Unbearable Lightness of “Agressive“ Narrative

[long distance]

The only player they signed so far that kinda fits the aggressive narrative would be Agholor to me.

Only Jonnu can objectively fit that (remains to be seen how much of that high guarantee # is fully gtd).
The rest are personal preferences

Agholor has now corrected 2y/22M. The fact that the leak has no guaranteed could mean there's nothing to brag about
So this will be in the ballpark of Humphries two years ago or even lower. While Humphries is WR2/slot Agholor is WR1b that can move top of D back. Normally that is worth more on the market.

In any case both WRs got short term deals, so nothing aggressive there really. Feels more like consolation prizes after getting out of some higher biddings. Hence Henry to quickly balance things out

Bourne deal — 3y/22 (reported) => 3y/15M/5g (actual) = 3.1M cap # = 2.3M cap hit only 1st year salary gdt = 1y/6M flyer (3M dead)

 

[sb1]

I don't understand why this is it's own thread. It's basically the thread I posted yesterday, that got locked because a mod didn't like the opinion expressed in it. @Ian

Eh, to be fair that take was a scorcher saying these moves were a "disaster". There's no evidence of that.

Also no evidence that these moves makes the Patriots a playoff team without a QB. More work needs to be done and I don't think all of it can be done overnight.

 

[sb1]

I don’t think that NE, as constituted, is the fav - Bills are still in driver’s seat. I do think a competent QB does make the prospect of returning to the playoffs more tangible. Could be some epic battles this season if Cam isn’t in charge...

Like I said in another topic I think the Pats with these moves right now - are in better position to not get the crap kicked out of them by the Buffalo Bills at home so that puts them above where they were 4 months ago.

Not a playoff team though. Not yet and the key need is obvious. It's Year 1 of a rebuild so my hopes aren't that high.

 

[stinkypete]

Like I said in another topic I think the Pats with these moves right now - are in better position to not get the crap kicked out of them by the Buffalo Bills at home so that puts them above where they were 4 months ago.

Not a playoff team though. Not yet and the key need is obvious. It's Year 1 of a rebuild so my hopes aren't that high.

At this point, we're absolutely looking at a playoff team, Cam or no Cam.

 

[luuked]

Only Jonnu can objectively fit that (remains to be seen how much of that high guarantee # is fully gtd).
The rest are personal preferences

Agholor has now corrected 2y/22M. The fact that the leak has no guaranteed could mean there's nothing to brag about
So this will be in the ballpark of Humphries two years ago or even lower. While Humphries is WR2/slot Agholor is WR1b that can move top of D back. Normally that is worth more on the market.

In any case both WRs got short term deals, so nothing aggressive there really. Feels more like consolation prizes after getting out of some higher biddings. Hence Henry to quickly balance things out

Bourne deal — 3y/22 (reported) => 3y/15M/5g (actual) = 3.1M cap # = 2.3M cap hit only 1st year salary gdt = 1y/6M flyer (3M dead)

I understand all of this but that doesn't change my opinion until we know more about Agholor's structure.

Jonnu's contract is just the product of being the first big ticket item signed in FA. Someone else clearly also wanted to sign him and that's how you end up with that guarantee. I think you have to see it through the context of FA -- and how much the Pats wanted him -- and not by comparison to other deals.

 

[venecol]

Like I said in another topic I think the Pats with these moves right now - are in better position to not get the crap kicked out of them by the Buffalo Bills at home so that puts them above where they were 4 months ago.

Not a playoff team though. Not yet and the key need is obvious. It's Year 1 of a rebuild so my hopes aren't that high.

I disagree with this. These moves bring much needed talent that was completely lacking on the team. Hopefully they move on from the dead weight as well. Plus, they're not done yet (FA, trades, draft).

These moves along with a full preseason, familiarity, etc. even with Cam, could result in 4 more wins than last season, which may be enough to get a WC. The question is how far would they go in the playoffs is yet tbd. Can the team contend with Chiefs? Idk

 

[Kontradiction]

How long have some of you followed this team? You’d have to be pretty naive to think a guy as competitive as BB is doesn’t want to prove that he can win without Brady.

