Patriots own free agents in order of resigning priority…

[50-yard-line]

Re: Updated Top 100 Free Agent List

On what planet is James Ihegdibo #68?

Some interesting names on that list, even in the back 50.

 

[patsinthesnow]

I agree with your general premise for the most part, with the exception that if Edelman leaves, we don't then move to the outside receivers for his replacement.

EDIT: In your defense, it would certainly seem after further thinking that they "could" in theory play the slot here in NE, although I'm not personally seeing them as slot players for this type of offense, particularly due to the fact that we'd have better options in my opinion who could take over that duty. I still think that would fall on guys like Amendola, Boyce, Sanders--but I can appreciate the thinking.

Edelman's replacement may either come in Amendola or Boyce, outside of looking at someone like Emmanuel Sanders. Looking at guys like Boldin, Maclin may be a whole different issue entirely.

I'd also think that Fletcher should be a bit higher, considering the fact that it's a position where we lack adequate depth and are likely losing a player at already. I think it'd be a bit more difficult than some to replace 2 LBs who contributed here during their careers, particularly in the same year.

Entering camp with Dobson, Amendola, Thompkins as the starting 3 WRs is playing with fire. I don't really want Edelman anyway for 4 mil a year+, but if he walks we should find a WR replacement IMO. Another rookie WR will be useless for Brady's (most likely) last two years of playing at an elite level.

I'm just more a fan of this lineup for the same price as retaining Edelman:

WR1: Dobson
WR2: Boldin/Maclin/Austin
slot WR: Amendola

than:

WR1: Dobson
WR2: Amendola
slot WR: Edelman

So yeah, it's not necessarily replacing Edelman. It's moving Amendola to his natural position and filling the void at outside WR with a much, much better player than Amendola there.

 

[mayoclinic]

Re: Updated Top 100 Free Agent List

The list was updated on 1/19/2014: NFL Trade Rumors - 2014 NFL Free Agents List: 51-100 NFL Trade Rumors - |

Patriots on the list
Talib #20
Spikes #26
Edelman #40
Blount #79

I am shocked at Spikes being in the top 30.

That just tells you it's a bad list.

But for what it's worth, give me:

- #17 (Alex Mack, OC, Cleveland) or #51 (Jon Asamoah, OG, Kansas City or #54 (Rodgers Saffold, OG, St. Louis)
- #20. Aqib Talib, CB, New England.
- #34. Linval Joseph, DT, NY Giants.
- #40 (Julian Edelman, WR, New England) or #49 (Jeremy Maclin, WR, Philadelphia) or #60 (Riley Cooper, WR, Philadelphia)
- #79 (LeGarrette Blount, RB, New England) or #81 (Toby Gerhart, RB, Minnesota)
- NR Brandon Pettigrew, TE, Detroit.

I'd be thrilled with that group. Let Spikes, Wendell and the others walk and cut/restructure a bunch of guys.

 

[mayoclinic]

There are a couple of rankings that I mostly agree with (mayoclinic, kontra), but with a vital caveat: at what price?

The NFL is unique in regards to their salary cap, and he effect it has on roster building. This is not major league baseball, where teams like the Red Sox, Yankees and Dodgers can spend any amount of money they so desire in pursuit of a championship. If another team offers Talib an 8-figure per year deal, should the Patriots still match that offer? Or should they then look at signing someone like Bren Grimes, Sam Shields or Alterraun Verner if they are available at half of Talib's price?

The more you spend on one position such as CB, the less there is available for other positions such as DT, C, TE and WR. It's difficult if not impossible to meaningfully look at the soon to be free agents and simply say 're-sign this guy', don' re-sign this guy; it can' be accurately viewed in a vacuum in that manner.

One of the reasons I have a big jump between Talib and Blount/Edelman is that I think there are reasonable alternatives to the latter if the price is too high. I love what both guys brought to the team this year, but there is a limit to what they are worth:

- Toby Gerhart is a very reasonable alternative to Blount. He's another big (6' 231#) back with breakaway capability. He's turn 27 in March, and he has low mileage due to backing up Adrian Peterson for 4 years (only 286 rushes in 4 years). He has better receiving capability than Blount, which would give him good versatility and also limit the ability of teams to game plan exclusively for the run when he is in the lineup. He averaged 7.9 YPC this year. I'm guessing the price won't be high because of his limited reps, and that he would welcome a RBBC approach in which he could earn much more playing time than he will see in Minnesota.

- There are numerous WR UFAs, some of whom may be better values than Edelman if he wants Amendola-type money. Riley Cooper averaged almost 18 YPR this year and was very good for Philadelphia. He's 6'3" 222#. Jeremy Maclin is a burner who is coming off of an injury. There are lots of others.

