I'm on the "don't spend on a distraction" side of the ledger. When we spent for Corey Dillon and Randy Moss, those were two disgruntled guys who'd had long histories of cancerdom... but also long history of elite-caliber play. If I remember correctly, Dillon had eye-popping games on his resume (as in, 250 yards,) was high on the list of all-around RB leaders in many seasons, was fairly durable, and most of all, could move chains if all the eye-popping aspects weren't enough (and didn't pan out.) Moss was already known as super-elite and capable of being the guy at his position in given years. You check 'em out, you work 'em out, you interview 'em, and you decide if their situation was the reason for the problem, or if they were the problem (and of course it's a mix of the two.) What you figure out is, transplant this green mold to the Pats, and is it just green mold, or penicillin?
With Harvin, he's struggled to put together full seasons. Between migraines, pot suspensions (again going by memory, but I think he's got a substance abuse history,) and the famous perception of "locker room" issues, what's the lure? Physical skills on a few cool plays when everything is going right?
What's Percy Harvin if you're 2-2, and just got pasted by KC, and the mediots (and some fans, ahem, myself wavering about being among them) turning on the QB... then the coach comes out and says the word of the week is "Trust"?
I don't know the answers. I don't do the backgrounders on these guys, I don't do the interviews, for that reason (and the fact that I have to go to work) I'm not digging into Harvin's history etc. Maybe you put all that info together with the Pats' well-known turd-to-star alchemy and Harvin's just what the doctor ordered. I don't see it. It seems to me that over a season Harvin gives up. Last year succeeded because the team did not - ever.
BTW, this defense still needs to at least hold steady and preferably get better. One more middle-class guy at receiver would give me a comfortable feeling, but it's about the trenches and it's about the defense. Remember, we gave up more points in 49 than in the previous two SBs. But the difference is BB could get his coach on at the end in 49, and trust in the D rather than trust in TFB with <1 minute left, and he flipped the script and did it.
The arc of the Patriots' future is long, but I am convinced that it bends toward defense (in preparation for the inevitable.) I think we've seen this over the past couple of seasons of moves.
We'll address the trenches in the draft, barring a huge FA bargain. We'll sign what we can back of that defense, perhaps sacrificing Mayo and/or Wilfork. We'll keep Revis Force Multiplier... these are all my guesses, which are routinely wrong.
But I don't think we spend high at receiver, and unless there's something I don't know, we don't spend much at all on a guy like Harvin. But again: that's what all the background work is for. We can only do a fraction of it from where we sit, and even for the big boys it's more art than science.
Everybody's talking about a one-year "prove-it" deal. I say you keep Amendola on the hope that late-season '14 Amendola is more like what you get going forward, but with money structured to reflect that he took his sweet time getting to that form (but picked a good time to come through.)
Our present WR corps reminds me of what we had back in the day - no flashy super stars, no "heave the ball to Randy and let nature take its course."
Last point (re: Edelman): God love the Pats' ability to turn up gold in rounds 5-7, but 2009 was not a disgraceful draft. Low hit-ratio, but it was no Maroney/Chad Jackson redux. Pat Chung took 2 teams and some humility to "get it" but was a key piece this year, with his responsibilities diminished in terms of coverage (and his coverage ability finally enhanced). SeaBass has given us a number of decent years, notwithstanding his turnstile impression in SB 46 (do I remember that right?). Darius "The Other" Butler could play sometimes but when you're looking at fielding Revis, um, okay we'll go with that. Edelman was that hidden gem in Rd 7... we seem to get better at this as the draft gets deeper. But there were some fair picks in that avalanche of selections early on as well.
Disappointing to have that much firepower and come away with that haul... but it could have been way worse.
