Graham/ Samuel contract status....

[DarrylS]

Wow. This is so over-the-top, I think you must be joking. Tongue-in-cheek? I like Samuel and all, and I don't think his INT total has to do with "right place, right time," but this is silly.

Could not agree more, remember Tom Curran talking one day about him, and essentially viewed him as a nickel back cast into a starting corner's job. Another POV is that he has so many int's, because they view him as weak and throw to his side.

I like Assante, but do not view him as one of the "elite" or so called, "shut down corner".. if he does not sign reasonably, let him go there are some other needs on this team that need addressing. The aforementioned comments on Ty Law are very appropriate to this argument.

 

[40yrpatsfan]

Could not agree more, remember Tom Curran talking one day about him, and essentially viewed him as a nickel back cast into a starting corner's job. Another POV is that he has so many int's, because they view him as weak and throw to his side.

I like Assante, but do not view him as one of the "elite" or so called, "shut down corner".. if he does not sign reasonably, let him go there are some other needs on this team that need addressing. The aforementioned comments on Ty Law are very appropriate to this argument.

If we'd been having this discussion a year and a half or 2 years ago, I wasn't such a huge Assante fan back then. I think he arrived in last year's Denver playoff game. He made a sensational pick on Plummer, and had great coverage throughout the game, including the horrible PI call. He established himself that night.

This year, you don't want to throw in his area, plain and simple. Some of his INT's have been brilliant, such as the Chicago game. Very few CB's make those picks. Whether he's top 10 or just top 15 is up for debate, but he's the best corner we've had in the past 20 years aside from Ty Law.

 

[Clonamery]

..... he's the best corner we've had in the past 20 years aside from Ty Law.

You saying that makes me think of Hank Poteat and how well he is playing for the Jets. Oh, the humanity!!!!!

 

[Gumby]

Originally Posted by GJAJ15
Could not agree more, remember Tom Curran talking one day about him, and essentially viewed him as a nickel back cast into a starting corner's job. Another POV is that he has so many int's, because they view him as weak and throw to his side.

I like Assante, but do not view him as one of the "elite" or so called, "shut down corner".. if he does not sign reasonably, let him go there are some other needs on this team that need addressing. The aforementioned comments on Ty Law are very appropriate to this argument.

Originally Posted by 40yrpatsfan:

If we'd been having this discussion a year and a half or 2 years ago, I wasn't such a huge Assante fan back then. I think he arrived in last year's Denver playoff game. He made a sensational pick on Plummer, and had great coverage throughout the game, including the horrible PI call. He established himself that night.

This year, you don't want to throw in his area, plain and simple. Some of his INT's have been brilliant, such as the Chicago game. Very few CB's make those picks. Whether he's top 10 or just top 15 is up for debate, but he's the best corner we've had in the past 20 years aside from Ty Law.

I disagree strongly with GJA.

With all the teams with cap room I think with this guy we need to be willing to overpay beyond the BB model a little. If he costs us current #5 to #10 money next year; I think we will count ourselves lucky to have paid so little within a short time.

In coming years, you will see plenty of pay inflation especially at the CB position.

1. Look at all the teams with large amounts of cap room in the double digit millions. they will spend it and inflate prices.

2. Other teams with that cap room are going to hold serve with their FAs and so the market for other available replacements for Asante is going to be mighty slim pickings and not real long term fixes.

3. With the enforcement of the 5 yard rule and in particular the "selective" STRICT enfocement when the PATS play the need for quality CB play and especially FAST CBs who can make up ground on a WR is going to be more and more a premium. Shutdown corners have always been at a premium but now I think it gets a little harder to make up in scheme what you may not have had in talent when a 2nd tier CB is out playing on an island. Asante is near the top of that 2nd tier and still has potential to be a shutdown corner.

Pay the man and bring him back.

Now if he wants Franchise money to come back; I don't know if I swallow hard and suck it up or try to ****er him down or cut bait; but I think I would have to swallow hard.

 

[40yrpatsfan]

That doesn't make him a top ten cover corner - it makes him a ballhawk who did work in the off season to improve his hands. Although whether his ballhawking is a result of superior instinct or just good instincts combined with being placed in a position to succeed is debatable. He's obviously not freelancing or picks or not he'd be benched. So the system may be providing him opportunities he might not otherwise have been in a position to capitalize on. Oh, and not to mention the bulk of his picks have come off just a handful of QB's who happen to be among the more inept in the league in that regard. He has also given up big plays in some of those games, not to mention he struggled mightily last year and on occasion this season in the absence of a top free safety and a front 7 executing at near peak efficiency.

He's a good fit for this system, but he's not a guy you can leave on an island and know he'll compensate for others deficiencies. That's what top 10 corners do. He's not one of them, which is why he got snubbed for the pro bowl. It would be great if he realized that, but likely he won't unless the market enlightens him. It's a similar situation to Branch and Givens, and from what little he's said over the last several weeks he appears to poised on the same career path.

Belichick wouldn't overpay for Ty Law when he was a shut down corner in his prime, so I can't imagine he will overpay for Asante Samuel.

To answer your points:

- I would never compare Samuel with Champ Bailey or McCallister, who are in their own league and can be left on an island. Their size is what sets them apart, not to mention other superior skills. Assante is not a top-5 elite corner, but QB's are thinking about him now, I'm sure of that.

- He won't get to Pro Bowls until he performs at this high level for a few years. He's only been playing this well for maybe a year. However, that Bears game last month and the Broncos playoff game last year have put him on the map.

- The difference with Ty Law was that he was on the down side of 30 when he was up for his first BB-SP contract, and his skills were degrading. It would have been stupid to pay him big money at that point.

I think BB is going to reward Assante with a great contract.

 

[Va_Pats_Fan]

Doesn't that say that he's usually at the right place and right time for an INT throughout his career then? Perhaps in the off season he worked on catching balls thrown his way instead of letting them slip through his fingers. Maybe that's why he has 8 INT's this year instead of 2 INT's and 6 drops.

It was a Nerfball..

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/spor...ec08,0,3526527.story?coll=orl-sports-football

 

[Mike the Brit]

Thanks for posting. Good spot!!!

 

[smg93]

It was a Nerfball..

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/spor...ec08,0,3526527.story?coll=orl-sports-football

Great Article. Now we also know that in case we have another punter go down, we have asante as an emergency punter too!

 

[ctpatsfan1]

The Patriots had better start acquiring a few good free agents or

hold on to more of their own. The New York Jets are in the rear view

mirror. The loss of Graham, Samuel, and TBC coupled with a couple of

key signings by the Jets might be enough to change the pecking order

in the AFC East.

this assumes they don't sign F/A's who are as good or better than Graham/Samuel/TBC.

Prime example of this was the Harrison for Milloy transaction. Yes originally it was not to be that way but when Milloy left Harrison stepped right in and IMHO has actually been an upgrade.

Then of course there is the Dillon for Smith transaction which goes without saying has been a huge upgrade.

Conversely they never really fully replaced Ty Law until this year with Samuel (and even so Samuel is not a shut down corner like Law was)

Also the replacements for Ted Johnson last year never panned out. Bottomline, players come and players go and as long as you replace the players that leave with comparable players through F/A or the draft you will always remain competitive.

Also to suggest that the Jets roster as it is now is going to be the same and not have F/A defections that need to be replaced is naive. Their roster will change too and require replacements, what makes you certain that they will only get better while the Pats get worse. This assumes that the Pats FO will fail this year in F/A and the draft while the Jets FO will only succeed.