One of the reasons I think Talib is a bit unique is that he has been such a good fit, and elevated the defense so much. I hope his hip issue and past off-field issues will keep his price down, but there is certainly a limit, as there is for other positions. I would not pay 8 figures.

 

[DaBronxPats14]

#1 Talib. it's been hard watching him on the side line in back to back AFCCG's as Manning and Flacco rip the secondary a new one but we all remember how bad the pass defense was before BB traded for him and how bad it is when his not in there so the pats have to re-sign him,

Agree with 1) Soooo frustrating watchin Talib go down both AFCCG and DEF just fall apart. Still after last few seasons with a terrible secondary that one player (Talib) holds it all together. As promising as our Secondary has looked since Talib came over and when healthy gives us a legit DEF that could go up against anyone. It's like we have to hold our collective breath that Talib doesn't go down or we're DONE!

IMO We would have won it all if:

1) Gronk doesn't go down ( See come back from 24 pt Broncos Lead)
2) Talib Bein 100% from that Broncos Game On.

With everything Pats has to go through with key injuries on DEF we still were that close.

 

[jah]

1. Edelman - the offense needs him. Unless he's offered insane money elsewhere, keep him at all costs.
2. Blount - if he doesn't think he deserves top RB money, or even good RB money.
3. Talib - he's going to get offered tons somewhere, and I don't see the value of a player who is always hurt when it matters, so the Pats should pick a price for him and show no flexibility if he doesn't accept.
4. Fletcher - won't be an issue re-signing him, good player.
5. Hoomanawanui - same deal as Fletcher.
6. Svitek - cheap, good depth.
7. Aiken - might as well keep him around for now but bring in competition.
8. Spikes - lowball him, so the only way he comes back is if he miraculously accepts much less than market value.
9. Wendell - I think the team should probably move on and try to find a better center.
10. Mulligan - nothing wrong with Mulligan, but I think the team should try to get more upside from reserve TEs.
11. Collie - for his own good.

 

[kennyb]

Scott chandler isn't on that list of 100. Kind of surprising.

I want the pats to get him and danario alexander. Both should be prettycheap.

 

[Brady6]

3. Talib - he's going to get offered tons somewhere, and I don't see the value of a player who is always hurt when it matters, so the Pats should pick a price for him and show no flexibility if he doesn't accept.

I really don’t think that the market is going to be as strong for Talib as people suggest, there are 20 DBs in the top 100 free agents in the NFL currently.

1. T.J. Ward
2. Jairus Byrd
3. Alterraun Verner
4. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie
5. Brent Grimes
6. Vontae Davis
7. Captain Munnerlyn
8. Sam Shields
9. Walter Thurmond
10. Donte Whitner
11. Chris Clemens
12. Bernard Pollard
13. James Ihedigbo
14. Drayton Florence
15. Charles Tillman
16. Corey Graham
17. Mike Mitchell
18. DeAngelo Hal
19. Ryan Mundyl
20. Aaron Ross

If Talib was only able to command a 1 year $5 million contract in 2013 I am not sure what has changed to make him worth more. He still had injury issues specifically with his hip and he is now 1 year older. He had a great yea but Talib has had plenty of great years in his career.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

#1 Talib. it's been hard watching him on the side line in back to back AFCCG's as Manning and Flacco rip the secondary a new one but we all remember how bad the pass defense was before BB traded for him and how bad it is when his not in there so the pats have to re-sign him,

#2 Edelman. teams know that who ever is playing slot for Brady is going to have a lot of rec so there wont be a ton of teams looking to drive up the price on the pats but he is young and one of the best PR guys in the game so I will take a contract that looks like the one the pats give Danny last year around 6 million a year to bring him back, I don't see the pats re-signing both Talib and Edelman so I pick Talib and go with Danny and a vet at slot,

#3 Fletcher. his a pretty good back up ILB and I would like to see him return, I don't see spikes coming back I have the pats Drafting a ILB 3rd round or higher,

#4 Wendell. the only reason his on my list is because the pats don't always up grade a position when they let a starter walk in FA and we may just see a UDFA starting at C. but I have the pats Drafting a G in the first or 2th round and moving Connolly to center,

#5 Blount. I like his size and brake away speed but lets face it he had back to back amazing games vs two of the worst run defenses in the NFL and was pretty much just Rdley's fumble insurance for most of the season the funny part is he had just one less fumbles in a lot less touches then Ridley,
so if his asking price is to high I will be just fine moving forward with the more consistent Stevan Ridley at RB,

that's my top 5 I think the rest of the FA's are pretty much roster fillers and can be replaced and even upgraded very easy

No way Pats draft a G in the first round. The center position is the most useless position in the NFL, and the guards are not that important either. Don't need to waste a high pick on a C/G in the first when you have electrifying PLAYMAKERS in more important skilled positions which we desparately need(Pass catching TE, big phsyical WR).....We can address G/C in the 3rd or 4th rounds, where I'm sure we'll find someone capable of playing the position.

