"Business As Usual" or "Full Rebuild Mode"?

[iapatsfan]

No, it's trolling. You know it. I know it. Everyone knows it. You're here to troll. It's what you do, and I enjoy a good troll. But, for someone who trolls as often as you do, you mostly suck at it.


Just do it better.

It's easier to offer a hollow response like you just did vs. pointing out anything that was untrue in the post you referenced.

Sanu is a bum. Fact.

Sanu benefited from playing opposite the best WRs in the league. Fact.

He was slow at 24. Fact.

He'll be slower at 31. Fact

The Falcons fleeced the Pats in the trade. Fact (Given the Pats track record with 2nd round picks, one could possibly argue they intentionally burned the pick to prevent another Jordan Richards).

 

[micronin127]

I really like the teambuilding tone set by the original poster. And the question (not in poll form): business as usual or full rebuild? In poll form, you must also include a RLKAG option which of course would win in a landslide.

My response is somewhere in between the two options, but closer to a rebuild. They are in "pay as you go" mode as regards acquiring free agents. When they traded Duron Harmon to free up $3 million last week, it coincided with the signing of Beau Allen. Patriots have a lot of ways to create cap space, but will only do it as needed for a move they want to make building the team.

I agree on the team needs 100%

Team Needs (offense)
1. QB
2. TE
3. WR
4. Swing tackle

Team Needs (defense)
1. DT
2. FS
3. OLB/EDGE

I don't see them signing too many more free agents, maybe a veteran QB like Hoyer, maybe a defensive lineman like Derek Wolfe, maybe a swing tackle like Daryl Williams, maybe a linebacker like Nigel Bradham. But any move would require them to rework a contract or cut/trade a player.

I think they go with a youth movement surrounded by key veterans. I could see them trading veterans to "contenders", but that doesn't mean the Patriots weren't also trying to contend, they are just trying to lay a foundation with youthful talent.

 

[stinkypete]

It looks as if BB wants to keep some areas of strength while having to do major overhauls elsewhere, on a scale we haven's seen since either the late 2000s or the very early 2000s (which of the two seems to be a TBD answer). So I wouldn't call it either thing you chose. It's not a full rebuild, but it's not business as usual, either.

This is probably the right answer.

This looks like a different build than the previous two decades.

The late 2000's rebuild was about replenishing the veteran leadership structure, especially on defense. Losing Vrabel, Bruschi, Harrison, Seymour, Colvin , Sanders and Warren (to injury, then release) was too much and the bottom fell out of the team culture. An offensive rebuild was necessitated because the culture change got to Randy Moss.

In the early 2000's, Belichick was building the entire team from the ground up.

The current retool/rebuild is focused more around one position, but the locker room leadership is still in place.

 

[Ivan]

My first instinct was total overhaul, but I don’t think Belichick looks at that way. He will build units and leadership, get the cap under good control, and try to win every game.

 

[goheels22002]

It looks as if BB wants to keep some areas of strength while having to do major overhauls elsewhere, on a scale we haven't seen since either the late 2000s or the very early 2000s (which of the two seems to be a TBD answer). So I wouldn't call it either thing you chose. It's not a full rebuild, but it's not business as usual, either.

Running back, special teams, DL and defensive backfield look fine to me. As @mgteich said in the opening post, another impact player on the DL is needed, and I think they should draft a safety with one of the top five picks.

WR - Unlike others, I do not see this as a major overhaul. Dorsett is back to go with Edelman, Harry, Sanu and Meyers. Good enough for a simpler offensive scheme. I like a number of big WRs in this draft - Chase Claypool from Notre Dame should be there in the 3rd round.

LB is a priority for a veteran and a rookie to keep what Mayo and Belichick the younger installed as a more active, aggressive, less predictable defense. I see no reason why the defense cannot keep the 2020 team in games.

OL - they must address the Tackle position full on. Wynn is unreliable, Cannon is aging, and who knows what Korey Cunningham gives them. Newhouse is on the roster. They need a veteran and rookie - I'd go tackle in the first round.

TE - a priority to get a playmaker to pair with Lacosse

QB - biggest question mark in a generation. Fascinated to see what they do here.

 

[Ochmed Jones]

I do not think bb does full rebuilds.

I think this year will be like 2010 and it will become a retool.

Bb will give some younger guys and draft picks an opportunity to step up. Some will succeed and some will flame out.

In the meantime, the offense will be retooled and fitted to the skill set of the new qb.

as always, bb will field a competitive defense, top 10 special teams unit, and spend the season trying to make the offense work.

 

[Bourne Patriot]

Let's be clear, the dropoff between Brady and Stidham is vast.

If we roll with JS at QB the best thing that can happen is the O changes so much from last year, that despite Brady being gone, we can steal a few wins early on, through creative gameplanning and rookie TE impact.

I think we go somewhere from 8-8 to 10-6 and maybe reach the playoffs, similar to what happened last time we lost TB12. Only this time we won't have peak Moss & Welker on O, but we will have a better D.

Then, after that we can see youth come through and start to build towards something a couple of years later. This means we have to hit on Stidham or another draft QB, the problem every other franchise has.

I also wonder how many of the receivers BB picked failed here because of how specific TB liked things, and if they'd been on other teams, maybe they wouldn't have lost confidence and would have been stars.

 

[Mack Herron]

 

[Sicilian]

I see it a little differently. It's really hard to think of things as "business as usual", when your business the last 20 years has included unprecedented stability (and excellence) at the most important position on the field. Having that as a known commodity allows for a team building strategy that just won't work with the QB up in the air for the first time in two decades.

But, I also can't see Belichick accepting a bad season on purpose, nor do I think that's a good thing in the NFL. What I see is them having a much larger chunk of cap space next year, so they're making plans to be agile when that comes. This year, the goal is to see what they have in Stidham (or another young QB, if they like one in this draft), so they know whether part of that cap space needs to be allocated to that position in 2021. The only way you're going to get a true evaluation of the kid(s) is if there's a decent enough team around him so you know what he can do as part of it.

The offense will be tough to overhaul, but they can do better than last year. If let's say they add a mid-level TE1, a WR2 to accompany Edelman, and get Andrews back at C, I think the offense is solid enough to be able to say, "Okay, with a good defense, we can win with Jarrett" OR, "Even with a good defense, Jarrett isn't enough."

Those are the primary goals this year:

1) Figure out what you already have at QB, to determine your course of action going forward.

2) Stay financially agile in 2021 so you can make a splash/keep the players you really like, and potentially sign a top level veteran QB if need be.

And, even though the schedule looks tough, this defense still has the potential to make us a playoff team, especially if the combination of Andrews and a real FB gets the running game back to a dependable level.

 

[Chevrolet]

What do we gain in cap space by cutting Sanu? If it's $1, I'd do it.

I do not think you trade a 2nd round pick to get a couple of months of Sanu hobbled by a high ankle injury then jettison him for nothing after he had offseason surgery to fix the problem. Not good value. He probably has the best upside of any receiver for this year currently on the Patriots.