Dion Lewis = $6.5 Mill?

[JarOfMayo51]

Just too much for a player that was injured for 2 out of the 3 years of his deal

Teams that are flush with cash will overspend a bit for someone like him, we can't afford to pay a premium on him. They better hope they can strike gold iwth a RB in the draft.. they were overpaying Burkhead last year at 5 mill, maybe he'll come back at a reasonable rate

 

[HailHydra]

Just too much for a player that was injured for 2 out of the 3 years of his deal

Teams that are flush with cash will overspend a bit for someone like him, we can't afford to pay a premium on him. They better hope they can strike gold iwth a RB in the draft.. they were overpaying Burkhead last year at 5 mill, maybe he'll come back at a reasonable rate

Burkhead had a 3 mill cap hit?

 

[JarOfMayo51]

Burkhead had a 3 mill cap hit?

news to me, i thought they paid him quite a bit of cash on a 1 year deal

he really didnt even live up to 3 mill a year if that is truly what he got.. he was injured for most of the season and never contributed the way we were hoping he would

would love to see him with another training camp under his belt and a healthy set of legs

 

[dafoe2016]

You didn't really think the Pats were going to have a competent lead RB for more than 2 years, did you? Bill does not care about the position.

 

[Ras-IR Dowling]

news to me, i thought they paid him quite a bit of cash on a 1 year deal

he really didnt even live up to 3 mill a year if that is truly what he got.. he was injured for most of the season and never contributed the way we were hoping he would

would love to see him with another training camp under his belt and a healthy set of legs

I guess we could say he didn’t live up to the money based on injuries but when he was on the field Rex gave us exactly what we paid for. Now Gilleslie on the other hand...

 

[Brick27]

Tough break, but understandable for both sides.

Anyone want my signed Lewis authentic jersey? Sammy?

 

[zimmy]

We're not going to have huge amounts of salary cap room this year, esp if we resign Solder. I'd rather this $6.5m was plowed back into strengthening the D.

Deep draft at RB too.

 

[nabwong]

I don't see his value being $6.5m. We have too many other holes to plug. We already have white as a 3rd down back and we can draft someone else for 1st and 2nd down. I'd rather invest in O and D line. Draft the rest.

 

[Username]

Well, that should be a pretty decent comp pick next year...

 

[supafly]

Well, that should be a pretty decent comp pick next year...

As well as Malcolm Butler’s.

 

[luuked]

Well, that should be a pretty decent comp pick next year...

Depending on the exact contract structure either a fifth (most likely) or sixth round pick at 6.5m APY.

 

[Deus Irae]

Reality:

In the NFL, an elite/high end QB covers for a lot of flaws.


Reality:

If you don't have elite/high end QBs, having elite talent at other positions is the best way to make up for it.


Reality:

There's a world of difference between 100% D. Lewis and 80%-90% D. Lewis, and that difference is what you pay for.


Too many Patriots fans have gotten so ridiculously spoiled by having Tom Brady that they've lost all sense of what's real in football. Do we really need to live through BJGE again, for people to remember the value of a quality RB? Wasn't the *****ing about LGB enough?

The Patriots saw James White as a $4m player. The Patriots, and anyone with a working set of eyes, see D. Lewis as a superior player to James White. So, people can argue about X million v. Y million for Lewis, but lowballing the guy is just stupid.

 

[Deus Irae]

You didn't really think the Pats were going to have a competent lead RB for more than 2 years, did you? Bill does not care about the position.

History (trade for Dillon, drafting Maroney in the first round) shows that you're wrong, at least in the sense that it's not a cut and dry thing.

 

[maineman209]

news to me, i thought they paid him quite a bit of cash on a 1 year deal

he really didnt even live up to 3 mill a year if that is truly what he got.. he was injured for most of the season and never contributed the way we were hoping he would

would love to see him with another training camp under his belt and a healthy set of legs

Burkhead's 1-year 2017 deal was:

Salary = $1.8M
Signing bonus = $1.1M
Roster bonus (weekly) = $250k
TOTAL = $3.15M

Because he was active for only 10 games, his actual earnings were $3.05M.

Burkhead missed four games in weeks 3-6 to a rib injury (bruised, cracked? We don't really know). Rib injuries don't tend to be chronic like knee injuries, so that's not a likely future concern.

SIDEBAR: It's possible that Burkhead was able to sit and heal up for an extra week or two because Gillislee, White and Lewis were keeping the Pats ground game (and RB receiving) going very well - the big advantage to having an RBBC.

