Connolly and Wendell – Only room for 1

AndyJohnson said:

I don't get your thought process.
You conclude that since Belichick used a 6th round pick on the guy (as we saw well less than half of them end up on a roster) he loves him, but he must hate Connolly who has started for him for 4 years and Wendell who has started for him for 2, and he just gave a new contract to him.

If Halapio ends up doing for the Patriots what either Connolly or Wendell have BB will tell you that he got way more than he ever expected from the pick.

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I never said he "loved" or "hated" anyone. Belichick moves on from players all the time, Connolly starting the past four seasons does not make a difference to that.

Brady6 said:

Yes I was, I was not high on the pick, I am still not, I just believe Belichick and his staff feels differently.

He is talented, I just felt he was a bad fit for our scheme because he is slow footed.

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You might consider that Belichick also disagrees with you with regard to your evaluations of Connolly and Wendell, especially since Wendell was signed to an extension.

mgteich said:

You might consider that Belichick also disagrees with you with regard to your evaluations of Connolly and Wendell, especially since Wendell was signed to an extension.

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Right now I think it comes down to Connolly, Wendell, and Kline for 3 spots, I do not see them parting with any of the 3 draft picks. If Kline continues to impress as he has in OTAs then I would assume he would take the roster spot as the younger cheaper player.

Brady6 said:

Right now I think it comes down to Connolly, Wendell, and Kline for 3 spots, I do not see them parting with any of the 3 draft picks. If Kline continues to impress as he has in OTAs then I would assume he would take the roster spot as the younger cheaper player.

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I think that you mean 2 spots, not 3. In any case, I agree. While I think that Hilapio will make the team, I think that he is either the 9th offensive linemen, or we don't carry one. So, in a sense, Hilapio isn't competing with anyone.

mgteich said:

I think that you mean 2 spots, not 3. In any case, I agree. While I think that Hilapio will make the team, I think that he is either the 9th offensive linemen, or we don't carry one. So, in a sense, Hilapio isn't competing with anyone.

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I did mean 2, thank you for the correction.

I think everyone is competing on some level for a roster spot I just think that the competition comes down to the other 3 with Halapio being right on the cusp of that group.

Apparently I'm the only guy that thinks blocking of up backs in special teams - not just returners - might be slightly important.

(Yes, we only need 1 return guy and 0 guys blocking for him. )

Is Connely still an upback? If we cut him do we have 9 guys, possibly even Wendell if he has special teams experience, ready to take his place.

Miguel can dislike this, but special teams count.

Connolly > Wendy.

captain stone said:

Connolly > Wendy.

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No doubt.

If he could lessen that cap hit, all would be fine. He definitely has much more versatility than Wendell.

Marqui said:

Because one of them (Wendell) is a horrible player and costs a lot more money to keep on the team.

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BB and I disagree.

I'd like to see both (Connolly and Wendel) remain with the team this season. If there is, in fact, a changing of the guard (with the 3 rookies), then they will need time to develop.

Leave Mankins/Wendel/Connolly to start the year. If someone gets hurt, then a rookie can slide in. We cannot over-rely on rookies, and we need 9 linemen given the injury woes the O-line frequently has. O-line is not an area you want to be caught with too few players. It's too important.

Not sure on the best way to retain Hilapio.

patriot lifer said:

I'd like to see both (Connolly and Wendel) remain with the team this season. If there is, in fact, a changing of the guard (with the 3 rookies), then they will need time to develop.

Leave Mankins/Wendel/Connolly to start the year. If someone gets hurt, then a rookie can slide in. We cannot over-rely on rookies, and we need 9 linemen given the injury woes the O-line frequently has. O-line is not an area you want to be caught with too few players. It's too important.

Not sure on the best way to retain Hilapio.

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I think there's a lot of validity to what you're suggesting, but I'm not as sure that Halapio is automatically going to be in the category that some suggest--which is definitely that he's somehow already behind the others.

He learned 3 different systems, was a 4 year starter, a 2 time captain, and had many good strengths.

I'm not expecting him to be the best of the bunch, but it's probably way too early to pencil him in as the worst just the same.

I see 9 OL, with 4 tackles (Solder, Vollmer, Cannon, Fleming) and 5 interiors (Mankins, ONE of Connelly/Wendell, Kline, Halapio, and Stork).

I personally don't equate a relationship to getting rid of ONE of Connelly/Wendell and somehow meaning that to be that we're stuck with a bunch of rookies.

supafly said:

I think there's a lot of validity to what you're suggesting, but I'm not as sure that Halapio is automatically going to be in the category that some suggest--which is definitely that he's somehow already behind the others.

He learned 3 different systems, was a 4 year starter, a 2 time captain, and had many good strengths.

I'm not expecting him to be the best of the bunch, but it's probably way too early to pencil him in as the worst just the same.

I see 9 OL, with 4 tackles (Solder, Vollmer, Cannon, Fleming) and 5 interiors (Mankins, ONE of Connelly/Wendell, Kline, Halapio, and Stork).

