We're on to the OFF-Season

[slash83]

Theyre saying a first round tackle but look what Cincy did for Burrow. His line sucked but they still drafted Jamar Chase. You need a difference maker with the first rounder. This team needs speed.

Pats have a knack for developing o linemen drafted in later rounds. That being said, drafting a WR at 14 scares me, they need to hit on the pick.

 

[TheBeers]

Wonder if we could restucture Jonnu/Henry or others and gain cap space there. Jonnu's contract is bloated, but I do think he's a good player. We did not use him well and he got injured a couple times.

 

[PowerRunRevival]

Plenty of cap to make moves with.

Agreed, I think with that much money and their draft picks they should be able to do most of the following:
1. Upgrade the OL
2. Improve at wr
3. Add at least one corner with size
4. Revamp the special teams (new punter, kicker and at least one new coverage guy)

I think if the current 2022 team had been able to make those improvements as well as add new assistant coaches they probably win another 3-4 games which would have put the Pats in the top echelon of the AFC record wise. I’m hopeful for the offseason for that reason.

 

[Rob0729]

Some random thoughts going into the offseason:

1.) I tired of people saying that Pats need an elite QB. Anyone who says that have to be willing to give the Pats at least two to three decades to get one because that is the likely timeframe we are looking at for that to happen. Fact is that if the Pats are going to compete for a title again in a lot of our lifetimes is with a good QB with a lot of pieces around him. Fact is the Pats won't be getting an elite QB anytime soon.

2.) I see zero chance that Matt Patricia will be calling offensive plays next year. Kraft was never on board with that idea as he stated last March. After the disaster of the season, there is no way Kraft will allow Belichick give Patricia year two even if it means Belichick walks.

3. ) Speaking of Belichick, if I was Kraft, I would at least be considering whether it was time to move on from him. I have been known as a Belichick apologist in the past, but this year makes me wonder if he is just holding on to get Shula's record. Everything that made him the GOAT were the opposite this year. Belichick coached teams were always the smarter team on the field, but not this year. He was always about attention to details, but the Pats were very sloppy and mistake prone this year. He was always about situational awareness, but the Patriots have been a disaster in handling red zone situations, timeouts, clock management, etc. He was always about playing all 60 minutes, but this team has fallen apart at ends of games. He has always been about all three phases of the game, but except for Marcus Jones and a few others, the special teams have been miserable.

Maybe this year will be a wake up call for Belichick and he will refocus, but he could be like a player on the verge of retirement who just doesn't have the fire anymore.

4.) The Patriots need a true #1 WR. They don't have Brady anymore. Only elite QBs can function with a bunch of decent #2 and #3 receivers and no go to guy. But even most of Brady's career, he always had a go to guy from Troy to Moss to Welker to Gronk to Edelman. Jones doesn't even have a reliable guy he knows he can go to in a pinch. Unfortunately, the free agent market is bare of #1 WRs. So the Pats will have to trade or draft one. I would say potential trades could be DeAndre Hopkins, Mike Evans, and Tee Higgins.

5.) I saw something about Doug Peterson last night where he said he meets with his QB and the rest of the offense and tries get their strengths and weaknesses and tries to gear his offense around that. It has done wonders for Trevor Lawrence this year. It is the opposite of what Patricia seems to have done with deciding what offense he wanted and tried to force the talent to run it. Whoever is the OC next year, they need to be more like Peterson and less like Patricia.

6.) Anyone who has watched the Pats play the Bills the last few years, one of the free agents this offseason the Pats should be chasing is Tremaine Edmonds. Every list of free agents I see have him outside the top 20, but I think he is the lynchpin of the Bills' defense.

7.) The Pats need a true third down back. I know injuries/retirement took away their options this season, but they never tried to replace them. Damien Harris likely gone in free agency, they cannot over use Stevenson like they did this year.

8.) The Pats will end up giving Jones one more year to prove himself. This year was a wash because of Patricia. Jones has shown enough from Thanksgiving on that he might be a good starting QB with a real OC and more talent around him.