In the 8 games from week 7 thru 14, Burkhead came back very strong.
- Rushing: 59/246 (4.17 ypa) + 5 TDs
- Receiving: 26/29 (89.7%), 205 yds (7.9 YPC) + 2 TD

After injuring his knee in week-15 @PIT, Burkhead sat for weeks 16 & 17 and the divisional round game. He ran once for 5 yds against JAX in the AFCCG, and then went 3/16 yds with a 46-yard reception in the SB.

Burkhead's average per-game contribution (when active) was:
- 7.4 carries, 3.3 receptions (just under 11 touches)
- 56.4 yds from scrimmage*
- (almost) 1 TD/game

* Since 2009 - with the exception of Ridley's 2012 season and Blount's 2016, the Pats' leading RB has averaged 12 touches and 52 yds from scrimmage per game. The per game-active contributions of the others in 2017 were:
- Lewis: 13.3 touches, 69.4, 9 TD
- Gillislee: 11.7 touches, 44.3 yds, 5 TDs
- White: 7.1 touches, 42.8 yds, 3 TDs

It's noteworthy that the group fumbled only twice in 511 combined rushing/receiving touches.

Anyway, losing Lewis in free agency means losing the top producer from the RB group, but he's not the only player capable of making solid contributions at near "lead-back" levels in the Pats' RBBC system.

It should also be noted that, in 2017, the Pats ground game was supported by the the best run-blocking unit (OL + TE + FB) in the league (according to FO). So, it will be interesting to see how well Lewis produces in 2018 if he signs with a team that had a mediocre run-blocking unit in 2017 (IND) or a poor one (NYJ, MIA).

 

[maineman209]

I don't see his value being $6.5m. We have too many other holes to plug. We already have white as a 3rd down back and we can draft someone else for 1st and 2nd down. I'd rather invest in O and D line. Draft the rest.

The combination of White, Gillislee and Burkhead (if re-signed) can still be a very productive (and not outrageously expensive) RB group with a good amount of NFL experience. It would really need only one addition who wouldn't necessarily be required to be a direct replacement for Lewis' entire production in his first season.

 

[luuked]

The combination of White, Gillislee and Burkhead (if re-signed) can still be a very productive (and not outrageously expensive) RB group with a good amount of NFL experience. It would really need only one addition who wouldn't necessarily be required to be a direct replacement for Lewis' entire production in his first season.

I was always fascinated by BB going out of his way to sign Burkhead on an executive decision.

Rex was slowed down by injuries last year but could have been brought in as injury insurance AND with 2018 in mind. Whoever would end up being featured out of Burkhead or Lewis would most probably move on and sign a bigger FA contract somewhere else. This gave the team enough information on the other (cheaper) guy to make a decision on a contract extension (and its relative value).

I would love to keep Lewis on a reasonable contract but as long as we can keep one of the two I will be satisfied.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Not sure what the arguement is.

Almost 900 yards rushing at 5ypc
214 yards receiving
570 yds KR
10 total TDs
Knows the O
Tom likes him
Good in pass protection

There is no doubt he is worth $6.5m. He's a 3 down RB and contributes to STs. He is their best RB and has 3 good years left.

Paying him would not be a bad decision. Just need to figure out a contract with the right mix of guarantees and playing time incentives.

 

[maineman209]

Not sure what the arguement is.

Almost 900 yards rushing at 5ypc
214 yards receiving
570 yds KR
10 total TDs
Knows the O
Tom likes him
Good in pass protection

There is no doubt he is worth $6.5m. He's a 3 down RB and contributes to STs. He is their best RB and has 3 good years left.

Paying him would not be a bad decision. Just need to figure out a contract with the right mix of guarantees and playing time incentives.

There's no question that Lewis was a great player for the first 7 games of 2015, and a solid contributor for the last 7 games of 2016 and the first few games of 2017 before rounding back into a great player again for the rest of the season.

The question may be total cap budget versus total potential production for the RBBC in 2018. There's several ways that could go.

 

[RobertWeathers]

There's no question that Lewis was a great player for the first 7 games of 2015, and a solid contributor for the last 7 games of 2016 and the first few games of 2017 before rounding back into a great player again for the rest of the season.

The question may be total cap budget versus total potential production for the RBBC in 2018. There's several ways that could go.

Cap space certainly is a concern. That certainly impacts what they can do for a contract.

 

[BTTA]

Anyone want my signed Lewis authentic jersey? Sammy?

Hope this is sarcasm. He was a bright light during one of the Pats' best runs ever; that jersey should bring happy memories regardless of what he does next.

Short of signing with the Jets.

If he doesn't stay with the Pats, I hope he signs a $7M/5YR contract somewhere, plays just enough to justify it and avoids contact to joints and head for the rest of his career.