Does Wes Welker play for the Patriots in 2013?

[Ivan]

I say yes. The patriots payed Welker almost 10 million for one year because they realized he was integral to the success of their offense, and since there are almost no realistic options for replacing his production they are going to have to find a way to construct a deal with him to stay or take a huge step backwards offensively for the foreseeable future. 4-32-20 guaranteed would probably get it done and i think Welker would be likely to take a cut rate deal like that if the guaranteed money was good enough.


If by some outside chance they do trade for Harvin then Welker is gone, but that is doubtful.

 

[kennyb]

I don't think he does. Only way he does is if he goes to FA and comesback without an offer he thinks is worth it. Then he swallows his pride and signs here for 7.5M per.

 

[BradyBranch39]

wow, two thirds of you say No. Expected closer to 50/50, since I have no idea.

 

[Helmet2Helmet]

For several reasons, I sure hope not.

 

[mgteich]

The broncos, the colts and others are anxiously waiting (and hoping) to see if Welker is available as a free agent.

 

[Ring 6]

Ty Law,Deion Branch and Seymour were in their primes when they left...the front office does not care who you are,if you are a problem regarding cap space and refuse to adapt to it...you are gone.

No player in NE is worth sacrificing the near future and Welker despite being a star player is no exception,you accept the offer or see ya bye bye.

Welker could be added to that group by summer

Ty Law wasnt in his prime when he left, but your point is valid.

 

[Ring 6]

No, Wes Welker will be catching his 100 balls elsewhere next season.

Hopefully, the Patriots have a good plan to replace him. The plan they had to phase him out of the offense last season didn't exactly work. I'm not holding my breath we'll see Mike Wallace or Greg Jennings here and will not be surprised when Brandon Lloyd is shown the door either.

Maybe, that's for the best, We've become a little obsessed with big-name players around here. But, the Patriots don't need a Larry Fitzgerald or Calvin Johnson. Give me an off-season where the Patriots can sign, draft, or develop another Patten, Givens and Branch and this offense will be even better than it has been. Perhaps, that's what Brian Daboll was rehired to do.

The thing is they can't have a plan at all. Because they cannot know what any player will cost, and as we all know they will never target a player and pay whatever he wants. They also have no clue who would fall to them in the draft, and anyone guaranteed to fall to 30 is nowhere near a surefire good rookie.
If he goes, its because they don't like the plan that includes him, not because they have a better, because there is no way to know with any amount of certainty if you can get a decent replacement at all, much less one that fits a plan.

 

[supafly]

The broncos, the colts and others are anxiously waiting (and hoping) to see if Welker is available as a free agent.

I think that there's a possibility that the "Welker to Denver" talk may be a bit overrated in my opinion.

They already get some pretty decent value from Stokely as it is. I think he caught close to 50 balls for them this year, is cheap, and works well with Manning. He's coming off his best season since 2008. I'm not seeing the value of changing that up to be honest.

Adding a 9-10 million dollar slot WR to probably take some of the production away from 2 of the better up and coming WR threats of the game when you can still use Stokley and his cheap deal is almost silly in my opinion.

THOMAS--94 receptions 1434 yards 10 TD

DECKER--85 receptions 1064 yards 13 TD

STOKLEY--45 receptions 544 yards 5 TD

TAMME--52 receptions 555 yards 2 TD

 

[Ivan]

For several reasons, I sure hope not.

First being it would hurt the Jets.



Other than that it makes no sense.

 

[supafly]

First being it would hurt the Jets or Ravens.



Other than that it makes no sense.

Helmet2Helmet sounds more like a Ravens moniker to me, so I fixed your quote for ya

 

[patsfan-1982]

i hope he dose but i said no they just give there two young TE's new contracts and if they can stay on the field a full 16 games and the playoffs they will be Bradys #1 and #2 opt with or without Welker IMO

 

[Ivan]

i hope he dose but i said no they just give there two young TE's new contracts and if they can stay on the field a full 16 games and the playoffs they will be Bradys #1 and #2 opt with or without Welker IMO

If Welker is here he will always be Brady's most productive receiver.

 

[Ivan]

Helmet2Helmet sounds more like a Ravens moniker to me, so I fixed your quote for ya

I guess he fooled me, I was expecting "Antlers2Helmet" from a Ravens fan.

 

[supafly]

If Welker is here he will always be Brady's most productive receiver.

Absolutely, as he should be.

I think the extensions of the 2 TE's was great. It locked them up at reasonable rates for the forseeable future, which was going to be a priority at some point in the next year or so anyway. They can continue to take advantage of personnel mismatches that exploit both pass and run game weaknesses vs the opponents, and the 2 TE's should continue to be a focal point of the offense.

Welker though, will always be the go-to guy when Brady is in need. He's his security blanket and those 2 are almost always on the same page, time and time again. Welker and Brady take advantage of their ability to read pre-snap defensive alignments which is a must in this offense, yet those 2 do it perfectly and make it look downright easy most of the time.

Welker's a chain-sniffer and he may be the toughest damn WR I've actually ever seen all around, certainly pound for pound anyway. I am trying to temper my expectations of him being retained because I am worried, but it's hard. Welker should be here for another couple/few years, and I wish they could make it happen.

 

[Ivan]

Absolutely, as he should be.

I think the extensions of the 2 TE's was great. It locked them up at reasonable rates for the forseeable future, which was going to be a priority at some point in the next year or so anyway. They can continue to take advantage of personnel mismatches that exploit both pass and run game weaknesses vs the opponents, and the 2 TE's should continue to be a focal point of the offense.

Welker though, will always be the go-to guy when Brady is in need. He's his security blanket and those 2 are almost always on the same page, time and time again. Welker and Brady take advantage of their ability to read pre-snap defensive alignments which is a must in this offense, yet those 2 do it perfectly and make it look downright easy most of the time.

Welker's a chain-sniffer and he may be the toughest damn WR I've actually ever seen all around, certainly pound for pound anyway. I am trying to temper my expectations of him being retained because I am worried, but it's hard. Welker should be here for another couple/few years, and I wish they could make it happen.

I'm actually fairly confident they will re-sign him. The more I look at the other options the less likely they look. Paying more for less doesn't make sense, and that's what paying guys like Bowe and Harvin ends up being. I think Welker does want to be here and I think what he would take is far more reasonable than what Wallace, Bowe, and Harvin are going to be looking for, and none are as good or reliable as he is. Belichick may not want to pay him because of their internal cap structure but his options flat out suck and in the context of free agent receivers Welker is the best deal he's going to get.