 

[Froob]

Should resign McDermott, did a hell of a job at RT where we had a lot of trouble getting consistent play.

 

[IcyPatriot]

Patricia was our 2 girls ... 1 cup ...
OL and OC

 

[PowerRunRevival]

Theyre saying a first round tackle but look what Cincy did for Burrow. His line sucked but they still drafted Jamar Chase. You need a difference maker with the first rounder. This team needs speed.

Quentin Johnston sounds like the type of player with the size and speed you want. Addison is really good but not that fast or that big (kind of like DaVonta Smith). For speed I really love Zay Flowers but he’s more a second round guy.

I’m in the minority but I think if they bring back Jacoby and draft one of those guys to replace Agholor that will be enough at WR with an improved offensive line.

 

[TheBeers]

I've had a couple so don't kill me on this one BUT.. if Kraft is looking for a coaching change could he trade BB to New Orleans for Sean Payton?

 

[Rob0729]

What are we projected to have in cap space?

I think it is $55 million.

 

[Love The Drake]

I've had a couple so don't kill me on this one BUT.. if Kraft is looking for a coaching change could he trade BB to New Orleans for Sean Payton?

Coach for coach trade.
Would shake up the NFL.

 

[slash83]

I think it is $55 million.

I’ve heard that and 35, hopefully it’s 55 like you said.

 

[crawhammer]

It's a FACT that Brady Iced out rookies in 2019.

Why does this keep getting said? N'Keal Harry for Christ's sake.

 

[PowerRunRevival]

Some random thoughts going into the offseason:

1.) I tired of people saying that Pats need an elite QB. Anyone who says that have to be willing to give the Pats at least two to three decades to get one because that is the likely timeframe we are looking at for that to happen. Fact is that if the Pats are going to compete for a title again in a lot of our lifetimes is with a good QB with a lot of pieces around him. Fact is the Pats won't be getting an elite QB anytime soon.

2.) I see zero chance that Matt Patricia will be calling offensive plays next year. Kraft was never on board with that idea as he stated last March. After the disaster of the season, there is no way Kraft will allow Belichick give Patricia year two even if it means Belichick walks.

3. ) Speaking of Belichick, if I was Kraft, I would at least be considering whether it was time to move on from him. I have been known as a Belichick apologist in the past, but this year makes me wonder if he is just holding on to get Shula's record. Everything that made him the GOAT were the opposite this year. Belichick coached teams were always the smarter team on the field, but not this year. He was always about attention to details, but the Pats were very sloppy and mistake prone this year. He was always about situational awareness, but the Patriots have been a disaster in handling red zone situations, timeouts, clock management, etc. He was always about playing all 60 minutes, but this team has fallen apart at ends of games. He has always been about all three phases of the game, but except for Marcus Jones and a few others, the special teams have been miserable.

Maybe this year will be a wake up call for Belichick and he will refocus, but he could be like a player on the verge of retirement who just doesn't have the fire anymore.

4.) The Patriots need a true #1 WR. They don't have Brady anymore. Only elite QBs can function with a bunch of decent #2 and #3 receivers and no go to guy. But even most of Brady's career, he always had a go to guy from Troy to Moss to Welker to Gronk to Edelman. Jones doesn't even have a reliable guy he knows he can go to in a pinch. Unfortunately, the free agent market is bare of #1 WRs. So the Pats will have to trade or draft one. I would say potential trades could be DeAndre Hopkins, Mike Evans, and Tee Higgins.

5.) I saw something about Doug Peterson last night where he said he meets with his QB and the rest of the offense and tries get their strengths and weaknesses and tries to gear his offense around that. It has done wonders for Trevor Lawrence this year. It is the opposite of what Patricia seems to have done with deciding what offense he wanted and tried to force the talent to run it. Whoever is the OC next year, they need to be more like Peterson and less like Patricia.