 

[DaBruinz]

No way Pats draft a G in the first round. The center position is the most useless position in the NFL, and the guards are not that important either. Don't need to waste a high pick on a C/G in the first when you have electrifying PLAYMAKERS in more important skilled positions which we desparately need(Pass catching TE, big phsyical WR).....We can address G/C in the 3rd or 4th rounds, where I'm sure we'll find someone capable of playing the position.

Center is the most useless position in the NFL??? WOW. Now I see why you are a talent evaluator for a Pro Team in the NFL... Oh wait...

Center is probably the most important piece of the O-line after the blind-side OT. Yes, they can be had in the later rounds and I don't necessarily agree with spending a 1st round pick on one, but if the talent is there, you have the need, and he fits the scheme, you take him. Plain and simple. That being said, I don't believe that there is a center of 1st round caliber in the draft this year.

The Pats just spent 2 draft picks on WRs that they expect to be starters. It's unlikely the Pats look at WR in the 1st round. A pass catching TE? maybe. but it's more likely they look for an H-back type player. They are more likely to be looking at NT/DT, CB or DE in the 1st round because of the issues we have with the Defense. Wilfork turning 32 and coming off an Achilles injury. Ninkovich starting to get long in the tooth. Depth at CB.

 

[kennyb]

Center is the most useless position in the NFL??? WOW. Now I see why you are a talent evaluator for a Pro Team in the NFL... Oh wait...

Center is probably the most important piece of the O-line after the blind-side OT. Yes, they can be had in the later rounds and I don't necessarily agree with spending a 1st round pick on one, but if the talent is there, you have the need, and he fits the scheme, you take him. Plain and simple. That being said, I don't believe that there is a center of 1st round caliber in the draft this year.

The Pats just spent 2 draft picks on WRs that they expect to be starters. It's unlikely the Pats look at WR in the 1st round. A pass catching TE? maybe. but it's more likely they look for an H-back type player. They are more likely to be looking at NT/DT, CB or DE in the 1st round because of the issues we have with the Defense. Wilfork turning 32 and coming off an Achilles injury. Ninkovich starting to get long in the tooth. Depth at CB.

Wilfork will turn 33 in november. Not 32.

 

[mayoclinic]

Center is the most useless position in the NFL??? WOW. Now I see why you are a talent evaluator for a Pro Team in the NFL... Oh wait...

Center is probably the most important piece of the O-line after the blind-side OT. Yes, they can be had in the later rounds and I don't necessarily agree with spending a 1st round pick on one, but if the talent is there, you have the need, and he fits the scheme, you take him. Plain and simple. That being said, I don't believe that there is a center of 1st round caliber in the draft this year.

Spot on. (10 char)

 

[tmajr3]

Is there anyway we bring in Pollard? We need someone to put fear into the D, especially if spikes is gone

 

[supafly]

I really don’t think that the market is going to be as strong for Talib as people suggest, there are 20 DBs in the top 100 free agents in the NFL currently.

1. T.J. Ward
2. Jairus Byrd
3. Alterraun Verner
4. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie
5. Brent Grimes
6. Vontae Davis
7. Captain Munnerlyn
8. Sam Shields
9. Walter Thurmond
10. Donte Whitner
11. Chris Clemens
12. Bernard Pollard
13. James Ihedigbo
14. Drayton Florence
15. Charles Tillman
16. Corey Graham
17. Mike Mitchell
18. DeAngelo Hal
19. Ryan Mundyl
20. Aaron Ross

If Talib was only able to command a 1 year $5 million contract in 2013 I am not sure what has changed to make him worth more. He still had injury issues specifically with his hip and he is now 1 year older. He had a great yea but Talib has had plenty of great years in his career.

I agree with your overall thoughts on Talib. I did not value him last free agency period as much as I do this one, but that said, I still wouldn't pay him more than 6m per year AAV on a longer term deal.

The CB market has taken a bit of a downturn, and I suspect that collusion is alive and well amongst owners or else we'd have seen more CBs signed to longer term deals last year. Just my opinion.

One thing we don't know is how much the Pats (or Redskins) offered Talib on a longer term deal last offseason. It's possible that he took that 5.5 million dollar deal (including the .5m for pro bowl incentive) because he didn't like the guaranteed money/length of term/overall AAV. We don't know what combinations (any/all) that were offered, but I do agree that I don't see it being too much more than 5.5 on average--maybe 6.