 

[DarrylS]

Listened to toucher and rich this morning and the narrative was predictable boston media

After weeks bemoaning how Bill is cheap and will ruin this team with his "value based" system. They were lambasting him for being aggressive and overpaying saying this won't work out and the team will fail and he should've stuck with his normal method

I GUARANTEE though if he did the media would blast bill for not improving the team while the Bucs got better

Toucher and Rich are an adult show that sometimes talks about sports, neither are NE Pats fans and what they say need to be taken with a grain of salt. I find them entertaining and good for a laugh, but never rely on them for sports information.

I listened to the beginning of Bertram and Zolak when the Hunter Henry signing was announced, for once Bertram did not play resident contrarian, and they were ecstatic about the moves the Pats made..

Most of us on this board shy away from the hysterics & hyperbole of Sports Talk Radio.. and now Gresch is in the mix he will side with the contrarians... add a healthy dose of Felger and Adam Jones and soon this board will be rife with conflicting reports about how the Patriots really messed this up.

My view is they are not done, there is David Andrews who needs to be signed and I find it hard to believe that Cam will be the starting day QB. None of this we are witnessing is haphazard, it is part of a larger plan. Stay tuned folks it is going to be a fun ride.

PS none of this is about Tom Brady either, despite what the pundits claim.. BB and his staff want to put a competitive team on the field and after last year they know what needs to be done.

 

[Bill Lee]

Also no evidence that these moves makes the Patriots a playoff team without a QB. More work needs to be done and I don't think all of it can be done overnight.

Right, but in hindsight this all makes sense if you look at it from the point of view of an economics major. The low cap this year means other teams have to release more players than normal so more players released with less money available league wide to sign them. BB decided our window was closed at least a year ago, probably two, so we've been taking a bunch of cap hits, the obvious ones being TB12 for $13.5M and AB for $5M, so we're one of the few teams with cap space available. Next year the media deal should be signed and the cap should go up. That means it makes sense to splurge and fill in as many gaps as you can this year, and keep next year's big cap raise available for one big swing for the fences if the right situation presents itself.

Note there still are lots of good players out there, which suggests teams really don't have the cap space to sign more.

 

[GreenCow]

Eh, to be fair that take was a scorcher saying these moves were a "disaster". There's no evidence of that.

Also no evidence that these moves makes the Patriots a playoff team without a QB. More work needs to be done and I don't think all of it can be done overnight.

Agreed, but it drove good discussion. Personally, I think it was a bad moderating decision (to lock it) driven purely by emotion and the fact that the mod didn't like the content of the post.

4+ pages of insightful commentary shouldn't be locked just because it starts with an opinion that a mod doesnt like. Just my opinion.

 

[Bill Lee]

Top 101 NFL free agents of 2021: Andy Dalton now top quarterback still on the market

shows the players 1-25 are mostly gone, but 25-100 are mostly available.

Lots of talent still out there to be had.

I think a lot of players and their agents are in the process of re-calibrating right now.

It's a case of musical chairs, more butts than chairs right now.

 

[long distance]

and here we go again

to paraphrase ancient saying: the mother of mediots is always pregnant..

Curran: Belichick sends clear message with free-agent binge

The outcry for Bill Belichick to explain himself and upgrade the roster has been deafening, but as Tom E. Curran writes in the wake of an unprecedented spending spree, actions speak louder than words.

www.nbcsports.com

 

[luuked]

and here we go again

to paraphrase ancient saying: the mother of mediots is always pregnant..

Curran: Belichick sends clear message with free-agent binge

The outcry for Bill Belichick to explain himself and upgrade the roster has been deafening, but as Tom E. Curran writes in the wake of an unprecedented spending spree, actions speak louder than words.

www.nbcsports.com

Guess asking for BB to give up GM duties on offense in a column last week was the epic own goal that we have grown used to with Curran.

Very fitting that he put a 69 joke inside this trash heap of a column. Maybe it is Curran who has "dimensia".

 

[sb1]

Agreed, but it drove good discussion. Personally, I think it was a bad moderating decision (to lock it) driven purely by emotion and the fact that the mod didn't like the content of the post.

4+ pages of insightful commentary shouldn't be locked just because it starts with an opinion that a mod doesnt like. Just my opinion.

Yeah not sure why it was locked but I only read a few posts in there.

 

[long distance]

Guess asking for BB to give up GM duties on offense in a column last week was the epic own goal that we have grown used to with Curran.

Very fitting that he put a 69 joke inside this trash heap of a column. Maybe it is Curran who has "dimensia".