I personally don't equate a relationship to getting rid of ONE of Connelly/Wendell and somehow meaning that to be that we're stuck with a bunch of rookies.

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I don't see the big buzz for Kline unless he has gained 20 lbs of muscle. He played at under 300. Another Wendell.

AzPatsFan said:

I don't see the big buzz for Kline unless he has gained 20 lbs of muscle. He played at under 300. Another Wendell.

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You could be right. All we really know is that he was part of the Scarnecchia pipeline, knows the system, and filled in nicely enough to where there weren't major red lights flashing to draw our attention. Whether or not those things play to his advantage is up for debate. Personally, I think he's surely ahead of the rookies though, which is why I put him in the 9 that make it. We'll have to wait to find out.

AzPatsFan said:

I don't see the big buzz for Kline unless he has gained 20 lbs of muscle. He played at under 300. Another Wendell.

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We'll have to see what kind of weight he put on in his first NFL offseason before lumping him with Wendell. Stork and Kline are both listed at 300, just like Wendell (which may be a stretch for him), but I'd expect Stork to be closer to 310 by this time next year. Of course, he's taller than Kline and has more room to grow out, so we'll have to see whether Kline looks bigger in TC.

patriot lifer said:

I'd like to see both (Connolly and Wendel) remain with the team this season. If there is, in fact, a changing of the guard (with the 3 rookies), then they will need time to develop.

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I've wondered about whether BB will be less likely to dump salary with the offensive line than elsewhere. A blown assignment in pass protection can ruin the season like no other blown assignment can. I agreed with the premise of this thread right after the draft, but assumed that Cannon would move inside to guard, as if the commentators knew what they were talking about when he is doing a fine job at tackle. Now, I'm less convinced. A lot will depend on Kline's development and the performance of everyone in pre-season.

Regardless, I don't see Wendell being cut for cap purposes. Connolly is the one who would return significant cap value that could be applied to Revis, etc. In my mind, Wendell only gets cut if Kline, Cannon, or a rookie shows that they can lock-down the RG spot and Connolly gets a chance to show that he is better at C. With Stork getting a bunch of snaps in pre-season, Connolly might not get that chance, and he wasn't really that much better than Wendell at stopping-up the middle when he had his head down at the snap.

mgteich said:

The reality is that the veterans are very vulnerable for 2015. Cannon and Connolly are UFA's. Vollmer is always a health issue. Mankins may not be worth $7M to us. Wendell is, well, Wendell. Solder will be in his contract year, wanting a big extension, even though he too has been injured. So, BOTTOM LINE, we need to keep our youngsters.

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pencilneckgeek said:

I've wondered about whether BB will be less likely to dump salary with the offensive line than elsewhere. A blown assignment in pass protection can ruin the season like no other blown assignment can.

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Hence the rub this season. There may be a need to keep more OL than usual to both protect Brady now while simultaneously developing the succession plan. This is tough because apparently they are also allocating an extra spot to QB this year.

In a perfect world I wouldn't have to depend on either of these guys who both have deficiencies in different areas. Wendell is super durable and plays smart. His problem is a lack of size, which likely have everything to do with his lack of overall strength. You'll have a guy who is present always and you admire his IQ for the game, but he can't protect your QB from pressure up the middle consistently, and the running game struggles when teams have beef in the interior D-line.

On the other hand, you have a guy in Connolly who is super versatile and could play any of the three interior positions. However, this guy can't stay on the field. His latest battle is with repeated concussions. I can even remember reading a few articles where people began to wonder if he'd be the latest player forced to retire early because of the trauma. He is 'good' at best when healthy. Now you start to have head injuries and he can become 'average' real quick.

I like the overall depth now though. I really have high hopes for the young kids, especially Stork. I believe he'll supplant Wendell by mid-season. I'm very excited about this upcoming season. Training camp coming shortly.

PatsBoy12 said:

On the other hand, you have a guy in Connolly who is super versatile and could play any of the three interior positions. However, this guy can't stay on the field. His latest battle is with repeated concussions. I can even remember reading a few articles where people began to wonder if he'd be the latest player forced to retire early because of the trauma. He is 'good' at best when healthy. Now you start to have head injuries and he can become 'average' real quick.

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I hadn't realized that concussions were a significant problem for him. That would put serious questions regarding his ability to play center, as he's likely to be smacked upside the head every time we are in the shotgun, which is quite a lot on this team.

supafly said:

You could be right. All we really know is that he was part of the Scarnecchia pipeline, knows the system, and filled in nicely enough to where there weren't major red lights flashing to draw our attention. Whether or not those things play to his advantage is up for debate. Personally, I think he's surely ahead of the rookies though, which is why I put him in the 9 that make it. We'll have to wait to find out.

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Kline has Practice Squad eligibility left as well. Having Cannon spend time at Left Tackle is probably just an opportunity while Solder is recovering. I still think Canon is going to start at RG.

I look forward to Wendell not starting at center.