Patriots Sign WR Brandon LaFell to 3-year contract

TomPatriot said:

Yates analyzes this well. I decided to watch a little film of LaFell and he doesn't really impress as a route runner; Yates is saying politely that the routes he had to run were easy and he is right. He will be forced to run more precise and complex routes with the Pats or Brady won't throw to him and he won't be on the field. That and making the decisions Brady expects him to make are his two biggest challenges.

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Odds are he is at best the #3 WR. He may be used similarly to the way the Pats used Stallworth down the stretch in 2007. Not exactly because Stallworth was a vertical threat specialist. I think LaFell will be red zone specialist (although he will be used outside the 20s too). I think he will get a set of packages and not the entire playbook.

I wonder if LaFell was misused in Carolina. He isn't built like a slot receiver and seems better suited outside. The fact he played a majority of the plays in the slot may have hindered his production. A guy that big usually has difficulties running the routes that a slot WR usually run (a lot of quick cuts).

crew1954 said:

What makes this signing more delicious is that Elway had a bead on Lefell too:

2014 NFL free agency: Broncos may pursue Brandon LaFell, Miles Austin - Mile High Report

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I think Elway should have gotten LaFell or Austin over Sanders (well he can still get Austin). If you look at the Broncos' offense last year, Manning's arm strength was covered up because when he threw to receivers outside, he would throw ducks and Decker and Thomas used their size to win jump ball battles. Sanders isn't going to win a lot of jump ball fights especially if he is going up against a giant like Browner.

BelichickFan said:

Dobson, LaFell, Edelman, Gronk would be a very interesting group...

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…if they ever are on the field at the same time.

I am glad BB stay the heck away from E Sanders and his under-whelming receiving numbers. Lafell is already a better receiver.

BelichickFan said:

Can you produce a quote in which he said anything that comes close to him saying that ? I read it three times and have yet to find it.

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"He ran what looked like reliable routes in Carolina . . . "

I read this to mean both that they were run correctly and that they were easy. They looked easy to me in the limited film I watched.

TomPatriot said:

"He ran what looked like reliable routes in Carolina . . . "

I read this to mean both that they were run correctly and that they were easy. They looked easy to me in the limited film I watched.

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Reliable Routes simply means he was where he was supposed to be. They may well have been easy but nothing in that quote says that.

If you think they are - great - but it's a little unfair to put those words in Yates' mouth when I don't believe he said that.

Rob0729 said:

I think Elway should have gotten LaFell or Austin over Sanders (well he can still get Austin). If you look at the Broncos' offense last year, Manning's arm strength was covered up because when he threw to receivers outside, he would throw ducks and Decker and Thomas used their size to win jump ball battles. Sanders isn't going to win a lot of jump ball fights especially if he is going up against a giant like Browner.

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I wouldn't be against kicking the tires on *made of glass* Miles Austin he has Great Speed.

BelichickFan said:

Reliable Routes simply means he was where he was supposed to be. They may well have been easy but nothing in that quote says that.

If you think they are - great - but it's a little unfair to put those words in Yates' mouth when I don't believe he said that.

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It's my interpretation of his comments. I am reading between the lines. If you don't agree, then fine. You're entitled to your view.

PatsFan2 said:

I am glad BB stay the heck away from E Sanders and his under-whelming receiving numbers. Lafell is already a better receiver.

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Lafell is bigger too...Sanders is another undersized guy. We need more size in the passing game and Lafell brings that.

kennyb said:

Smith is old and slowing. He would have been a bad signing too.

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If you think "Jump Ball Joe" was bad LAST year without having Boldin winning the leaps, wait to you see his INT rate this year trying to lob to 35.5 yr old 5'9" Stevie.

Not a huge Lafell guy but at least we made a move toward needed size. His speed isn't great mid 4.55 Britt is faster 4.47 and similarly sized but of course comes with baggage I guess I m just kind of meh to this move....

Texxx said:

Man, what a typical Kraft/Bellicheck signing..

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Yeah, typical. The last 14 years have sucked since those two got together.

Dagg said:

Not a huge Lafell guy but at least we made a move toward needed size. His speed isn't great mid 4.55 Britt is faster 4.47 and similarly sized but of course comes with baggage I guess I m just kind of meh to this move....

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Personally, I didn't want them to make ANY move at WR this year once they locked up Edelman again.

The problem last year wasn't with the rookie WR's who will get better with the experince.

The problem was with the below standard crap we had at TE (outside of 5 games with Gronk).

THAT was the problem.

Anyone looking to fix that with old "name" WR's is looking in the wrong direction.

For me: Jimmy Graham/Gonzalez type plus a 1st or 2nd round pick TE to join Gronk. Let's overload the TE and watch how good that WR group looks in 2014.

shmessy said:

Yeah, typical. The last 14 years have sucked since those two got together.

