Solder

PatsFan2 said:

I am mixed on Solder too I thought he was well on his way to being one of the Best LT's in this league until he hit his road blocks. When Solder looks bad he's just bad I think he gets intimadated by some Defenders. On the other hand when he's good he looks like a second coming. I seriously thought that Solder would be better overall player than Matt Light but Matt Light's bad games were few and very far inbetween. I say pay him the money that might be the going rate for a Decent LT.

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Until this year I would have thought Matt light a good comparison for solder. Good not great in the run game, solid pass pro but struggles against speed.

This year he looks like a bumbling imbecile half the time. I still remember seeing him pretty much try to head butt somebody running by him in camp after missing with his hands and dropping them to his side. Some of his whiffs have been similarly peculiar. I'm not sure what happened in the off-season, but if he doesn't figure it out he will be costing himself millions.

i listen 2015 draft class is filled with OL talent, i rather use a 1st round pick in a new OT, paying a mediocre player like Solder is the type of deal that ruins franchises in the long term.

reneluar said:

i listen 2015 draft class is filled with OL talent, i rather use a 1st round pick in a new OT, paying a mediocre player like Solder is the type of deal that ruins franchises in the long term.

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You might be overstating things a tad.

Oswlek said:

You might be overstating things a tad.

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Oswlek we do need some new chicken little posters since a lot of the old ones have been banned.

Bruins29 said:

Oswlek we do need some new chicken little posters since a lot of the old ones have been banned.

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Maybe they could ban some of the ridiculous homers to balance things out.

Deus Irae said:

Maybe they could ban some of the ridiculous homers to balance things out.

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Agreed, like those guys who say Revis is better than Sanders.

kennyb said:

They probably cut him for his own good. This is a great draft for OTs. Just draft one and save yourself 7M.

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I was looking for that information. We probably pick again after the #28 pick, and I don't know the strengths of this next draft, so I would say pay him and keep improving the line, I believe part of his struggles are because of Mankins absence. But if indeed is a deep draft for OT, than I can see BB picking a Guard or Tackle in the 1st round.

varjao said:

I was looking for that information. We probably pick again after the #28 pick, and I don't know the strengths of this next draft, so I would say pay him and keep improving the line, I believe part of his struggles are because of Mankins absence. But if indeed is a deep draft for OT, than I can see BB picking a Guard or Tackle in the 1st round.

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I'd be very happy with this. If BB doesn't trade out, I want a fatty in the first, either side of the ball is five by me. Unless of course Cooper or Gordon fight each other at the Heisman presentation and one of them falls to us.

kennyb said:

They probably cut him for his own good. This is a great draft for OTs. Just draft one and save yourself 7M.

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Save $7m but lose a top draft pick, and those top picks = production for low $$$. So in the end, the savings is a lot less than you imagine. Say you take the savings of about $5 mill and you buy yourself a FA at another position. You still have a rookie LT there protecting Tom Brady.

The idea is ludicrous.
When has BB ever gone into a season needing production from a rookie at a key position...or any position for that matter???

Captain Cliche said:

The idea is ludicrous.
When has BB ever gone into a season needing production from a rookie at a key position...or any position for that matter???

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Mankins in 2005? McCourty in 2011?

mgteich said:

Should the patriots pay Solder over $7.1M guaranteed for his 2015 services, with him being an UFA at the end of the 2015 season?

Barring an extension, that is the decision the team needs to make before this season ends.

To put it another way, would you sign Solder to a new $7.1M one year contact?

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Matt Light, Richard Seymour, Logan mankins, Vollmer, McCourty.....

reneluar said:

Matt Light, Richard Seymour, Logan mankins, Vollmer, McCourty.....

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Only Mankins and McCourty went into the season as starters. The others were guys who earned starting roles along the way. If we are going to include everyone in that group, then you'd need to include Stork, Koppen, Geno Wilson, Gronk, Ahern, Cunningham, Maroney, Hobbs, Solder and probably a few others I'm neglecting.

Chandler Jones also started right away as a rookie.

You guys expect perfection from left tackles. It ain't gonna happen. Left tackles often face the most dynamic player on the defense. He isn't going to win every battle. People killed Matt Light all the time...You see a LT lose twice and all of a sudden he sucks....sheesh.

Settle down.

upstater1 said:

Save $7m but lose a top draft pick, and those top picks = production for low $$$. So in the end, the savings is a lot less than you imagine. Say you take the savings of about $5 mill and you buy yourself a FA at another position. You still have a rookie LT there protecting Tom Brady.

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7m is a lot of money. Sign branch for less than that and you don't need a high dt.

If solder isn't very good then paying him 7m is not smart.

Captain Cliche said:

The idea is ludicrous.
When has BB ever gone into a season needing production from a rookie at a key position...or any position for that matter???

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Not ludicrous. Vollmer could play lt and fleming or cannon rt.

So no the rookie doesn't necessarily have to start.

Ludicrous is paying 7m for an oft con cussed mediocre player. When has Belichick ever done that?

Interesting theories in here. For some reason BB has had him take more snaps than anyone else on the team. Strange.....
http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/snapcounts

Vollmer and Solder have been subject to injury. Cannon being around as a rotational OT is a fine idea. Whether or not that is all we have here remains to be seen.

Deus Irae said:

Vollmer and Solder have been subject to injury. Cannon being around as a rotational OT is a fine idea. Whether or not that is all we have here remains to be seen.

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Solder has played in 60 of a possible 61 games. Durability is not really an issue with him.