What midseason moves will the Patriots make?

[BlueThunder]

To all the people sippin' the kool-aid that quoted me:

If you guys are right, why the hell would trade for an old reciever in an shortened off season if its going to take him atleast a year to learn the Playbook? Ocho is either a bad player or a bad trade.

Did you comprehend what Rob said?

The only comprehible comparison of a player who had a similiar experience as OchoCinco and stuck with the team was Jabar Gaffney and he sucked for the first 10 games he was here. Gaffney had 11 catches for 142 yards and a TD in his first 10 games. Ochocinco has 9 catches for 136 yards in 5 games.

 

[JackBauer]

The Patriots have enough talent on the roster as currently constituted to have an elite offense with Ocho running at sub-optimal capacity.

I find it equally plausible they brought him on board understanding there'd be a learning curve, but anticipating he'd ideally acclimate to the offense by the second half/playoffs, thus adding another dangerous weapon to the arsenal for when it really counts.

It also doesn't hurt to have the guy as a depth option behind the perennial injury risk Branch. That is, unless you feel more comfortable with Edelman and Slater as the alternative options.

 

[NEPatriot]

Wow, lots of Chad hate. He's still the #3 WR, and has a much higher ceiling later this year than anybody you'd replace him with.

I think we'll just see the PUP guys activated. If Bill was serious about adding more 3-4 as the season goes on, then Deaderick and Brace come at a great time. I don't know that Cannon will be activated for sure, but whenever this is an action taken on him, it will tell us a lot.

I wasn't a fan of the trade then and I'm still not. I'm not sure what BB was thinking, outside of the player he admired several years ago. We're paying a lot of money for an aging, slowing player to be our number 3 WR option. Maybe he's insurance, but I still don't like it. Not only are we over paying by a lot, but we're also slowing the development of Price. That's a lot of cap space for very little production.

I'd love to see a trade for Curry. He's reworked his contract and probably would do it again. Does he have issues? Of course. He wouldn't be on the trading block if he didn't. At the very least, he could play on ST and as a rotational player. Not bad for a mid/late round pick. While many view him as a better fit in a 3-4, I still think he could contribute.

 

[fester]

To all the people sippin' the kool-aid that quoted me:

If you guys are right, why the hell would trade for an old reciever in an shortened off season if its going to take him atleast a year to learn the Playbook? Ocho is either a bad player or a bad trade.

No, it is a low-risk, medium reward move --- how many recent 5th or 6th rounders have made the 2011 roster --- not many.

The question is the contract extension, not the trade itself for a player who is on the active 46 every week and is expanding his role. That is the relevant evaluatory metric, as the draft pick cost is fairly low.

 

[NG Pats Fan]

I think it's BS people think this offense runs better only with agile route-runners as opposed to big WRs. I think 2007 proved if you have an Elite big WR to compliment agile route runners, you can become the most dominant offense in the NFL. I think if we had Dwayne Bowe to compliment Welker, Hernandez, Gronk, and Branch...We will become one of the greatest offenses of all time and unstoppable in the red zone.

Ocho's problem is that he is 33, and has lost his legs. Everyone ages at some point.

We need a PRIME 26-27 year old like Dwayne Bowe...one of my favorite WRs in the NFL...Criminally underrated. He is also on a team that has close connections with the patriots.

 

[RIpats88]

Ochocinco is making some nice catches and Brady seems to trust him in 3rd down situations(that sideline catch was a nice one) but his production is basically related to the fact that the guy is only playing 20-30snaps a game and is targeted 2-3times..ocho is essentially playing the role that Tate did last year.

with Welker/Branch as the #1 and #2 receivers and Gronk/Hernandez the patriots play a Heavy Tight end set. so, right now ocho is having trouble getting onto the field. I think that the pats will use the bye week to carve out a role for ochocinco.

really what you have to wonder is why the patriots(who were #1 offensive team last year) with a heavy two TE set would bring in a 3rd reciever of Ochocinco's calibar...when essentially he'd be 5th on the target list...maybe belichick wants to eventually cut down the snaps of injury prone guys like Hernandez/Branch so they are healthy for the playoffs..who knows, but I expect well see a breakout game from him sooner or later

 

[NEPatriot]

No, it is a low-risk, medium reward move --- how many recent 5th or 6th rounders have made the 2011 roster --- not many.

