My take - Sanders signing means Pats won't bring in vet S

[crowell33]

I don't buy it. Meriweather is our best safety. Harrison is way too slow to be effective, and hasn't been able to play a full season in several years. He was one of our greatest signings ever, but his reign is done. Bruschi, Vrabel, Seau and Colvin are done too. Move on.

I'll take Meriweather/Sanders/rookie over Meriweather/Harrison/Sanders at this point as long as the rookie is one of Sean Smith, Delmas, Chung or William Moore. Harrison can be under consideration with Spann and Lewis Sanders as a 4th safety in a rotation, but we just can't count on him to stay on the field, or to produce much when he's on it at this point.

100% completely agree. Nice post

 

[crowell33]

Ugh.... I really hope this isnt the case. I have to disagree with most of you guys here, Sanders is an adequette back up but a pretty poor starter. Especially since our entire secondary is iffy other than Merriweather.

I respect your opinion but instead I've got to agree with BB's evaluation of James Sanders. I learned my lesson after Matt Cassel.

 

[fillylabinga]

Although $3m per isn't an outrageous number for Sanders it feels like "starter-money" and I think the thought of going into next year with him and Merriweather as the starters is concerning for a lot of people on this board.

They are both fine players, but where are the *playmakers* on the D? Neither of these guys are threats to blitz, neither can stuff the run on short yard situations, and neither make receivers "alligator arm" passes for fear of getting thier heads taken off when going over the middle.

Who on the Pats D are opposing offenses going to fear? When it's 3rd and long, I want the other team to be thinking "y'know, maybe if we just end up throwing an incomplete pass out of bounds that's for the best. at least we won't have thrown a pick or or taken a sack or done something else to really hurt our team".

Anyway, that's a long way of saying I like Sanders as a player, but we need to find some playmakers somewhere and I'm afraid he doesn't fit the bill (and Woods/TBC/Bodden/Springs don't either)...

 

[jmt57]

I don't know, but I think this simply means that the FO felt from speaking to agents of the available safetys that they weren't worth pursuing in free agency. That in turn means the Pats are pretty much assured of drafting a safety this year; the only question will be when?

 

[ausbacker]

I'm wondering where all this leaves Tank Williams in the greater scheme of things?

 

[Ochmed Jones]

I'm wondering where all this leaves Tank Williams in the greater scheme of things?

Didn't BB have him playing LB mostly?

 

[condon84]

We're not exchanging Vrabel for James Sanders. Don't think of it that way.

First, we had too many LBs on our roster (Vrabel, Thomas, Mayo, Bruschi, Woods, Crable, Guyton, Banta-Cain, Redd, Alexander, Robertson, Craig and Ruud) and too few safeties (Meriweather and Spann). We need to plug holes at safety, and we have room to spare at LB.

Second, you need to look at the who roster picture. Many people were suggesting that Vrabel could be a cap cut, or at least needed to restructure in order to not be a drain on the roster. We essentially cut him, but allowed him to save face by being a veteran leader under Pioli in KC. We need his cap savings to build our roster, and Sanders is just a cost-effective piece of that total picture, nothing more. $3M/3 years is a very reasonable contract for Sanders. I'd much rather do that then spend $5-6M on Sean Jones. Miami gave Gibril Wilson $27.5M over 5 years. I'd much rather have Wilson than Sanders, but not if the added money cuts in to quality signings at CB or LB, or major resignings.

If anything, you can look at it like we picked up Tully Banta-Cain for a vet minimum instead of Vrabel for $4.3M. While I'd take Vrabel any day, the cost savings is significant, and if you believe that Vrabel was only going to be a role player and that the young LBs needed to step up and take over then it just wasn't worth it. As a 4th OLB who can rush the passer, Banta-Cain will probably provide similar value to what we would have gotten out of Vrabel, aside form his leadership intangibles. Those are important, but at some point we have to move on and hand over the leadership to Wilfork, Thomas, Mayo and Meriweather. Those are our core defensive leaders right now, not Vrabel, Bruschi or Harrison.

I am not correlating Vrabel's trade with Sander's signing. Irrespective of Vrabel or any other LB or safety, giving a $9 million three year deal to a player of Sanders' ability seems a bit too much. His agent said that he got offered more money to go elsewhere, but who? The Pats always operated by placing their own value of their own player irrespective of what other teams might offer and this seems like they matched what the market set for Sanders. Whatever, I hope James' proves me wrong.

 

[alvinnf]

In what package is the question if it is 3-3-5 and Williams is a LB , he's still a S.

 

[jmt57]

I'm wondering where all this leaves Tank Williams in the greater scheme of things?

I got the feeling he was considered damaged goods and out of the picture. Besides last year, didn't he miss all or most of two other recent seasons?

 

[alvinnf]

I got the feeling he was considered damaged goods and out of the picture. Besides last year, didn't he miss all or most of two other recent seasons?

Part of a year and almost a full year, you could'nt put the injury prone implication on him though.

 

[DW Toys]

I'm actually very happy with this, for a couple of reasons.

First, we now have our two starting safeties for most of 2008 together again for the next 3 years. Meriweather will only get better. Sanders is an adequate starter, and an excellent backup.

Second, we haven't put a lot of money into the safety position and have a decent pair to build around, and we will be in position to draft a stud S to round out the rotation. Add Sean Smith, Louis Delmas, Patrick Chung or William Moore to the mix and we have a really strong 3-safety core rotation. Resign Lewis Sanders or use Spann as the 4th safety, and we are basically set at the position, without putting a huge amount of money into it.

Third, not having to invest a ton of money in the safety position leaves us free to put it elsewhere. Sure, Sean Jones would have been an upgrade over Sanders, but if the long-term plan is to draft a future starting safety and have Sanders as the prime backup at both FS and SS, then Jones would probably have not added very much and would have cost much more. Now we are free to use the money saved on a quality CB (Bodden/Greer) instead of a JAG, to resign Mankins, or to go after a FA acquisition (dare I say Peppers again?).

The bottom line is this move gives us continuity and quality at the DB position for a reasonable cost while allowing us to spend elsewhere. Not a bad deal. I'd rather have Meriweather/Sanders/rookie at S and Hobbs/Bodden/Wheatley at CB than Meriweather/Jones/Rookie and Hobbs/JAG CB/Wheatley.

Very logical and astute Mayo. Thanks. I needed that. I almost kicked the chair out and I have removed the noose I wore when I read about the lovely James Sanders. I just hope we are not done because we have spent $4m on JS and we still need to hope it is Bodden at CB, say another $4m+ and also Baker and Taylor, does that take us out of the Peppers party? Will we have $ left to sign draft choices. Can we resign Wilfork with what is left?
DW Toys

 

[DW Toys]

Ugh.... I really hope this isnt the case. I have to disagree with most of you guys here, Sanders is an adequette back up but a pretty poor starter. Especially since our entire secondary is iffy other than Merriweather.

Yes.Agree!
DW Toys