Patriots Rumor A.J. Brown trade rumors heat up - Should Patriots get him?

[Ring 6]

Maye needs to develop the short and Intwrnediate game. Without that we are not going anywhere. Teams will just start to blitz the hell out as Drake will not take the short yards.

Without that aspect developing we are definitely bound to see some regression.

Secondly the schedule is real hard which means we don't have much rooms for slip ups. We could afford some slip ups and come back in games last year but not this year . Drake will need to show he can comeback and mount a 2 minute drive he did it once I believe, but we need more. Young and Williams have more comebacks than Maye and that's a weakness for now .

We overachieved last year . This year will hinge a lot on development of williams , Campbell and henderson.

Maye is fine in short and intermediate. He led the league in completion percentage and qb rating.
Mayes average pass is 7.5 yards down field. More than half are less than that.

We went 14-3, having less comebacks than someone with a worse record is not a weakness. Playing poorly and falling behind and needing to comeback is a weakness. Maye had 3 failed comebacks. Williams had 6 and young had 8. Don’t be a slave to reading stats without understanding what they mean.

We achieved what we achieved. We earned every bit of it. The fact that people misunderstood how good this team was doesn’t make it “overachieving”.
Achievement is real and measured, opinion is not.

 

[n1997y]

I don't know if diggs is the best use of allowing our players to develop. We saw Boutte flatline through mid of season, pop regressing and Williams not having an option, inability to play Chism.
…

We’ve seen lots of arguments for dumping Diggs because he disappeared late in the season and in the playoffs.

Does this now mean we should also dump Boutte and Pop and Kyle and Chism?

Or does this suggest that just maybe the problem wasn’t Diggs and the other WRs?

 

[Toofy]

We’ve seen lots of arguments for dumping Diggs because he disappeared late in the season and in the playoffs.

Does this now mean we should also dump Boutte and Pop and Kyle and Chism?

Or does this suggest that just maybe the problem wasn’t Diggs and the other WRs?

I am just saying the impact of diggs improving the wr room is not there. Maybe they might be useful if they had more dedicated roles as opposed to overlap with diggs .

We need a boundary receiver and that's not diggs . He had some great games but is he the difference maker. I am not too sure.

Is he worth 27 million.. absolutely not.

Would I want him back at a reduced contract.. absolutely yes.

 

[Ross12]

Thing is - if they are going to trade for Brown it either needs to happen in the next couple weeks before his option is due, or otherwise not until after June 1.

The Eagles will be incentivized to move him now before they have to pay his option bonus. Once that gets paid in early March then it becomes stupid to trade him until 6/02 or later because the dead money hit this year becomes even larger. They’d want to push some of that into 2027 by waiting until June.

Of course if you wait until June, you have two problems - you aren’t getting 2026 draft picks anymore because they’ve all been used by then, and teams who may have wanted to trade for the player in March might not need him in June because they’ve found alternative solutions in free agency or the draft. Fewer suitors.

 

[n1997y]

I am just saying the impact of diggs improving the wr room is not there. Maybe they might be useful if they had more dedicated roles as opposed to overlap with diggs .

We need a boundary receiver and that's not diggs . He had some great games but is he the difference maker. I am not too sure.

Is he worth 27 million.. absolutely not.

Would I want him back at a reduced contract.. absolutely yes.

Understood.

I’ve been consistently saying I’m not convinced the problem is the WRs. I think that point about all of them dropping off late in the season shows that’s the case.

 

[mgteich]

Is he worth 27 million.. absolutely not.

Would I want him back at a reduced contract.. absolutely yes.

I think that Diggs would reduce his new 2026 money to $21.9M and restructure and move $18M of 2026 to salary, reduced the cap hit by $9M.
====
WAIT,
that is his current contract. The team can reduce his 2026 cap hit by $9M without even asking him.
=======
SO
$27M, absolutely not.
$21.9M, absolutely yes ($18M plus incentives)

 

[TheRainMaker]

We’ve seen lots of arguments for dumping Diggs because he disappeared late in the season and in the playoffs.