6.) Anyone who has watched the Pats play the Bills the last few years, one of the free agents this offseason the Pats should be chasing is Tremaine Edmonds. Every list of free agents I see have him outside the top 20, but I think he is the lynchpin of the Bills' defense.

7.) The Pats need a true third down back. I know injuries/retirement took away their options this season, but they never tried to replace them. Damien Harris likely gone in free agency, they cannot over use Stevenson like they did this year.

8.) The Pats will end up giving Jones one more year to prove himself. This year was a wash because of Patricia. Jones has shown enough from Thanksgiving on that he might be a good starting QB with a real OC and more talent around him.

I agree with everything you said about how Belichick coached the team this year. I just think that before you fire one of the winningest coaches in history he will consider changing the coaches around Bill. Usually when a team underperforms they replace the assistants or change up the play caller instead of firing the head coach. I expect that to happen this year two. A big question would also be who would replace Belichick, they can’t get rid of him without a quality replacement. Maybe Kraft insists Bill brings in OC from outside his normal coaching tree. Then that would provide them with a name to go to next and help in the immediate.

In terms of a 3rd down back, I’d be fine with them drafting a guy but no earlier than the 4th. I also think Strong could grow into that role as he certainly has the speed to be a threat to run by linebackers in the pass game.

I’d love a number one receiver but if they look for that guy in the draft that player probably won’t fill that role in year 1. I’d love Evans, or Hopkins but that would probably limit the other areas the Pats can improve this offseason (I wouldn’t want to sign a receiver to such a big contract that we couldn’t also upgrade at tackle and corner). Michael Thomas might be a guy who they could take a lottery ticket on in hopes he can finally get healthy.

 

[nextsuperstar]

Theyre saying a first round tackle but look what Cincy did for Burrow. His line sucked but they still drafted Jamar Chase. You need a difference maker with the first rounder. This team needs speed.

I’m not sure there is a Chase in this draft. Smith-Njigba missed basically the entire year. Addison disappointed at USC. You’ve then got Hyatt, Johnston and Flowers.

I guess one of those five could be a star quickly, but…

 

[DaBruinz]

Priorities: OT, MLB, FS, WR. Bring in BOB or anyone who actually does offense and move Judge to special teams. Despite taking a step back performance wise this year, which I mostly think was staff related, I think we were still able to build talentwise with what looks like another good draft and some other prospects from previous years stepping their game up.

I've put up the 2023/2024 Roster thread. This will give people an idea of what we actually have on the roster prior to Free Agency and the Draft.

The Patriots can re-sign their own free agents and sign PS players to futures contracts as soon as they'd like.

 

[Rob0729]

I agree with everything you said about how Belichick coached the team this year. I just think that before you fire one of the winningest coaches in history he will consider changing the coaches around Bill. Usually when a team underperforms they replace the assistants or change up the play caller instead of firing the head coach. I expect that to happen this year two. A big question would also be who would replace Belichick, they can’t get rid of him without a quality replacement. Maybe Kraft insists Bill brings in OC from outside his normal coaching tree. Then that would provide them with a name to go to next and help in the immediate.

In terms of a 3rd down back, I’d be fine with them drafting a guy but no earlier than the 4th. I also think Strong could grow into that role as he certainly has the speed to be a threat to run by linebackers in the pass game.

I’d love a number one receiver but if they look for that guy in the draft that player probably won’t fill that role in year 1. I’d love Evans, or Hopkins but that would probably limit the other areas the Pats can improve this offseason (I wouldn’t want to sign a receiver to such a big contract that we couldn’t also upgrade at tackle and corner). Michael Thomas might be a guy who they could take a lottery ticket on in hopes he can finally get healthy.

The reason why I say consider firing Belichick is because any other coach in the league did what he did and put Patricia in charge of both the play calling duties and the offensive line and Judge as QBs coach and they failed as miserably as they did, that head coach would be fired.

Belichick made these moves against Kraft's objections. Kraft said that Belichick has earned the right to make these head scratching moves because he is the GOAT. But that also tells me that, he might have used up most of his GOAT clout with Kraft already.