The question is the contract extension, not the trade itself for a player who is on the active 46 every week and is expanding his role. That is the relevant evaluatory metric, as the draft pick cost is fairly low.

True, most 5th rounders don't have a large impact on their teams. However, most 5th rounders don't take up the salary cap space that Ochocinco does. As for contract extension, there's no chance that he's extended. I'm not sure that he's even on the team next year.

 

[Sciz]

I think it's BS people think this offense runs better only with agile route-runners as opposed to big WRs. I think 2007 proved if you have an Elite big WR to compliment agile route runners, you can become the most dominant offense in the NFL. I think if we had Dwayne Bowe to compliment Welker, Hernandez, Gronk, and Branch...We will become one of the greatest offenses of all time and unstoppable in the red zone.

Ocho's problem is that he is 33, and has lost his legs. Everyone ages at some point.

We need a PRIME 26-27 year old like Dwayne Bowe...one of my favorite WRs in the NFL...Criminally underrated. He is also on a team that has close connections with the patriots.

First of all, Bowe is no Randy Moss. Even in 2007, Moss was 6'4", ran a 4.3, and had absolutely insane ball skills. Bowe is a little over 6'2", runs a 4.4, and doesn't have those ball skills. He has 10 40+ receptions in his 64-game career. Moss had 9 in 2007 alone. Moss had the ability to get behind defenses basically at will, plus the added ability to be "open" 40 yards down the field even when there were two guys on him. The only WR in the NFL who can come close to claiming that deep threat ability right now is Calvin Johnson, and even he isn't nearly as polished as Moss was back in 2007.

The 2007 gameplan wasn't even effective for a full season before teams figured out how to beat it. They averaged 41 points per game in the first 8 games, 32 a game in the second 8, and then 22 a game in the playoffs. That's not how you win a Super Bowl.

 

[patsfaninpittsburgh]

To all the people sippin' the kool-aid that quoted me:

If you guys are right, why the hell would trade for an old reciever in an shortened off season if its going to take him atleast a year to learn the Playbook? Ocho is either a bad player or a bad trade.

Alright, what village is missing it's idiot?

"Trade"? They gave up practically nothing.

The feeling was he was a better asset than Tate.

Skillsets needed for future use?

Sometimes you really have to question the intelligence of this site

2001-2006 Hey, we need a big time #1 receiver.

2007-2009 Hey, having Moss as a #1 means Brady just locks in on him. What happened to throwing to the open guy?

2010-present Hey, we need a big time #1

Is Ocho's pay coming out of your pocket? My guess is if he was getting 10-15 catches per game, you'd be here complaining Brady is locking in on him.

He's making some catches, learning the offense, and isn't a disruption. If/when needed he's available.

I swear half the board probably hates on fire extinguishers and CPR equipment because they aren't out "contributing".

 

[Sciz]

True, most 5th rounders don't have a large impact on their teams. However, most 5th rounders don't take up the salary cap space that Ochocinco does. As for contract extension, there's no chance that he's extended. I'm not sure that he's even on the team next year.

Ochocinco was already extended. He's under contract through the 2013 season.

And cap hit is basically irrelevant right now. The Pats are well under the cap. Ochocinco could have a $10M cap hit right now and they'd still have enough room to do whatever they needed. Cap hit only really matters when you're up against the cap.

 

[Froob]

Bowe would be sick. Doubt KC would trade him I believe they have tons of cap room left. Been watching that dude since he was at LSU.
The only move I see the pats making is activating Brace. Not sure about Deaderick, will there be a roster spot for him? Maybe he gets cut or IR'd. Wouldn't be surprised to see it happen to Brace too but he did look decent before he went on IR at the end of last year.

 

[NEPatriot]

Alright, what village is missing it's idiot?

"Trade"? They gave up practically nothing.

The feeling was he was a better asset than Tate.

Skillsets needed for future use?

