Does it make sense to extend Vereen now?

mmasterkillah said:

I think he's due to break out, so I'd try my best to sign him.

If we signed Edelman to a multi-year deal when nobody else wanted him, we could've saved millions.

It doesn't always work out, but that's why GMs get paid big money, too.

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It made 0 sense to sign Edelman to a long term deal due to his history at the time and it also made little sense for Edelman to accept a long term, low money, deal.

Any player with a brain will bet on themselves instead of basically signing another 7th round rookie contract.

I think this is the perfect time to re-sign Vereen, And I think it will pay big dividends for them. I believe he has a great deal of Kevin Faulk in him and will be a big play role player for them going forward, and signing him means they can still have a really good back if Ridley won't sign . Vereen right now would probably be a steal, and since he can fill both roles would be
My priority at RB

I know the general belief among fans is that Vereen is a stud, and Ridley is a dud who fumbles too often, but at the end of the day, Ridley has done double what Vereen has in his first 3 seasons.

Ridley – 2862 total yards, 23 total touchdowns
Vereen – 1380 total yards, 12 total touchdowns

I like Ridley a lot personally, I think he gets a raw deal, but young RBs having problems with fumbles is common. I also like Vereen; ideally, I would prefer to keep both of them, as I believe they are a terrific tandem. If I could only pick one I would favor Ridley right now because Vereen unfortunately cannot be trusted to stay on the field, he has played in just 26 of a possible 48 games in his career.

mmasterkillah said:

I think he's due to break out, so I'd try my best to sign him.

If we signed Edelman to a multi-year deal when nobody else wanted him, we could've saved millions.

It doesn't always work out, but that's why GMs get paid big money, too.

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I do not think Edelman was looking for a long term deal last season, I think he felt if he had an opportunity to play he could significantly increase his value, which is why he opted for the 1-year deal. I am sure Belichick would have gladly given Edelman a longer deal with no guaranteed money past the first season.

I really don't see Belichick going to any great lengths to sign any running back to a big contract. Draft 'em. Use 'em for four years. Wish 'em well with their new team, and move on to the next guy.

hwc said:

I really don't see Belichick going to any great lengths to sign any running back to a big contract. Draft 'em. Use 'em for four years. Wish 'em well with their new team, and move on to the next guy.

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I think you are onto something with this, the 2015 draft is expected to be loaded at the running back position, I read 3-4 could go in the first round, with Todd Gurley potentially going in the top 10. The way team’s value running back right now a complete monster of a back could slide to us at the end of the first round.

Brady6 said:

I think you are onto something with this, the 2015 draft is expected to be loaded at the running back position, I read 3-4 could go in the first round, with Todd Gurley potentially going in the top 10. The way team’s value running back right now a complete monster of a back could slide to us at the end of the first round.

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How did our last two draftees do as rookies?

mgteich said:

How did our last two draftees do as rookies?

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Really, really well, our last two drafts were actually outstanding. Jones, Hightower, Dennard, Collins, Dobson, Ryan, and Harmon all made significant impacts in their rookie seasons.

Why do you ask?

Brady6 said:

Really, really well, our last two drafts were actually outstanding. Jones, Hightower, Dennard, Collins, Dobson, Ryan, and Harmon all made significant impacts in their rookie seasons.

Why do you ask?

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If they don't re-sign the last 2 RBs they drafted, how would you evaluate that situation?

Deus Irae said:

If they don't re-sign the last 2 RBs they drafted, how would you evaluate that situation?

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I'm not really sure some of it depends on how White performs. In addition if Ridley continues to fumble and Vereen continue to have durability concerns I'm not sure we have a choice but to move in a different direction. As I said in a prior post ideally we would resign them both, I like their talent expecially as a tandem, however they both have question marks that need to be addressed in 2014 before I would pay either of them long term.

I would add that I am extremely high on Houston. He is one of the most physically gifted RBs I have seen come into this league in the past few years. How that translates on the field is unknown but he offers intrigue.

Brady6 said:

Really, really well, our last two drafts were actually outstanding. Jones, Hightower, Dennard, Collins, Dobson, Ryan, and Harmon all made significant impacts in their rookie seasons.

Why do you ask?

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I was asking about or last 2 draftee running backs. You seem to believe that we can simply bring in a couple of rookies and be fine at running back next year.

mgteich said:

I was asking about or last 2 draftee running backs. You seem to believe that we can simply bring in a couple of rookies and be fine at running back next year.

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We easily could... Maroney, to me, was a total bust compared to where he was drafted but all in all he was ok.

BB then found Green-Ellis as an UDFA and he had 2 good seasons, then he found Ridley and he's been very good as well.
As for the scat back, he had Faulk, then found Woody as another UDFA then moved on from paying him to get Vereen.
He has also found BBolden who is a very solid contributor when called upon.

Outside of the Maroney reach, I would say BB has done a fine job replacing both the lead and scat back roles through the years.

And even outside of NE, teams also consistently draft RBs ad thrust them into big roles and let them be successful (Think: Alfred Morris (6th rd), Gio Bernard (2nd), etc.. )

With RBs, its either you have it or you don't. Yeah there's playbook to learn but it comes down to... Do you have the instinct to hit the hole, stay low, quick burst, make guys miss, etc. Its all either you have it or you don't. RBs are a dime a dozen

hwc said:

I really don't see Belichick going to any great lengths to sign any running back to a big contract. Draft 'em. Use 'em for four years. Wish 'em well with their new team, and move on to the next guy.

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You may be right, although I would expect one of the two to be retained myself. We've watched many come and go though.

mgteich said:

I was asking about or last 2 draftee running backs. You seem to believe that we can simply bring in a couple of rookies and be fine at running back next year.

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Do I? I never said that, I said the draft class for 2015 is very good at the RB position. I'm not sure what about that implied all we need are rookie RBs.

hwc said:

I really don't see Belichick going to any great lengths to sign any running back to a big contract. Draft 'em. Use 'em for four years. Wish 'em well with their new team, and move on to the next guy.

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The estimated, proposed 3 year, 6-7M contract (total) hardly seems like a big contract. We are talking Kyle Arrington territory.

Honestly, I think that Vereen and Ridley need to get in line behind these players –

- Devin McCourty
- Darrelle Revis
- Nate Solder
- Stephen Gostkowski

Extending these players would affect the Patriots cap space thusly
Vereen - lose cap space
Ridley - lose cap space
Solder - lose cap space
Revis - lose cap space
McCourty - gain cap space
Gostkowski - cap cap space/

nope

Vereen and Riddley both have a ton of work to do to show they are worth signing beyond this year.

No wait and see how the season plays out. Injuries are a problem with Vereen.Nothing would be worse then to extend him, and then have him go down with a injury onto IR.

Miguel said:

Extending these players would affect the Patriots cap space thusly
Vereen - lose cap space
Ridley - lose cap space
Solder - lose cap space
Revis - lose cap space
McCourty - gain cap space
Gostkowski - cap cap space/

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Is the $7,157,250 what we have to date with Easley still unsigned?