Day One of Free Agency

[FredFromDartmouth]

you don't know wtf you are talking about. You are just a puppet dancing to the media's tune.

Whoa. How do you really feel about it?

I am mild compared to what Felger is going to say...wait did I just compare myself to Felger? SMACK-MY-HEAD Ack. I need to change my meds.

 

[screamingPatsFan]

I agree. Was great to get these guys signed. Hoping to get the rest locked up soon. I think people expect the world in one day, and when it doesn't happen they get all mad, and chicken little. Without these guys we don't even make it back to the playoffs. I was dissapointed not to get Boldin but, for better or worse, I've gotta believe BB's got a plan as well as contingencies upon that.

Get this guy some more coolaid... how can anybody be satisfied after today??????
We merely have the same team as the one that got tortched by the ravens (not counting Faulk, Bodden, and TEs) so don't tell me we will be OK and the division will be ours again.
Other teams are getting better.. we are not... they have missed on so many draft picks its not funny and that's a sign of the beginning of the end.

 

[tanked_as_usual]

The difference is that the Steelers 3-4 Defense is a one gap system that relies on its linebackers being able to blitz to help the D-line.

The Pats 3-4 Defense is a 2-Gap system that relies on the D-line to tie up O-linemen so the Linebackers can make the plays in either of the 2 gaps they are responsible for.

The Pats never lost the notion that the LB group needs to be strong. They just haven't been able to keep up with attrition in that group.

Not to mention that this past year showed how important a solid front 3 is.

blah blah 1 gap.....blah blah 2 gap........if over the last 5 years, they could not round up decent prospect to fit their scheme, then maybe its time they change the scheme........if the scheme needs are so specific, then there is a problem with the scheme......so the bootom line is that the defense will be a mess until the team finds the exact LB's it needs? sounds like a great plan

and while your comments my pertain to the ILBs there no reason this team should be left without starting quality OLB''s

 

[mgteich]

Why does it appear that we will all our holes in the draft since we have ONLY signed three players in the first day of free agency.

Please realize that there are FIFTY DAYS of free agency before the draft. We ahve just complete the first of those fifty.

I don't know what will happen, but I can be reasonably certain that we will make lots of moves in the next 49 days.

Great news about keeping Wilfork. Otherwise, the team is treading water at this point. It appears that they will fill holes with the draft -- making this year's decisions extremely important with 4 picks in the first 53.

Wouldn't mind them picking up Thomas Jones if the price is right.

 

[Jangles]

this day was meh imo

I think they passed on a good thing in Boldin. I wanted Peppers but I'm ok he went elsewhere. I just think they should have been a little more aggressive with Boldin

 

[Rob0729]

There are still plenty of free agents available who can significantly help this team. To name a few:

Thomas Jones - A superior between the tackle runner that the Pats haven't had since Dillon

Larry Foote - Solid ILB who is great against the run and good in coverage

Jason Taylor - A very good situational pass rusher

Derrick Mason - Older, but good route runner, versatile, style is a good fit for the Pats' offense

DeShea Townsend - Pats gave him a tender offer. Solid CB who could an one year placement at CB and potentially a FS for several years

LJ Smith - good receiving TE and decent blocker

Reggie Kelly - Very good blocking TE and a good short yardage receiver

Vonnie Holiday - Experience in the Pats' 3-4 in both Denver and Miami. Good pass rusher at DE. Would be an upgrade over Jarvis Green

Adewale Ogunleye - Might be a low risk, high reward experiment to convert to an OLB. He could have a McGinest like revival by taking his hand off the ground and moving outside the tackle. He greatest skills are to anticipate the snap well and having some speed. His problem is he can get overpowered rushing inside the tackle. Moving to OLB might actually allow him to exploit his strength and hide some of his weaknesses. Wasn't in love with the idea at first, but more research tells me he might be worth a risk if we can get him cheap.

Ryan Clark - A smart, physical, athletic FS. He can lay the wood (just ask Wes Welker) and he is tough. He is the type of player the Pats used to have at multiple positions on defense.

Chris Chambers - Not in love with the guy, but he is a big WR who can get down the field. Has talent to be a #2 or #3 on this team

Antonio Bryant - Elite talent with consistency issues.

Josh Reed - A good #3 or #4 WR option. Good route runner with good hands. More quick than fast. The type of WR the Pats usually had prior to Moss and Welker

LaDainian Tomlinson - Yeah, I know. Mr. Classy. Not a lead back anymore, but could excel in a Kevin Faulk type role.

And those are just the UFAs. Yeah, none of those guys are as flashy as Peppers or Boldin and many of them are only one or two year stop gaps. But if you can get 4-5 of these guys (very doable), you can significantly upgrade many of the team's weaknesses in multiple areas rather than spending a boatload to fix one area.


