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It's obviously a very important question.
The Patriots don't need to do anything with Butler's contract this year; he'd become an RFA next year, which would allow Butler to test the market and potentially let another team set his value.
OTOH, the Patriots have frequently signed pending RFA players to deals bridging the RFA year (e.g., Bolden and, if memory serves, Kyle Love), and sometimes they've signed them to long-term extensions (e.g., Ryan Allen).
Thoughts?
ETA: Yes, the Patriots can extend Butler this year. The rule is that rookie UDFAs get three-year deals, drafted players get four-year deals, and you can't renegotiate them until after the second-to-last regular season of the contract (three years for drafted rookies, two years for UDFAs).
The Patriots don't need to do anything with Butler's contract this year; he'd become an RFA next year, which would allow Butler to test the market and potentially let another team set his value.
OTOH, the Patriots have frequently signed pending RFA players to deals bridging the RFA year (e.g., Bolden and, if memory serves, Kyle Love), and sometimes they've signed them to long-term extensions (e.g., Ryan Allen).
Thoughts?
ETA: Yes, the Patriots can extend Butler this year. The rule is that rookie UDFAs get three-year deals, drafted players get four-year deals, and you can't renegotiate them until after the second-to-last regular season of the contract (three years for drafted rookies, two years for UDFAs).