UDFA deals, as per Reiss

[captain stone]

Examining rookie free agent deals - New England Patriots Blog - ESPN Boston

Looks about right; the first 5 were the main priority, the last 2 mainly tackling dummies for the defense.

I kinda wish that Bill had found another $10K to sign one of the better UDFA DBs, too.

 

[Jimke]

Examining rookie free agent deals - New England Patriots Blog - ESPN Boston

Looks about right; the first 5 were the main priority, the last 2 mainly tackling dummies for the defense.

I kinda wish that Bill had found another $10K to sign one of the better UDFA DBs, too.

Each team is allotted $76,000 for UDFA bonus money so the Patriots
did not have enough left over ($5000) to sign a couple more quality free agents.
I bet there is a heck of a signing frenzy. The Patriots did land some
quality UDFAs.

 

[patfanken]

one of the great things about being an UDFA is that you get to choose where you are going to go, and if I were a good UDFA and checked the Pats roster, it would be one of the last places I wanted to go, unless I was a RB or S. Based on the ratings and the small number of UDFA's signed, I think the FO did a really nice job in getting the guys they did. The Pats might be a great organization to work for and learn the game, and despite having a great record of have UDFA's stick, it wasn't going to be a hot spot for UDFA's this season.

 

[Jimke]

one of the great things about being an UDFA is that you get to choose where you are going to go, and if I were a good UDFA and checked the Pats roster, it would be one of the last places I wanted to go, unless I was a RB or S. Based on the ratings and the small number of UDFA's signed, I think the FO did a really nice job in getting the guys they did. The Pats might be a great organization to work for and learn the game, and despite having a great record of have UDFA's stick, it wasn't going to be a hot spot for UDFA's this season.

This was one of the better years for the Patriots with regard to signing UDFAs. GBN produces a list each year of the top UDFAs. The Patriots
signed the following rated players from the GBN list: #3 Forston, #18
Bolden, #58 Zusevics, and #81 Francis. The Patriots spent $71,000 of
the $76,000 allotted for UDFAs bonuses.

 

[patsfaninpa]

Prior to draft day we didn't have a 5th, 6th or 7th round pick. If a team had drafted; Warren, Fortson and Zusevics with their 5th, 6th and 7th rounders nobody would have batted an eye. Stock up on the trenches. Might get lucky like Deaderick or Pryor on DL. Or, OL like any number of guys Belichick has brought in.

 

[Uncle Rico]

This seems like as good a place as any to get this; I saw the Reiss post, plus the Globe story on the UDFAs, and decided to become more familiar with some of them.

Found this thread on another site re: Ridley v Bolden, looking back on when they were being recruited, from an LSU fan perspective. Some interesting comments:

Ridley is a hard runner. I like his style but he just doesn't have the acceleration to make big runs. He always makes a good read but can never get to the outside. It is obvious he lost a step after his ACL injury. He is strictly a North/South runner.

Bolden would have kept Ridley's arse on the bench, he's NFL caliber talent. Ridley is not.

No real conclusion here, just an interesting aside that these two have compared against each other in the past and opinions on their relative value has been a moving target.

 

[MP-Logick]

Reiss has updated to show that Jeremiah Warren actually received $28,000. They clearly wanted him a lot.

 

[patchick]

Reiss has updated to show that Jeremiah Warren actually received $28,000. They clearly wanted him a lot.

OK, so they spent their UDFA cash allotment, strongly targeting 4 players at positions (RB, DT, OL) where depth was questionable. I'll take that.

BTW, everybody who makes a fuss about Dowling's injury history should take a look at Forston to see what an injury-plagued college career actually looks like.

 

[mayoclinic]

Reiss has updated to show that Jeremiah Warren actually received $28,000. They clearly wanted him a lot.

It's interesting how much the Pats valued Warren. Zukevics, Forston and Bolden were higher profile UDFAs, but Warren was the first guy signed and clearly the team valued him quite a bit. He has a wrestling background. It will be interesting to see how he develops, especially if he can make it to the PS.

