Scott Zolak hinted Patriots are talking with Butler about signing an extension (w/ audio!)

ctpatsfan77 said:

To be fair, given the situation, by all lights it appeared that he wanted out.

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No, he just wanted to be paid. After the team failed to extend him and tendered him as an RFA the only way to get there seemed to be out.

Deus Irae said:

Denver carried Peyton's ass for years, on the strength of a pass rush and 2 top CBs. The Patriots cap and personnel situation makes it affordable to follow that same pattern, defensively.

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Oh yes, I meant something new on BB's tenure.

patfanken said:

I think the sticking point might be the structure. I think the Pats will want to structure it as an "extention" with this season's cap numbers being low. It would mean that he'd make the same $4MM as his salary, with whatever signing bonus being the increase in his 2017 pay.

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I see it otherwise. There is benefit to the team in structuring it with the higher payout this year as salary not signing bonus. They have ample cap space this year. Signing bonus is pro-rated into future years. So burning cap space this year by re-writing the salary for this year avoids mortgaging the future. If they combine that with a decent signing bonus, KA-CHING! Butler could find his pre-tax earnings this year being four or five times what he is scheduled to make this year. So there could be lots of powerful incentives towards making a deal that's good for both sides.

Malcolm is one of the best stories in the league. Would like to see his Pats
career extended 4-5 years. Obviously, winning is the most important thing.
But, fans have to root for a guy like Butler to succeed on/off the field given
where he's come from.

Offer Butler 50 for 5 with 30 up front, if he takes it good enough, if not that's the way it goes.

ALP said:

LOL
ask a guy who is at the top of his postiion in the NFL, that is extremely durable, a great leader, and this year probably underpaid?

...your chances by my opinion are about 0.05%

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He's also going to be 30 by the time the season starts.

Tuck said:

He's also going to be 30 by the time the season starts.

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I'm not crazy Everytime a player turns 30 it's the dreaded value pay.
Mccourty Devin just saw what happened with Jason he doesn't want the same for himself.
He will restructure when the time comes if not we signed Harmon I think as possible Mccourty insurance as well.
I agree great player team mate leader squeaky clean off the field but BB doesn't care he will take that contract on.
Remember we have a big decision with Grap who you will see will get paid by us.

ChrisR2223 said:

I'm not crazy Everytime a player turns 30 it's the dreaded value pay.
Mccourty Devin just saw what happened with Jason he doesn't want the same for himself.
He will restructure when the time comes if not we signed Harmon I think as possible Mccourty insurance as well.
I agree great player team mate leader squeaky clean off the field but BB doesn't care he will take that contract on.
Remember we have a big decision with Grap who you will see will get paid by us.

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I'm sure he'll be asked to take a pay cut, but the only way I see it happening is if his production drops or/and he starts having nagging injuries. Ya know, like his brother. That hypothetical scenario is the only way you can compare both situations. If Jason was performing at an all-pro level, he'd still be a Titan.

Butler was born in March 1990, he just turned 27.

40yrpatsfan said:

Butler was born in March 1990, he just turned 27.

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They were talking about McCorty, weren't they?

I hope not, he just isn't that good. Scrappy guy, but not a top 20 cb. At all.

I was hoping we'd dump him and draft jourdan lewis. Better player and cheaper too. No luck.

patfanken said:

I think the sticking point might be the structure. I think the Pats will want to structure it as an "extention" with this season's cap numbers being low. It would mean that he'd make the same $4MM as his salary, with whatever signing bonus being the increase in his 2017 pay.

I think part of the fear with Bulter is that he might not age well. His quickness and acceleration are a huge part of his success. When that starts to slip, even marginally, there might be a fear that he will quickly slip into mediocrity.

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I totally agree. Malcolm is always playing at 100% and if his jumping ability declines a little bit or he gets a bit slower it will show quicker than with other more athletically gifted players.

Which is why I think that Butler should be happy that the team didn't move JG this offseason (yet ?) otherwise they'd had a ton of leverage to keep him another 2 years for essentially 9m APY. With JG (for now) on board he will become the obvious candidate to be tagged to facilitate a trade.

I think what it means is that BB is going to tag the qb next off season. Give Butler 5 and 45 incl 18 mill this year and 25 mill guar. 15 mill SB bonus. year 1- 3 mill Y2 7 mill both fully guar.

patman52 said:

I think what it means is that BB is going to tag the qb next off season. Give Butler 5 and 45 incl 18 mill this year and 25 mill guar. 15 mill SB bonus. year 1- 3 mill Y2 7 mill both fully guar.

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I agree.

There isn't a snowball's chance in hell BB lets Jimmy walk without getting something for him.....or Tom.

Well, it helps the Pats in negotiations that his buddy LG Blount, who was angling for a bigger contract, has been been schemed out of the Pats future and now is scraping around just to find employment. This, despite scoring 18TDs last season.

There's nothing quite like a near death experience to make you reconsider the blessings in your life.

Digit said:

Wouldn't some slippage make him more of a free safety then? He seems to be a good enough tackler to make up for it, unlike, say, Revis.

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Respect, Digit. I've seen a lot of these kinds of posts in regards to aging CB's transitioning to S, and my feeling is that it's just not that easy to do. For every Charles Woodson or Rod Woodson, there are many other guys who just don't have certain skills to make the transition. Likewise, there are some guys in the league that I feel would be better at S than CB . . . Devin McCourty for one and Logan Ryan would be another, though the latter has not made the shift (so it's just speculation).

I have no clue if Malcolm could make the switch. He seems better in man coverage where he gets to beat up the receiver and stick closely after the five yards than he looks in zone. That may be one indicator that he's better at CB. McCourty, on the other hand, was always better in zone where he could face the play and watch it develop in front of him. This is also a strong attribute for Ryan. I don't know if Butler would excel in that very key area, but I obviously don't know that for sure.

ChrisR2223 said:

Anyone have a feeling they are going to ask Mccourty to take a pay cut In a season or two

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Could it be classified a "feeling" when it is more-or-less the team's M.O. with aging players at certain positions? I'm not saying it's a guarantee by any stretch, but DMac relies a lot on his speed and that's usually one of the first attributes to go with age. We'll see.

Not sure this changes anything, but interesting to note

Soul_Survivor88 said:

Not sure this changes anything, but interesting to note

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Well, if one employer wanted to pay you $3.9m and the other wanted to pay you ~$50m I would too.

The question is have negotiations improved and has enough progress been made so any ill-feelings Malcolm may have have harbored addressed?

Soul_Survivor88 said:

Not sure this changes anything, but interesting to note

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Much closer to home.