Sometimes you really have to question the intelligence of this site

2001-2006 Hey, we need a big time #1 receiver.

2007-2009 Hey, having Moss as a #1 means Brady just locks in on him. What happened to throwing to the open guy?

2010-present Hey, we need a big time #1

Is Ocho's pay coming out of your pocket? My guess is if he was getting 10-15 catches per game, you'd be here complaining Brady is locking in on him.

He's making some catches, learning the offense, and isn't a disruption. If/when needed he's available.

I swear half the board probably hates on fire extinguishers and CPR equipment because they aren't out "contributing".

I'm not going to question your intelligence. I feel everyone is entitled to their opinion, even if I don't agree with it. I just disagree with your opinion. I agree a fifth isn't a lot to give up in a trade. But in my opinion we're paying him a lot for very little production. That money that could be used on another player, a contract extension or pushed forward to next year. Just my opinion. I could be wrong, but that's currently how I feel.

 

[patsfaninpittsburgh]

The Patriots have enough talent on the roster as currently constituted to have an elite offense with Ocho running at sub-optimal capacity.

I find it equally plausible they brought him on board understanding there'd be a learning curve, but anticipating he'd ideally acclimate to the offense by the second half/playoffs, thus adding another dangerous weapon to the arsenal for when it really counts.

It also doesn't hurt to have the guy as a depth option behind the perennial injury risk Branch. That is, unless you feel more comfortable with Edelman and Slater as the alternative options.

Jack Bauer takes up residence.

Because every village needs a genius.

Why everyone gets so worked up is beyond comprehension.

 

[patsfaninpittsburgh]

I'm not going to question your intelligence. I feel everyone is entitled to their opinion, even if I don't agree with it. I just disagree with your opinion. I agree a fifth isn't a lot to give up in a trade. But in my opinion we're paying him a lot for very little production. That money that could be used on another player, a contract extension or pushed forward to next year. Just my opinion. I could be wrong, but that's currently how I feel.

Your points are valid. I'm not disputing.

It's simply not that big a deal to get worked up about. He's making a couple of catches. The offense is fine.

Pretty soon we will have guys all worked up about the 3rd string, shadow roster long snapper.

Why come to a site with about a 4-1 team to be miserable?

Also, why is it every loser of an arguement has to resort to "homer" and "koolaid"?

 

[BradyManny]

Ever the optimist, I remain hopeful that Ron Brace has some bright future ahead of himself.

In the instances in which he has been on the field for us, he has occasionally shown some glimpses of potential.

I don't think Ochocinco will be released. Even though he is far underperforming compared to his expected production and his contract, he is still a better option than Taylor Price at the moment.

I don't think Haynesworth will be released either. To be honest, if that guy gives us nothing all season but has something in the tank for January and February, and is a legitimate contributor in the playoffs, I will be more than happy.

 

[naF staP]

Not that he is needed but Kevin Faulk back on the active roster. I like the dude and this would be great to see!

 

[Dutchmaster617]

It seems to me that the offense is doing just fine; it's the defense that needs lot of work. Doing anything with wide receivers will be next to irrelevant to how the team fares over this season.

It would help limit turnovers, it might not hurt us but I do prefer to cut down on the 5 foot 6 guys tipping balls to 6 ft defenders.

 

[captain stone]

I was kinda hoping that Bill would sign safety Sean Considine, but Arizona signs him instead.

We still need a legit FS really, really badly.

 

[RIpats88]

I dont get calls to cut ochocinco and haynesworth...they are low risk signings and at least can only bring positives to the defense and offense if they work out.

Ochocinco plays 32snaps a game on a team that plays a 75% 2 TE set...and is the 5th receiver essentially, behind Welker,branch, Gronkowski, Hernandez.

are people expecting him to put up 50-100yards in the limited targets he gets? hes essentially taking over for Brandon Tate, not Randy moss

 

[DanJMartin12]

Best and most realistic option is to activate Brace and Deadrick off the PUP list. Brace has shown some flashes,and he's another 300+ DT/DE to add to the rotation, which can only help keep guys fresh. This is probably his last chance to show something so maybe he's hungry.