 

[captain stone]

OK, so they spent their UDFA cash allotment, strongly targeting 4 players at positions (RB, DT, OL) where depth was questionable. I'll take that.

BTW, everybody who makes a fuss about Dowling's injury history should take a look at Forston to see what an injury-plagued college career actually looks like.

May I ass-ume that you don't need to be told the difference between Dowling and Fortson?

 

[mayoclinic]

May I ass-ume that you don't need to be told the difference between Dowling and Fortson?

Forston was a much-heralded recruit at the U who drew comparisons to Vince Wilfork. Even as recently as last year he was projected to be a day 1 or 2 pick.

From hyped to humbled - BostonHerald.com

 

[captain stone]

Reiss has updated to show that Jeremiah Warren actually received $28,000. They clearly wanted him a lot.

I just saw that, too.

$28K? That seems like a lot, esp. for an OLman whose weight has fluctuated - though trending downward -
and who cannot block speed or into the 2nd level.

 

[mayoclinic]

$28K? That seems like a lot, esp. for an OLman whose weight has fluctuated - though trending downward -
and who cannot block speed or into the 2nd level.

Presumablty Scar had some say in the matter. He has a pretty good track record with late round/UDFA OL, though no one's perfect. He must see something in Warren.

 

[captain stone]

This was one of the better years for the Patriots with regard to signing UDFAs. GBN produces a list each year of the top UDFAs. The Patriots signed the following rated players from the GBN list: #3 Forston, #18 Bolden, #58 Zusevics, and #81 Francis. The Patriots spent $71,000 of the $76,000 allotted for UDFAs bonuses.

I'm not doubting you, but I'm interested in knowing from where the $76K figure came.
I knew that there was a max allotment for each team's rookie pool, but I wasn't sure
if that included UDFA signings.

 

[Sciz]

Warren was a predictable target. I think it was Curran who listed Warren as a surprise mid-round pick for the Pats, so I'm guessing he heard something from within.

 

[captain stone]

Presumablty Scar had some say in the matter. He has a pretty good track record with late round/UDFA OL, though no one's perfect. He must see something in Warren.

I'm sure that Scar saw the 10" hands, 34" arms, 84" wingspan, 28 reps, 31" vertical
and 101" broad jump - the last 2 better than DeCastro - and knew that this was a
strong young man who understands leverage & posesses some explosion, and can
use his hands & arms to lock up a defender in front of him, and remove him for the
duration of the play. The only position he could play here, however, is RG, and a
non-pulling one at that.
Is he worth the $28K to find out what his future could be here? Possibly, though I
would've tried to hold firm on an $18K bonus, and used the extra $10K on a UDFA
Safety, a position that has been somewhat surprisingly under-addressed throughout
the entire off-season.

 

[SirApropos]

Warren also was a Wrestler in HS and was 32-0 his senior season. We've seen that work before for the Pats.

 

[patchick]

May I ass-ume that you don't need to be told the difference between Dowling and Fortson?

You mean that Dowling had a very productive college career, outstanding measurables, and was considered the leader of his defense? I do know how you loved that pick!

 

[captain stone]

You mean that Dowling had a very productive college career, outstanding measurables, and was considered the leader of his defense? I do know how you loved that pick!

My thoughts exactly...


But seriously, folks...
Warren's wrestling backgroud def. works in his favor; besides Stephen Neal, other OLmen
were HS wrestlers, too. Warren, however, is also 30 lbs. heavier than Neal and might not
have the mobility of even Marcus Cannon.
I'll be keeping an eye on him during TC, as well as on Donald Brown, Robert Gallery, Matt Kopa
& Nick McDonald.

 

[Jimke]

I'm not doubting you, but I'm interested in knowing from where the $76K figure came.
I knew that there was a max allotment for each team's rookie pool, but I wasn't sure
if that included UDFA signings.

After the draft, I read that $76,000 was allotted for rookie signings.
I figured that the amount is much too low for the draft choices so
it has to be the UDFAs. Other years, all rookies, undrafted and drafted,
were included in the rookie pool. There was no limit on UDFA bonus money.
Maybe, too much money was diverted from the draft picks?