Does this now mean we should also dump Boutte and Pop and Kyle and Chism?

Or does this suggest that just maybe the problem wasn’t Diggs and the other WRs?

The playoffs were the tip of the iceberg. DB's were taking him out with ease - especially with the ****ty play of the OL. The one lone play in the Super Bowl people keep pointing to was a damn busted coverage. You could see he wasn't the same player all season long and isn't going to wake up and turn into Minnesota or Buffalo Diggs in 2026. He can't play the outside anymore and can't shake man coverage at all - which is essential for the slot.

Posters keep pointing to his "1,000 yards", but don't want to acknowledge he needed 17 games to do it and the majority of his yards came against the Bills, both Jets games (blowouts), Panthers (blowout) and the Ravens. The rest of the games left you wondering where the hell he was?

Why are you carrying a player limited to the slot at a $26.5M cap number who will take up 8.78% of the team's cap? You know how much cap space Edelman took up during his time in NE? The highest amount of cap he took up in a single year was a whopping 3.8%.

Welker was mostly in the high 3% as well except for his last year in 2012 at 7.8%.

BB took a lot of heat for letting Welker walk after the 2012 season, but he saw what many didn't. Welker's days were numbered and Edelman was on the verge of signing with the Giants had NE re-signed Welker. It would've been the wrong move.

We will find out Diggs' future soon:

"The Patriots will need to make a decision on Diggs soon. He will be guaranteed an extra $6 million if he is on the roster on March 13, and if the Patriots move on, they may need to strike in free agency early to replace him."

Patriots' Mike Vrabel Comments On Stefon Diggs Future Amid Release Rumors | NESN

The New England Patriots signed Stefon Diggs last offseason, but his future is in doubt considering his age and cap hit for next season.

nesn.com

 

[mgteich]

Thing is - if they are going to trade for Brown it either needs to happen in the next couple weeks before his option is due, or otherwise not until after June 1.

Any trade or cut can be designated as a post June 1st cut, no matter when the transaction is made.
====
Even if what you say is true, two teams could agree to sign a deal that is effective after June 1, again no matter when the actual agreement is mad.
======
I don't think that very many teams will feel pressure to trade for players now. First, a GM will see what is available in free agency.

 

[Lagaffe_07]

Any trade or cut can be designated as a post June 1st cut, no matter when the transaction is made.

Only releases can be designated post June 1st. And you can only designated 2 players maximum every year.

It doesn’t apply to trades. The trade need to be physically processed on June 2nd or after If you want to get the post June 1st advantages.

 

[Real fan 02]

It is reasonable to expect they take a small step back next year.
Their injury luck this season was pretty insane.

Yeah...Possibly.. but i believe the stark differences here are this Organization was at the top of the mountain top for years.. fell to the bottom NFL depths for a bit.. IMO that humbled RK and JK.. they don't want to taste that again.. they will give Vrabel and wolf free reign to do whatever keeps the team competitive.. there was only 2 teams that made the superbowl last season and we were one of them. It's not about the schedule it always going to be about the Patriots and how they execute.. Next season With a stronger roster, more experience, and the stinging loss in the superbowl is more than enough motivation to remain a AFC contender.

 

[Real fan 02]

This doesn't make sense because nobody plays with players voted into the HOF while they are still playing. Marino played with eventual HOF's such as Jason Taylor and Zach Thomas.

By the time Buffalo signed Miller, he was cooked. And he's not voted into the HOF yet.

What is interesting is how badly Miami's defense was beaten down in playoff games in the late 90's - early 2000's. Denver slapped them around beating them by 35 in 1998, Jacksonville completely embarrassed them hanging 55 (62 total) points on them, Oakland beating them by 27 in 2000 and Baltimore beating them by 17 in 2001. That was the end of their run.