If Belichick is back next year which I expect he will, he will most likely have to produce or he may not break Shula's record with the Patriots. I think he will need that playoff win next year or he is done with the Patriots. But some of Kraft's words this past offseason about how this team needed to get a playoff win and his not being on board with Patricia means that I wouldn't be shocked if Belichick "resigns", is fired, or traded before the playoffs is over.

 

[DaBruinz]

Worse contract given out in the BB Era. Jonnu's cap hit is so ridiculous next year I can't even laugh.

Chad Johnson says "HI".
The cap hit is the way it is because he helped the Patriots out this season by moving doing the roster to signing bonus conversion.

You seem to forget that the Patriots are one of only 2 teams that still have it in their contracts that the Players must approve the change. Every other team can do it without the player's permission.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

I agree with everything you said about how Belichick coached the team this year. I just think that before you fire one of the winningest coaches in history he will consider changing the coaches around Bill. Usually when a team underperforms they replace the assistants or change up the play caller instead of firing the head coach. I expect that to happen this year two. A big question would also be who would replace Belichick, they can’t get rid of him without a quality replacement. Maybe Kraft insists Bill brings in OC from outside his normal coaching tree. Then that would provide them with a name to go to next and help in the immediate.

In terms of a 3rd down back, I’d be fine with them drafting a guy but no earlier than the 4th. I also think Strong could grow into that role as he certainly has the speed to be a threat to run by linebackers in the pass game.

I’d love a number one receiver but if they look for that guy in the draft that player probably won’t fill that role in year 1. I’d love Evans, or Hopkins but that would probably limit the other areas the Pats can improve this offseason (I wouldn’t want to sign a receiver to such a big contract that we couldn’t also upgrade at tackle and corner). Michael Thomas might be a guy who they could take a lottery ticket on in hopes he can finally get healthy.

Don't be surprised if the Pats sign Jarvis Landry to reunite with Parker next season.....Jarvis is turning 30 and Bill love to sign those soon to be old receivers, although 30 isnt that old - I prefer a guy like Chark or Lazard but doubt it.

 

[slash83]

The reason why I say consider firing Belichick is because any other coach in the league did what he did and put Patricia in charge of both the play calling duties and the offensive line and Judge as QBs coach and they failed as miserably as they did, that head coach would be fired.

Belichick made these moves against Kraft's objections. Kraft said that Belichick has earned the right to make these head scratching moves because he is the GOAT. But that also tells me that, he might have used up most of his GOAT clout with Kraft already.

If Belichick is back next year which I expect he will, he will most likely have to produce or he may not break Shula's record with the Patriots. I think he will need that playoff win next year or he is done with the Patriots. But some of Kraft's words this past offseason about how this team needed to get a playoff win and his not being on board with Patricia means that I wouldn't be shocked if Belichick "resigns", is fired, or traded before the playoffs is over.

His decision didn’t work out, I don’t think it’s a fireable move doing what he did. Now if he’s hell bent on running it again with Patricia then yeah he’s got to go.

 

[DaBruinz]

The reason why I say consider firing Belichick is because any other coach in the league did what he did and put Patricia in charge of both the play calling duties and the offensive line and Judge as QBs coach and they failed as miserably as they did, that head coach would be fired.

Belichick made these moves against Kraft's objections. Kraft said that Belichick has earned the right to make these head scratching moves because he is the GOAT. But that also tells me that, he might have used up most of his GOAT clout with Kraft already.

If Belichick is back next year which I expect he will, he will most likely have to produce or he may not break Shula's record with the Patriots. I think he will need that playoff win next year or he is done with the Patriots. But some of Kraft's words this past offseason about how this team needed to get a playoff win and his not being on board with Patricia means that I wouldn't be shocked if Belichick "resigns", is fired, or traded before the playoffs is over.

Please cite where Kraft came out and stated that he was against moving Patricia to the OC/OL position and Judge to the QBC position. I'll wait.