THE WISH LIST FOR THE OFFENSE
Same as before
I would think that the offensive brain trust would want to keep one of the top offenses in the league, and perhaps add a player. They certainly don't want to consider how to deal with the loss of a couple of key players if they can avoid it.
RE-SIGNS
Welker, Edelman, Woodhead, Vollmer and Thomas
Alternative: draft a top OT instead of re-signing Vollmer.
ADDS
A new set of potential additions at wide receiver including a top draft choice.
I would agree that they'd much rather see a progression with the current offense than to start over with certain things without Wes Welker. That could potentially change a lot of things depending upon your personal feelings. The loss of Welker could even mean a major difference in the running game too, as it could trickle down to some shifts on the OL and bring in more "usual" running sets and less draws.
The re-signs list is obviously debatable. I wouldn't personally have Vollmer in there myself, as that specific player assessment will probably not be what he could fetch from other teams, and not what Bill Belichick would be willing to pay. Edelman, Woodhead, and Thomas should be somewhat reasonable. Any combination of 2 out of those 3 would be just fine, although I would probably include Thomas as one either way.
I think that both of their personal wishlists would include a WR with more ability to shift focus from a safety, which would not only allow for potentially more downfield plays, but also less underneath coverage for our players who specifically excel in that. At the very least it could be a "choose your poison" type issue.
As you said, that could come in the form of a new draft pick or two, and could also be addressed with a lesser cost rejuvenation project from any one of the WRs who may be on the FA list, cap casualties, or roster cuts.
HOW TO PAY
restructure of Mankins
Extension of Brady (one of our posters thinks that this is inevitable this year)
Realizing that you are talking about Mo, I think that a reasonable argument could be made that the 2013 cost of Brady in salary cap hit alone would be quite enough of a reason for extension. There are other aspects such as additional cap savings for this year, along with being able to tie Brady into a "reasonable" contract for the future as the QB numbers continue to rise. His play has still remained at a level that warrants keeping him obviously, and after all, he still only has 2 yrs left on his current deal, so it'd have to be this year or next year anyway....