Rain,

Did you watch wolf's interview? When you and I were getting push back during the season about Barmore wolf said himself " he had a lullaby during the season where he wasn't playing well " then picked up his game"

 

[Ross12]

Any trade or cut can be designated as a post June 1st cut, no matter when the transaction is made.
====
Even if what you say is true, two teams could agree to sign a deal that is effective after June 1, again no matter when the actual agreement is mad.
======
I don't think that very many teams will feel pressure to trade for players now. First, a GM will see what is available in free agency.

I think you are missing the point. They owe a very large bonus that must be paid in a couple weeks. They can trade this bonus payment to a new team if the player is traded before the payment is due. If they trade him after that time, they are still responsible for that money and it will remain on their cap after the player is gone. So yes this creates some pressure to move the player sooner.

 

[Give Kraft A Hand]

Not that there is a huge chance of this happening but there is a solid argument for keeping Diggs next year and getting Brown. Load up to see if you can get back to the Super Bowl. Brown wants to come here and Vrabel probably wants him here.

 

[Stu Pidassle]

The playoffs were the tip of the iceberg. DB's were taking him out with ease - especially with the ****ty play of the OL. The one lone play in the Super Bowl people keep pointing to was a damn busted coverage. You could see he wasn't the same player all season long and isn't going to wake up and turn into Minnesota or Buffalo Diggs in 2026. He can't play the outside anymore and can't shake man coverage at all - which is essential for the slot.

Posters keep pointing to his "1,000 yards", but don't want to acknowledge he needed 17 games to do it and the majority of his yards came against the Bills, both Jets games (blowouts), Panthers (blowout) and the Ravens. The rest of the games left you wondering where the hell he was?

Why are you carrying a player limited to the slot at a $26.5M cap number who will take up 8.78% of the team's cap? You know how much cap space Edelman took up during his time in NE? The highest amount of cap he took up in a single year was a whopping 3.8%.

Welker was mostly in the high 3% as well except for his last year in 2012 at 7.8%.

BB took a lot of heat for letting Welker walk after the 2012 season, but he saw what many didn't. Welker's days were numbered and Edelman was on the verge of signing with the Giants had NE re-signed Welker. It would've been the wrong move.

We will find out Diggs' future soon:

"The Patriots will need to make a decision on Diggs soon. He will be guaranteed an extra $6 million if he is on the roster on March 13, and if the Patriots move on, they may need to strike in free agency early to replace him."

Patriots' Mike Vrabel Comments On Stefon Diggs Future Amid Release Rumors | NESN

The New England Patriots signed Stefon Diggs last offseason, but his future is in doubt considering his age and cap hit for next season.

nesn.com

While I appreciate the role Diggs played last year, your points are on target. The team needs one WR that can get open quickly to take pressure off the OL. Diggs is not only an overpay for a slot receiver, he cannot fulfill the most important part of that role on a consistent basis. Teams can shut him down without dedicating so many resources that other players are open.

 

[PatsFan2]

The playoffs were the tip of the iceberg. DB's were taking him out with ease - especially with the ****ty play of the OL. The one lone play in the Super Bowl people keep pointing to was a damn busted coverage. You could see he wasn't the same player all season long and isn't going to wake up and turn into Minnesota or Buffalo Diggs in 2026. He can't play the outside anymore and can't shake man coverage at all - which is essential for the slot.

Posters keep pointing to his "1,000 yards", but don't want to acknowledge he needed 17 games to do it and the majority of his yards came against the Bills, both Jets games (blowouts), Panthers (blowout) and the Ravens. The rest of the games left you wondering where the hell he was?

Why are you carrying a player limited to the slot at a $26.5M cap number who will take up 8.78% of the team's cap? You know how much cap space Edelman took up during his time in NE? The highest amount of cap he took up in a single year was a whopping 3.8%.

Welker was mostly in the high 3% as well except for his last year in 2012 at 7.8%.

BB took a lot of heat for letting Welker walk after the 2012 season, but he saw what many didn't. Welker's days were numbered and Edelman was on the verge of signing with the Giants had NE re-signed Welker. It would've been the wrong move.

