Absolutely correct but they should have done something when Branch
held out early in the year. If they just said out he won't really
hold out of the season ... that was wrong thinking. But hind sight is a nice
thing. Deion was such a nice guy .. who thought he would be the traitor he
is.
One problem was ... they really couldn't committ to another WR
as long as Brach was a possibility ... unless they just decided to let him go.
Branch really put this team in a big bind. He's on my doo doo list.
JR -
One of the things that people need to remember is that Branch, just prior to the draft, came out in an interview and said something like "I am going to honor my contract whether or not I have an extension."
So, the team took him at his word. It was only about 6 weeks later, after he held out of mini-camp and the Patriots sent the 5 year/$33 million extension offer that his agent sent them the ultimatum. The one where they were told that the only way they would negotiate with the Pats would be if the Pats guaranteed that they wouldn't use the franchise tag on Branch. And they also told the Pats if they didn't guarantee that the franchise tag wouldn't be used, that Branch was going to hold out. The Pats response was the correct one. They told Branch that if he wasn't in camp, their offer was off the table and that there wouldn't be any more negotiations.
I still don't see anything wrong with that response. They basically said to Branch, hey, we are willing to negotiate in good faith, but you need to make an effort also. As we all know, Branch did nothing of the sort. His agent never made a counter offer to the Pats. So, there is no way he could know how high the Pats would have been willing to go. The Pats may have been willing to increase the "signing bonus" so that Branch would have gotten the sort of money over the life of the contract that he was looking for.
By the time this all had occured, most of the other good WRs were already off the market. So, there is no way
What also amazes me is the group that felt that the Pats should have let Branch hold out until week 10. They act like Branch would have come back and actually performed when he came back. More likely than not, Branch would have been inactive and done nothing for the rest of the year. Then the Pats would have lost him and gotten, at best, a 3rd round comp pick.
At least the Patriots have added a 1st round draft pick with which to help improve this team.