Neal--last year
RT-Kaczur--or LG
Draft 1 interior and 1 OT, a highly drafted RT may kick Kaczur back to competing for LG but it still looks like we should have options without Mankins and Light. With our multiple TE formations our Tackles wont be left on islands all that much anyways.
Thank goodness you have no power regarding Patriots decisions.
__________________
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane."
- Marcus Aurelius
My first move would be to talk with Dante.....which of our backups can start in this league? If we have to take a small step backwards to get younger so be it, as long as TB remains upright.
I dont see how anyone would pay Mankins the same $$ that we could go get Woodley for.... Big money guys make plays! I know what Mankins does but he does not make plays. Sorry. I think Light is well-liked and is more likely to take the home town discount.....but coming off a Pro Bowl year his cost is going up too. Vollmer can easily play LT, Light cant play RT. We do have Kazcur coming back, and I think he is the wildcard. Connolly is servicable if unspectacular. If Neal is healthy I think he comes back, he is GOOD if he is healthy. Koppen is starting to look bad and sloppy. He is under contract so he is back but if Ornberger or one of the backups cant step up soon Dante will have to train a new pleeb. If it were my money...
LT-Vollmer
LG-Connolly--maybe RG/C next year
C-Koppen--last year
RG-Neal--last year
RT-Kaczur--or LG
Draft 1 interior and 1 OT, a highly drafted RT may kick Kaczur back to competing for LG but it still looks like we should have options without Mankins and Light. With our multiple TE formations our Tackles wont be left on islands all that much anyways.
Do you want Brady to make it through the season?
__________________
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My first move would be to talk with Dante.....which of our backups can start in this league? If we have to take a small step backwards to get younger so be it, as long as TB remains upright.
I dont see how anyone would pay Mankins the same $$ that we could go get Woodley for.... Big money guys make plays! I know what Mankins does but he does not make plays. Sorry. I think Light is well-liked and is more likely to take the home town discount.....but coming off a Pro Bowl year his cost is going up too. Vollmer can easily play LT, Light cant play RT. We do have Kazcur coming back, and I think he is the wildcard. Connolly is servicable if unspectacular. If Neal is healthy I think he comes back, he is GOOD if he is healthy. Koppen is starting to look bad and sloppy. He is under contract so he is back but if Ornberger or one of the backups cant step up soon Dante will have to train a new pleeb. If it were my money...
LT-Vollmer
LG-Connolly--maybe RG/C next year
C-Koppen--last year
RG-Neal--last year
RT-Kaczur--or LG
Draft 1 interior and 1 OT, a highly drafted RT may kick Kaczur back to competing for LG but it still looks like we should have options without Mankins and Light. With our multiple TE formations our Tackles wont be left on islands all that much anyways.
You're the guy who predicted the Pats would take Gronk, Cunningham and Spikes in the 2nd round lat year right? Don't think anyone had even predicted 2 correct picks for the entire draft before that never mind getting 3 picks in the correct round. Amazing. Don't know how you pulled that off.
Any opinion on Ohrnberger? I know he hasn't played much but what are your thoughts on him?
First instinct: The tackle spot was solid in 2010, with 10-year veteran Matt Light on the left side and Vollmer on the right. Both were 16-game starters, giving the Patriots stability and a high level of play.
Storyline not to be overlooked: Light’s future, as his contract expires and he will be a free agent when there is a new collective bargaining agreement. Both sides have expressed interest in extending his deal -- probably in the two- to three-year range -- when the time is right (likely after a new CBA is reached). If Light is not back, Vollmer probably flips to the left side and opens the right side for competition.
Future: Vollmer and Kaczur are both signed through 2012. With Kaczur coming off back surgery that sidelined him all of 2010 and scheduled to earn a base salary of $3.4 million in 2011, one wonders if management -- which has been high on him in the past -- will now view him as too expensive to keep on the books. Kaczur’s future could wind up being tied to Light’s, or a possible high draft choice. Elsewhere, the Patriots have felt comfortable with LeVoir (signed through 2011) when he’s been pressed into duty, and thought highly enough of Maneri (signed through 2012) to claim him on waivers from the Texans and keep him on the 53-man roster for three weeks in 2010. Free agent Quinn Ojinnaka could also return.
Final thought: One of the big questions entering 2010 was where Vollmer would play -- left tackle or right tackle. He was named a second-team Associated Press All-Pro on the right side. While he has shown the ability to swing, the return of Light on a two-to-three-year deal, and keeping Vollmer at right tackle, seems like the best 1-2 punch.
In a sitdown with a handful of reporters on Thursday afternoon, an NFL spokesman talked about the financial consequences of a possible lockout, and one of the things that came up was the fact that the league expects the franchise tag to still be in place for teams to use this year, beginning in February. With the looming labor uncertainty, there was some question as to whether or not the franchise tag would still be in place.
This should have an impact on the Patriots when it comes to sitting down at the bargaining table with free agent Logan Mankins. New England has commonly used the franchise tag on players while they continue to negotiate with them — they did it last year with Vince Wilfork, and also did it in the past with former kicker Adam Vinatieri — and could use it as they talk with Mankins about a new deal.
2011 Offseason Outlook - Offensive Line
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