Mankins hasnt said that he staying. Everything is on a wait and see basis and I dont believe that NE will pay him 10M for 1 season. Id rather get a G in free agency and use the money on the defense.
There was a time when if NE scored 17 points or more they won.
Theres no guarantee that NE would get anything for him.
NE will look to free agency for defensive players. A stud OLB or DE could off set Mankins and NE would get nothing.
Not this abreviated off season they won't...
Its not moot because NE has left options open for Mankins to leave. All Im saying is that NE used the tag to protect their interests rather then spend 10M for a G.
That's what I assumed when they tagged Asante...Unless you flip the guy before the draft you're not doing that. When Bill has intended to tag and trade a guy he has done so before the draft...
There you go. I could see a stud DE being the 2nd highest paid player for the Pats, but Mankins? No
Where are you getting that Brady has 18M in new money?
Simple math. $72M in new money in his new deal divided by the 4 years it covers. Tom signed the extension a year early so adding in his remaining year it comes out to $15.7M AAV over 5 years. He got $16M in signing bonus on top of his 2010 salary and roster bonus, but he also deferred $10M until this August. In 2011 he gets $11.5M in salary and roster bonus plus the $10M in deferred compensation. Even tagged Mankins isn't in his area code.
There is only around 10M here
Miguel's UNOFFICIAL 2011 Patriots Salary Cap Information Page