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If only we had Jim Irsay. :bricks:

For everyone one lamenting Lafell's " hands of stone" and low catch percentage, I have a couple of questions: Are you aware that both Dobson and Thompkins had fewer targets, a lower catch percentage and more drops? Why are not concerned by their more stone like hands and worse catch percentage? I for one, never assume a player will improve. I hope a player progresses from year 1 to year 2, but that is never a given. At the very least, this signing puts pressure on everyone to work as hard as possible to improve.

shmessy said:

Personally, I didn't want them to make ANY move at WR this year once they locked up Edelman again.

The problem last year wasn't with the rookie WR's who will get better with the experince.

The problem was with the below standard crap we had at TE (outside of 5 games with Gronk).

THAT was the problem.

Anyone looking to fix that with old "name" WR's is looking in the wrong direction.

For me: Jimmy Graham/Gonzalez type plus a 1st or 2nd round pick TE to join Gronk. Let's overload the TE and watch how good that WR group looks in 2014.

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I agree behind Gronk we currently have nothing on the roster that can impact the passing game. The TE market wasn't very strong and I have to believe with no movement they have there eyes on someone (or more than 1) in the draft.

Dagg said:

Not a huge Lafell guy but at least we made a move toward needed size. His speed isn't great mid 4.55 Britt is faster 4.47 and similarly sized but of course comes with baggage I guess I m just kind of meh to this move....

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40 yard dash times from the combine mean squat when evaluating an established vet. Anquan Boldin ran a 4.71, Larry Fitzgerald a 4.63. LaFell's time of 4.54 was pretty good for a guy his size actually.

LaFell has produced, including against us last season, and his speed and athleticism are obvious. He's 27, caught 49 balls last year at 13 yds/catch, and is 6'2 210. BB's a little more interested in those details than a 5 year old 40 time.

The only concern we should have is whether he'll have trouble picking up the playbook like Ocho did, and we'd be worrying about that no matter who it was.

Yes, we should sign and draft TE's. And sure, I'm fine with 2 free agents (a mid level plus a JAG) and two draftees. We have Gronk, Hooman and Williams. Bring them in and let the competition begin.
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However, I disagree with you regarding wide receivers. Josh and Bill have looked at all the tapes and practices. They brought in four new wide receivers last year. ALL of them are recovering from injuries (one from surgery). The last thing that Bill was going to do was to depend on the exact same group of wide receivers with no competition or injury insurance.

With regard to letting the rookies develop, Belichick has the strange idea that the most important game is the present/next game. I don't think Josh liked what he saw in the 3 rookies last year. He certainly didn't see enough not to lust for more help at the position.

Belichick isn't parading wide receivers in and out because he believes that we are set with last years rookies as our 3 of our 5 wide receivers. LaFell, Britt, Moore and how many Moore will be brought in even though we already had 6 receivers back from last year (including Harrison)?

Belichick and Josh are telling us something. Perhaps we should try to listen.

shmessy said:

Personally, I didn't want them to make ANY move at WR this year once they locked up Edelman again.

The problem last year wasn't with the rookie WR's who will get better with the experince.

The problem was with the below standard crap we had at TE (outside of 5 games with Gronk).

THAT was the problem.

Anyone looking to fix that with old "name" WR's is looking in the wrong direction.

For me: Jimmy Graham/Gonzalez type plus a 1st or 2nd round pick TE to join Gronk. Let's overload the TE and watch how good that WR group looks in 2014.

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mgteich said:

Yes, we should sign and draft TE's. And sure, I'm fine with 2 free agents (a mid level plus a JAG) and two draftees. We have Gronk, Hooman and Williams. Bring them in and let the competition begin.
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However, I disagree with you regarding wide receivers. Josh and Bill have looked at all the tapes and practices. They brought in four new wide receivers last year. ALL of them are recovering from injuries (one from surgery). The last thing that Bill was going to do was to depend on the exact same group of wide receivers with no competition or injury insurance.

With regard to letting the rookies develop, Belichick has the strange idea that the most important game is the present/next game. I don't think Josh liked what he saw in the 3 rookies last year. He certainly didn't see enough not to lust for more help at the position.

Belichick isn't parading wide receivers in and out because he believes that we are set with last years rookies as our 3 of our 5 wide receivers. LaFell, Britt, Moore and how many Moore will be brought in even though we already had 6 receivers back from last year (including Harrison)?

Belichick and Josh are telling us something. Perhaps we should try to listen.

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So they must be disappointed in Dennard and Ryan also.

So far, they've only signed Lafell. For the longer term - - I see him simply taking the Austin Collie spot. If they sign anyone else for anything more than vet minimum and cuttable in pre-season, then I'll think that Belichick and Josh are telling us something.

The Patriots came out of the 2013-14 season with some injury problems: Amendola, Boyce, and Dobson. Edelman and LaFell give them two healthy, talented bodies.