Allow me to thump my chest on this one - Amendola confirms what I've been saying for quite some time, its all Brady. No one wants to play for the Patriots - no one. Speaking generally, 90% of these NFL players going into the 2021 season have been coddled by their parents, their schools, their systems. Remember - many of these kids probably went to high school in an age where it is not politically correct to discipline kids. they get away with EVERYTHING. Why, pray tell, would these kids want to play for a disciplinarian head coach when instead you could play for a buffoon like Arians, a rah rah clown like McVay, or an uber player's coach like Andy Reid. Those are just a few examples. Do we need to go over Coach Bill's and Bill the GM's record in Cleveland? His drafts were absolutely terrible (REMINDER HE DRAFTED A FULL BACK IN THE FIRST ROUND), won zero division titles, and had a well below .500 career record.
Bill the GM has put together a bottom 5 roster as it stands now. I will argue that despite what some think, Bill the GM is NOT going to make s big "splash" in FA. I'm not saying he's not going to spend all of Krafty Bob's $ available, but he's not going to do it signing "big name" free agents. He will take the approach he takes with the draft - acquire 4 or 5 jag defensive backs, linebackers, receivers, etc. Bill does this to see what sticks. He figures there's more value in $20M worth of contracts for 5 guys as opposed to 1 guy bc you can keep 1 guy and dump 4 guys and save some $ on the cap. You'll see Bill the GM acquire 3 or 4 guys at each position of need - all Bldg 19 type guys.
Admittedly, the Bldg 19 approach worked for the first iteration of the Patrios dynasty with guys like Bobby Hamilton, O T I S Smith, Marc Edwards, David Patten, Vrabel, Cox, Antowain Smith, Phifer, and the list goes on. That's some pretty good success at signing cast offs. Bill the GM signed some guys in 2000/2001 for some cheap $ contracts bc no one wanted these guys and thought they were washed up or square pegs in a round hole.
The big question is can Bill the GM have a couple of drafts and free agency periods like he did in 2000-2003? My money says no because his recent history of all player acquisition is no better than a D grade.