These are the type of moves that got the Pats to the Super Bowl in 2001 and to a certain extent in 2003 and 2004. In recent years, many of these types of players have not been available because the cap was such that players didn't release them. It is time for the Pats to go old school and pick up solid veterans who have been shedded from their roster because of salary issues over production issues.

 

[DaBruinz]

blah blah 1 gap.....blah blah 2 gap........if over the last 5 years, they could not round up decent prospect to fit their scheme, then maybe its time they change the scheme........if the scheme needs are so specific, then there is a problem with the scheme......so the bootom line is that the defense will be a mess until the team finds the exact LB's it needs? sounds like a great plan

and while your comments my pertain to the ILBs there no reason this team should be left without starting quality OLB''s

They thought they had a starting quality OLB in Thomas. They thought they had one in Burgess and thought the depth behind them was good. You can't predict Thomas throwing his tantrums, Burgess struggling the way he did, and the depth either not panning out or being injured.

If you can predict injuries, please get on the phone to BB and let him know who is going to be injury prone in the draft and who will suffer injuries and when so BB can prevent them..

 

[Rob0729]

this day was meh imo

I think they passed on a good thing in Boldin. I wanted Peppers but I'm ok he went elsewhere. I just think they should have been a little more aggressive with Boldin

Boldin hasn't signed anywhere. The Pats have worked out deals in the past with their own free agents that would allow them to get the right to match any offer the player gets. Bodden wants to stay a Patriot and he might have given them that option. Bodden isn't gone yet.

 

[Jangles]

Boldin hasn't signed anywhere. The Pats have worked out deals in the past with their own free agents that would allow them to get the right to match any offer the player gets. Bodden wants to stay a Patriot and he might have given them that option. Bodden isn't gone yet.

re-read your post because it confused me

I think Bodden will stick around which is cool

I wanted Boldin on the team. He signed with Ravens right....

 

[Rob0729]

re-read your post because it confused me

I think Bodden will stick around which is cool

I wanted Boldin on the team. He signed with Ravens right....

I inferred that when you said that you wished that the Pats were more aggressive with Bodden that you think he might have slipped through their fingers. Sorry.

 

[tanked_as_usual]

They thought they had a starting quality OLB in Thomas. They thought they had one in Burgess and thought the depth behind them was good. You can't predict Thomas throwing his tantrums, Burgess struggling the way he did, and the depth either not panning out or being injured.

If you can predict injuries, please get on the phone to BB and let him know who is going to be injury prone in the draft and who will suffer injuries and when so BB can prevent them..

a healthy crable would not fill the hole, and they've know that thomas has not been all that for quite some time now........they knew vrabel was getting old for some time.........and even when they traded him last year, they knew they had nothing behind him which was why they panicked and got burgess....at the end of the day, they got burgess and a 2nd rounder for cassel, vrabel, a 3rd and a 5th.....talk about spinning your wheels.....and by the same token, you could not expect to get the level of play that was needed out of burgess......they left themselves high and dry

 

[Jangles]

I inferred that when you said that you wished that the Pats were more aggressive with Bodden that you think he might have slipped through their fingers. Sorry.

I didn't say Bodden in my post though

that's why I was confused

 

[DaBruinz]

a healthy crable would not fill the hole, and they've know that thomas has not been all that for quite some time now........they knew vrabel was getting old for some time.........and even when they traded him last year, they knew they had nothing behind him which was why they panicked and got burgess....at the end of the day, they got burgess and a 2nd rounder for cassel, vrabel, a 3rd and a 5th.....talk about spinning your wheels.....and by the same token, you could not expect to get the level of play that was needed out of burgess......they left themselves high and dry

You forgot the 18 million in cap space that they got as well. Which allowed them to sign Fred Taylor, Shawn Springs, Leigh Bodden, and some others..

And we have no idea what a healthy Crable would have done. None.

And no, when they traded him, they still had a feeling that they could get something out of Robertson, Craig and Redd. You know. Guys that weren't cut until Training Camp.

You can only get so much in any given year. You can't get everything, though we all would like to think it's possible. The Pats added quite a bit last year and those players should get better. Do they have holes? Yep. So does every other team in the league. Even the Jets. Anyone who thinks otherwise is fooling themselves.

It's Day 1 of Free Agency and the Pats did right in getting Wilfork and TBC re-signed. And they did so in a way to quell some of the BS "The Pats don't take care of their players" talk. Bodden and Faulk are supposedly in talks with the Pats as well.

There are plenty of free agents available, UFA and RFA alike. The Pats have gone into just about every draft with a full roster. There are 49 more days to go for that to happen.

Missing out on Boldin stings, but the Pats do have the right to be cautious regarding an injury plagued WR who may have locker-room issues.