We will find out Diggs' future soon:

"The Patriots will need to make a decision on Diggs soon. He will be guaranteed an extra $6 million if he is on the roster on March 13, and if the Patriots move on, they may need to strike in free agency early to replace him."

Patriots' Mike Vrabel Comments On Stefon Diggs Future Amid Release Rumors | NESN

The New England Patriots signed Stefon Diggs last offseason, but his future is in doubt considering his age and cap hit for next season.

nesn.com

Also Diggs is not that Volume 7/11 Slot WR McDaniels is use to ie... Welker/Edelman. We have more Problems at WR and TE than most PatsFans think. We are closer to the Sisters of the poor there.

 

[PatsFan2]

While I appreciate the role Diggs played last year, your points are on target. The team needs one WR that can get open quickly to take pressure off the OL. Diggs is not only an overpay for a slot receiver, he cannot fulfill the most important part of that role on a consistent basis. Teams can shut him down without dedicating so many resources that other players are open.

They better Get one of those Tall WR's in the Draft: 6'2 and up who have a #1 type ceiling. Maye needs Young Studs @ WR and TE.

 

[mgteich]

I think you are missing the point. They owe a very large bonus that must be paid in a couple weeks. They can trade this bonus payment to a new team if the player is traded before the payment is due. If they trade him after that time, they are still responsible for that money and it will remain on their cap after the player is gone. So yes this creates some pressure to move the player sooner.

OK, if some crazy GM will accept the bonus payment, then yes a plane should be sent to meet that GM wherever for the signing.

 

[TheRainMaker]

Rain,

Did you watch wolf's interview? When you and I were getting push back during the season about Barmore wolf said himself " he had a lullaby during the season where he wasn't playing well " then picked up his game"

I just saw the transcript here. Wolf was being very generous with that assessment and it really doesn't take a genius to see that Barmore has been a shell of himself since his illness. He reminds me of Eric Berry who was never the same coming back after his illness. Even if you didn't watch him at all this season, you could just compare 2023 to 2024/2025 and see a massive drop off. But, the defense of him by some posters is just hilarious and flat out denial. The fake stats they forced as an argument was just them coping. Bro was doing the waltz all season with OL.

And for what Williams got paid, he also badly underperformed in the pass rush department. However, his presense was felt in the ground game which Barmore has been incapable of doing.

If Barmore stays in 2026, it will be his last season under his current contract unless he steps it up.

 

[mgteich]

If Barmore stays in 2026, it will be his last season under his current contract unless he steps it up.

No one knows whether Vrabel is ready, even in the 2026 off-season, to move on from Barmore. I agree that this is likely his last year.

We'll see if Vrabel can do his magic and get any more DL players for little money. This is fine group to develop depending on the health of Tonga and Farmer. Obviously, we need to re-sign or replace Tonga in free agency.

THE 2025 HAUL
Tonga, Durden, Farmer, Gregory, Taylor

 

[Real fan 02]

I just saw the transcript here. Wolf was being very generous with that assessment and it really doesn't take a genius to see that Barmore has been a shell of himself since his illness. He reminds me of Eric Berry who was never the same coming back after his illness. Even if you didn't watch him at all this season, you could just compare 2023 to 2024/2025 and see a massive drop off. But, the defense of him by some posters is just hilarious and flat out denial. The fake stats they forced as an argument was just them coping. Bro was doing the waltz all season with OL.

And for what Williams got paid, he also badly underperformed in the pass rush department. However, his presense was felt in the ground game which Barmore has been incapable of doing.

If Barmore stays in 2026, it will be his last season under his current contract unless he steps it up.

Well said!!.. there's also some smoke about him possibly being moved..but given Vrabel really likes him.. I think they probably give it one more season before making a decision.. unless something else off the Field comes up again.

As you perfectly stated it was a clear drop off from 2023 to now. Once we can add some edge rushers around Williams and Barmore we should see more production..

Didn't berry have an injury? For some reason I thought it was an injury that affected his play?