Sorry to make you actually read it - was not the intention

 

[Sicilian]

I don’t think that NE, as constituted, is the fav - Bills are still in driver’s seat. I do think a competent QB does make the prospect of returning to the playoffs more tangible. Could be some epic battles this season if Cam isn’t in charge...

Could be some regardless. They almost beat them in Buffalo with Cam and last year's supporting cast. No reason to think they can't split with them (at least winning the home game) now that there's some legit weaponry on this team.

 

[luuked]

Sorry to make you actually read it - was not the intention

I can handle it, I already cut down my Curran podcast consumption to zero for a long while. An article now and then keeps me on my toes and reminds me why he got removed from my Twitter Pats List.

 

[TheRainMaker]

Bill wants to be the off-season champion for a few reasons:

Bill's rep has been dragged through the mud this year with Brady winning the easiest Super Bowl in his first year without Bill. Bill has spent more guaranteed money in the 1st day alone than in the last 10 years. He's spending as much as he is because he can't draft. And if you can't draft, you become that like every other team that has to sign big name FA to be competitive. Aside from special teams this year, Bill hasn't been able to draft ONE Pro Bowl or All Pro player since Jamie Collins in 2013 (made Pro Bowl 2015/2nd team All Pro).

The last time Bill did something similar to this was in 2007 after Brady was rumored to be pretty pissed off with the way Bill took away both Branch and Givens and how they way they collapsed in the AFCCG.

Brady and the Bucs are gearing up for a potential repeat. You're naïve to think this is just "business as usual" for Bill. Bill wants to win without Brady and preferably beat Brady while doing it.

 

[long distance]

I can handle it, I already cut down my Curran podcast consumption to zero for a long while. An article now and then keeps me on my toes and reminds me why he got removed from my Twitter Pats List.

I do encourage to read this one. This guy actually tries (and does) make sense. Read quickly bc not sure how much longer they will keep it (or him)

Patriots' free agency binge is about opportunity, not revenge

It is delightful to envision an enraged Bill Belichick, fuming over Tom Brady’s Super Bowl victory, plotting and scheming over the last month, waiting for the moment when he could […]

www.boston.com

some teasers:
- The Patriots’ spree is less about desperation and fury than recognition and opportunity.
- Just like the Patriots create a new game plan every week for each opponent rather than hewing to a strict system, Belichick takes every offseason as its own challenge, to be solved with a unique approach.
-Typically, Belichick does not want to bid against teams willing to overpay. This year, free agency presented value because the salary cap is depressed after the pandemic slashed league revenue, forcing many teams to wait out the market. With fewer bidders, the Patriots could swoop in. As the salary cap booms in coming seasons after the NFL signs its next television rights contract, the contracts the Patriots signed this offseason will only look like bigger bargains.
- The Patriots also made the calculation that 2020 would be a season in which they reset their salary cap space
-“This is kind of the year that we’ve taken to, I would say, adjust our cap from the spending that we’ve had in accumulation of prior years,” Belichick said in late October in an interview on SiriusXM radio with host Charlie Weis

 

[luuked]

I do encourage to read this one. This guy actually tries (and does) make sense. Read quickly bc not sure how much longer they will keep it (or him)

Patriots' free agency binge is about opportunity, not revenge

It is delightful to envision an enraged Bill Belichick, fuming over Tom Brady’s Super Bowl victory, plotting and scheming over the last month, waiting for the moment when he could […]

www.boston.com

some teasers:
- The Patriots’ spree is less about desperation and fury than recognition and opportunity.
- Just like the Patriots create a new game plan every week for each opponent rather than hewing to a strict system, Belichick takes every offseason as its own challenge, to be solved with a unique approach.
-Typically, Belichick does not want to bid against teams willing to overpay. This year, free agency presented value because the salary cap is depressed after the pandemic slashed league revenue, forcing many teams to wait out the market. With fewer bidders, the Patriots could swoop in. As the salary cap booms in coming seasons after the NFL signs its next television rights contract, the contracts the Patriots signed this offseason will only look like bigger bargains.
- The Patriots also made the calculation that 2020 would be a season in which they reset their salary cap space
-“This is kind of the year that we’ve taken to, I would say, adjust our cap from the spending that we’ve had in accumulation of prior years,” Belichick said in late October in an interview on SiriusXM radio with host Charlie Weis

BB still at the top of his game, turns COVID into a unique opportunity. Chess and checkers.