Missing out on Peppers doesn't hurt when you remember Adalius Thomas.

Missing out on Walter stings because that's a deal the Pats should have been able to swing without question. And Walter is worth it. Unless they know something we don't. Which is quite possible.

Dansby hurts the most because he went to the Dolphins. But the Dolpins have a huge number of holes on defense. They are without OLBs. And they don't have a quality NT. And they just let Gibril Wilson go. But, even with them, it's only the first day of free agency. So a lot can change.

 

[BradyFTW!]

No me. Not in the least. The Patriots cheapness is starting to show ...

wtf are you talking about? They just made Wilfork the highest-paid 3-4 NT ever, and gave $4.5M per to TBC. Amazing how in one thread you have chicken littles complaining that both are overpaid, and in another you have chicken littles complaining that the team cheaped out. Fans are really, really dumb sometimes.

 

[BradyFTW!]

Missing out on Peppers doesn't hurt when you remember Adalius Thomas.

I would be angry if the Pats had signed Peppers to the contract that the Bears signed him to. That's exhibit A in how to not be a playoff team.

 

[Deus Irae]

They thought they had a starting quality OLB in Thomas. They thought they had one in Burgess and thought the depth behind them was good. You can't predict Thomas throwing his tantrums, Burgess struggling the way he did, and the depth either not panning out or being injured.

If you can predict injuries, please get on the phone to BB and let him know who is going to be injury prone in the draft and who will suffer injuries and when so BB can prevent them..

Why couldn't we predict Burgess struggling the way he did, or the depth not being good?

 

[emoney_33]

It's a good starting point, but as tanked said, all of these guys were around last season. It's a good thing that they're back (the worthwhile ones; we won't see Watson or Green or Hanson back), but more needs to be done.

This isn't like a post-championship or post-late playoff loss team when the goal was to just get the team back up to the prior year's level. The goal this year needs to be to get the team back to that level and higher, because that prior level wasn't good enough.

So while re-signing Wilfork, Neal, and TBC is good, and hopefully Bodden follows, these were moves that had to be made to get the roster back to its former state, although it's not even there yet. Now the team needs to go out through trades, free agency, and the draft and improve upon this starting point.

But all in all, I'm satisfied that they got the job done today. Securing Boldin would have been a plus, but there will be other opportunities to improve the team.

Hopefully they start with finding a tight end. Or two.

I disagree with the status quo argument. There's a lot of 1st, 2nd and even 3rd year players that will have another year experience going into next season. That instantly upgrades the status quo for quite a few players.

I do agree with the sentiment that we aren't nearly done yet and I look forward to what this team will look like in 6 months.

 

[Sean Pa Patriot]

Well I did not expect Peppers- and would not want him for that contract he signed...


Was not expecting Wilfork to be resigned- Nice he is back full time

TBC and Neal resigned- good

But to blow the Anquian Bolden trade , is just mind blowing..


I didnt think day 1 would be a big splash instead , I left very frustrated... Still a long way to july , but the Pats have a lot of work to do, if they want to compete in the AFC...

 

[PatsChamp88]

Less quality UFAs = More overpaid UFAs and I'm glad we didn't bite after seeing some of the contracts out there but we are only through one day and trades will still happen.

 

[LuthierJr]

Get this guy some more coolaid... how can anybody be satisfied after today??????
We merely have the same team as the one that got tortched by the ravens (not counting Faulk, Bodden, and TEs) so don't tell me we will be OK and the division will be ours again.
Other teams are getting better.. we are not... they have missed on so many draft picks its not funny and that's a sign of the beginning of the end.

What I'm saying is that we can't expect to solve every issue in one day. You have to start somewhere and in this case, it seems, BB believed it was to start with our own players that, in his eyes, needed new contracts. You can call it drinking the "coolaid" [Kool-Aid] I prefer looking at it as differing to someone who has vastly more understanding of football, and how the NFL works than some chatboard regulars do.

The Patriots, under this head coach, have become one of the greatest franchises to ever play. So I, nor any other supporter of this team, need to make excuses or give any explanations for our trust in Bill Belichick or his strategies. It's fun to play armchair GM here, but lets face reality. If you, or I, or probably anyone on this forum were actually in charge of the team and all the decisions it would be disaster.

My uncle gave 12 years of his life to this franchise and I will, unabashedly, follow and support the people in charge who have given us one of the greatest runs from any team in NFL history. I don't expect the world from them in the course of one day. You've got to start somewhere in the off-season process, and the guy who knows more about this than all of us decided to start with our own team. I support that. Sure the team is basically the same team that got smashed or "tortched" in the playoffs, but there is a LOT of time left in the offseason. I'm pretty sure Bill and the front office aren't gonna stop here.