Many here threw around numbers such as 5/50 for Talib last year, so it goes to show how off some people's projections are. That isn't even bringing into account the 4/40 numbers for Welker either. Those 90 million dollar totals ended up being about 11-12 million instead...

 

[supafly]

Is there anyway we bring in Pollard? We need someone to put fear into the D, especially if spikes is gone

I understand the thinking involved here, but I also think there have been many off the field attitude concerns with Pollard, which is why he's been shuffled around from team to team several times lately.

There are many guys Belichick will tend to stay away from due to team building and chemistry/attitude concepts, despite anything they can provide on the field. I get the feeling that Pollard may be one of those guys.

 

[supafly]

Still after last few seasons with a terrible secondary that one player (Talib) holds it all together.

That has to change, particularly due to the fact that Talib has a chronic hip injury for the past 3-4 yrs that can flare up at any moment, along with many other ailments that has kept him from seeing the field in every one of his 6 seasons.

Belichick does not typically (if ever) build a team who depends on ONE player at any position, and that includes even Brady at QB.

I would imagine that we will attempt to retain Talib, but on a deal that won't break us if it doesn't end up working out. I also expect that we will continue to address the overall depth of the CB position just the same, where we are not as dependent on that one player anymore.

It got better from last year (when we had to resort to Cole), and I would imagine that it will get better again from 2013 to 2014. Eventually, we will get this right. Dennard, Arrington (who does offer some versatility and value even on a more limited basis re: talent), Ryan should be a 1/2 way decent "base" to build on, despite what moves we make with Talib, or any other free agents/draft picks.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

In the patriots past 3 playoff losses we have scored just 17, 13 and 16 points. Offense could not get it done. Not enough playmakers. Were we missing gronkowski in all three of those losses? Yes. Is there any guarantee we will have him for next years playoffs? NO. We need to find electrifying playmakers this offseason that can compliment gronk, in case he gets hurt again or in case he gets shut down. Patriots have to find a way to put more points on the board in these championship playoff games. Lets go after a stud pass catching TE, and a big physical smart WR who can open up a defense.

Center is the most useless position in the NFL??? WOW. Now I see why you are a talent evaluator for a Pro Team in the NFL... Oh wait...

How many centers get drafted in the first round everywhere?? Not many. Definitely one of the least important positions in the NFL. Find a center in the 4th round.


Look how many stud playmakers on offense(WR, TE) there are in the first round. We can find a guy that can actually help us put up more than 16 points in a championship playoff game.

 

[AzPatsFan]

How would you prioritize the resigning of our own free agents this offseason? I would list them as follows:

1. Talib
2. Edelman
3. Blount
4. Wendell
5. Spikes*
6. Hooman
7. Fletcher
8. Aiken
9. Mulligan
10. Collie
11. Svitek

*If the unwanted tripped to injured reserve coupled with what I anticipate to be a poor free agent market for him serves as an eye opening experience for him and he can be reformed.

I was a bit torn between Talib and Edelman at 1 and 2 because I think they both mean more to this team than they would to any other team in the NFL. I was also torn with Blount and Wendell at 3 and 4 mainly because we have Ridley but we don’t have a center that could replace Wendell unless we moved Connolly.

Admittedly I wanted to put Mulligan higher because I actually really liked what he brought to this team in 2013 as a run blocker, it was like having a 6th offensive lineman.

I think Spikes will come pretty cheap for a young, starting quality MLB.

Also everybody seems to have forgotten Zuscevics and I think he is the interior OL conversion from tackle that everyone wants

 

[Brady6]

Also everybody seems to have forgotten Zuscevics and I think he is the interior OL conversion from tackle that everyone wants

I believe he is under contract for 2014 already.

 

[patsderoer]

- Toby Gerhart is a very reasonable alternative to Blount. He's another big (6' 231#) back with breakaway capability. He's turn 27 in March, and he has low mileage due to backing up Adrian Peterson for 4 years (only 286 rushes in 4 years). He has better receiving capability than Blount, which would give him good versatility and also limit the ability of teams to game plan exclusively for the run when he is in the lineup. He averaged 7.9 YPC this year. I'm guessing the price won't be high because of his limited reps, and that he would welcome a RBBC approach in which he could earn much more playing time than he will see in Minnesota.

Rather have Gerhart than Blount. The problem with Blount is that when he is stuffed, he is really stuffed. He was a big part why the offense struggled in the first half vs Denver. 1ypc, thats very bad.

Gerhart does not break many long runs, but he is more consistent at gaining 3-4 ypc. Gerhart was barely used in MN, and has very good hands. Can also pass block well.