Anyone getting nervous about #33?? [Update: Guregian: Negs in process]

[PatsChamp88]

The Pats would rather let a player go a year too early than a year too late, and that could well be now for Faulk. He will be 34 in training camp, how many players drafted in 1999 are still in the league? When the decline starts history says it will probably be rapid.

At a good price it would be nice to have him back as a role player, but I don't see it as as big a deal as many seem to think. If you are counting on him to be a critical part of the team you are probably deluding yourself.

Faulk doesn't need training camp Faulk is training camp.

 

[alamo]

Did you think this post through at all? Don't lie.....

The man has seen limited use every season compared to most backs of his tenure, his cost has always been low for the production, and his skills have seen little to no decline. This isn't even counting the benefit of having a player of his stature and caliber in the locker room of a team that sorely needs leaders. No one expects or wants him to 'carry the load', and that's never been on the table.

Limited use means you need to get more from other roster spots, at some inevitable point it's not worth it. And I never considered him a locker room leader. Solid guy but not a star.

Did you perceive a decline last season, or is this more of a general concern on your part?

General concern, only slight decline so far but I think history shows it generally happens fast.

IIRC this is not the first time recently the Pats have let Faulk go to free agency, I suspect they are suspicious of his declining but keep bringing him back at low cost and end up being surprised. But if there's a chance they could use his roster spot to hold on to some promising young draftee or UDFA who could be here for a few years I think they'll take it. At this point he's short term no matter what.

Look at Vrabel last year: in decline, still expensive, so he was gone. Faulk's relatively low cost may save him again this year.

 

[Brady2Welker]

They'll probably sign him as a leader. We need those more than ever this year, someone to ***** the other guys out when they don't do their job. I'm fine giving the man his coin to do this.

 

[woolster22]

Limited use means you need to get more from other roster spots, at some inevitable point it's not worth it. And I never considered him a locker room leader. Solid guy but not a star.


General concern, only slight decline so far but I think history shows it generally happens fast.

IIRC this is not the first time recently the Pats have let Faulk go to free agency, I suspect they are suspicious of his declining but keep bringing him back at low cost and end up being surprised. But if there's a chance they could use his roster spot to hold on to some promising young draftee or UDFA who could be here for a few years I think they'll take it. At this point he's short term no matter what.

Look at Vrabel last year: in decline, still expensive, so he was gone. Faulk's relatively low cost may save him again this year.

Did you see him going absolutely ape$hlt during the ravens playoff game? I was at the game and he was one of the few on the offensive side of the ball getting in guys faces, trying to get the team up and reacting how you expect a competitor to act when being handed a beating. How many other guys on the offense showed up and gave it their all through all four of those quarters? If there is a problem with the locker room, how do you not bring this guy back? I don't give a damn how old he is, he still plays at a pretty high level, and is one of the few "Patriots" left. You have to be nuts to think this guy is expendable. who do you replace him with? LT? Westbrook? A rookie (it took faulk a while to become what he is...please)? i'd expect him to get either a two or three year deal, and fairly soon.

 

[Patjew]

Biggest heart on the team. By far.

Re-sign the ******* beast or I may ******* kill someone.

 

[primetime]

Faulk is silently one of the most important non-Brady players on the offense ever year, if not the most important non-Brady player (yes, over Welker and Moss). The chance they don't bring him back is not zero, but it's pretty damn close.

 

[PatsFan37]

I could have sworn this happened the last time his contract was up. He looked around, found competitive offers, used those to determine his value on the market, found common ground with the Pats, and re-signed.

Does anyone else remember?

He'll be back. Why? Because his value to the Patriots is higher than his value to any other team. This side of Welker, no one has better chemistry with Brady.

 

[Bring Back Antowain!]

Did you think this post through at all? Don't lie.....

The man has seen limited use every season compared to most backs of his tenure, his cost has always been low for the production, and his skills have seen little to no decline. This isn't even counting the benefit of having a player of his stature and caliber in the locker room of a team that sorely needs leaders. No one expects or wants him to 'carry the load', and that's never been on the table.

Honestly, I would carry 52 guys if that was the penalty for keeping Kevin around. I doubt I'm alone.

Yeah, exactly. I would even argue that Faulk has only gotten better recently, as he seems to have found a running style that fits him better, and he just keeps getting smarter and more experienced on the football field.

This guy doesn't get that even during our 16-0 run in 2007, this guy was on the field more than any other back. To say we shouldn't expect anything real contributions from him? You've got to be kidding me.

 

[mgteich]

I expect that Faulk will be signing for a coach that he is familiar with in the next couple of days. The partiots will sign him or move on to try to sign another third down back.

 

[BritPat]

Faulk is still producing. Another year is fine by me.

 

[RobertWeathers]

I expect that Faulk will be signing for a coach that he is familiar with in the next couple of days. The partiots will sign him or move on to try to sign another third down back.

Lots of great BBQ places in Kansas City and Denver....

With that said, Pats could be in a competitive situation for his services.

As long as the offer is fair, he'll be back.