Does the 2017 free agent class need to be reevaluated?

[luuked]

That's the issue. They didn't get it done. 2/yr$10m for a DT who is good v run and can rush the passer is reasonable

Thought I heard that they wanted to do 3/12m and $5m guaranteed which is not bad but clearly less

Similar to what happened with Woodhead this was just a situation where the Bears didnt only offer more money but he had a pretty good relationship with their GM Ryan Pace (who was in charge of the Saints draft that brought him to New Orleans) and the sales pitch by Vic Fangio in terms of playtime/role was better suited to Hicks than what BB had him do throughout last year.

In other words, Hicks would have left anyway.. it's the same situation as Woodhead really.. fans are blaming this on the front office even if there is enough evidence in form of articles and interviews that state that the player wanted to move on.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Similar to what happened with Woodhead this was just a situation where the Bears didnt only offer more money but he had a pretty good relationship with their GM Ryan Pace (who was in charge of the Saints draft that brought him to New Orleans) and the sales pitch by Vic Fangio in terms of playtime/role was better suited to Hicks than what BB had him do throughout last year.

In other words, Hicks would have left anyway.. it's the same situation as Woodhead really.. fans are blaming this on the front office even if there is enough evidence in form of articles and interviews that state that the player wanted to move on.

Yes- because of money and I don't blame him one bit.

 

[luuked]

Yes- because of money and I don't blame him one bit.

The subtle difference is that you are kinda implying that the Pats let him go, when there was never really a chance of him staying. Unless you wanted them to pay more than the Bears which would have been absurd given the role / playtime projection with us vs. with the Bears.

Yes, ultimately it's money but for many players a prominent role / starting is important to be able to really cash in with the next contract.

My point is that this was not a situation that the front office blew by lowballing.

 

[RobertWeathers]

The subtle difference is that you are kinda implying that the Pats let him go, when there was never really a chance of him staying. Unless you wanted them to pay more than the Bears which would have been absurd given the role / playtime projection with us vs. with the Bears.

Yes, ultimately it's money but for many players a prominent role / starting is important to be able to really cash in with the next contract.

My point is that this was not a situation that the front office blew by lowballing.

I am implying that the Pats undervalued Akiem Hicks and should have paid him $5m yr.

 

[luuked]

I am implying that the Pats undervalued Akiem Hicks and should have paid him $5m yr.

Personally, I wouldn't give a rotational player that much money. I'd pay him around the Rob Ninkovich contract and I guess that's what the Pats tried.

In Chicago he is a starter and therefore his role kinda justifies that amount of money.

But if you rate him higher than I do then I understand your point.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Personally, I wouldn't give a rotational player that much money. I'd pay him around the Rob Ninkovich contract and I guess that's what the Pats tried.

In Chicago he is a starter and therefore his role kinda justifies that amount of money.

But if you rate him higher than I do then I understand your point.

I do rate him higher. He should be a 50% snap guy here because he can rush the passer.

 

[fightingirish595]

This thread reminds me why drafting well every year is so important

 

[Ivan]

I am getting more and more confident that Hightower stays here for a long time (health permitting).

He became a captain and moreover he clearly became QB of the D .. taking up the torch from Mayo.
That was again very visible in the last game with him leading the D huddle.

It was somewhat surprising that the deal was not done yet - Miguel projected it himself - but looking at these other factors on and off the field I am at peace.

Whatever one might think of Collins he is probably the only guy that can expect top money offer from elsewhere - so he will be the most difficult to keep. The Pats obviously realize this and they are looking ahead with signing guys like Mingo and McClellin - whatever we might think of them now - and also drafting Roberts that emerged as an intriguing versatile LB option.
_

The Butler, Ryan thing will take further evaluation. They loaded the CB position with young prospects this preseason and used highest draft pick yet nothing is really emerging at the moment. They traded quite highly for Rowe afterwards so let's hope that turns out better.

The value of both on this board might be much higher than on the market. A lot depends on competition of course - the quality of 2017 CB FAs and team needs (quite a few top corners are injured or ended season already this year) - but the fact is none of the two ever featured in top 10-20 CB ratings - which might be an indication that outside of the Pats fan base and possibly BB they are not viewed as top corners deserving top (Butler) or big (Ryan) contracts.

As BB said recently: there is no reason to be afraid of free agency. Its one of the fairest markets there is. If you overpay - you pay.

I think he might let Ryan and Collins test their market value like he did with McCourty.
He might sign Sheard and Long before that. With Butler he can take time.

The new priority might be Bennett - as part of unstoppable TE duo and an insurance for Gronk (or v.v.)

BTW - I was also disappointed to se Hicks go. Hope they can keep Branch now.

Great post, Agree on pretty much everything. They have many good free agents coming due this year, much of it by design, and while they will pay for great players they won't pay good players great player money, while unfortunately other teams will every free agency. While the shakeup could ultimately be pretty significant I still believe they will come out really strong in the end. Imo Hightower and Bennett are the keys, .Hightower runs that defense and does everything and Bennett gives them a dimension on offense that when paired with Gronkowski makes them almost impossible to stop or plan against.

 

[long distance]

Great post, Agree on pretty much everything. They have many good free agents coming due this year, much of it by design, and while they will pay for great players they won't pay good players great player money, while unfortunately other teams will every free agency. While the shakeup could ultimately be pretty significant I still believe they will come out really strong in the end. Imo Hightower and Bennett are the keys, .Hightower runs that defense and does everything and Bennett gives them a dimension on offense that when paired with Gronkowski makes them almost impossible to stop or plan against.

Thanks. Appreciate it. Agree about High and Bennett .. also in terms of the off the field aspect.

The biggest issue with Collins is, does he WANT to stay here. Lets face it, living in Foxboro for more than half the year isn't for everyone. IIRC, there have been reports that Collins might want to go back to the south. If that's so, then like with Revis who wanted to be in NYC, no amount of money is going to get him to stay, UNLESS we seriously overpay and we know that that's isn't happening.

I wouldn't say the biggest issue but it might be an important issue .. good to bring it out .. also because of the widespread cynical view that the only important thing for the players is money. Maybe for most of their agents it is .. but players are people .. ergo they consider all issues regarding their well-being.

 

[BradyFTW!]

I've never believed for one second that we'd keep both Collins and Hightower on long term extensions, so we'll have to see how that pans out. I found it hilarious that some people actually felt that they'd keep Chandler Jones, Collins, Hightower AND Butler in the same year. Now it's fully possible that they'll only hand out major extensions to 1 or 2 of the four players, considering that Butler can be tendered at a reasonable rate while he continues to set his future value. Some here have been ready to hand out a 14m dollar AAV deal for Malcolm Butler since last season.

The fact that they'll have a nice amount of cap space does NOT mean that Bill Belichick is going to step outside of his comfort zone and overpay for any player, and in a year where both of Collins/HT will be seeing top market value in conjunction with our own FA needs, I'm not seeing it. Perhaps they will choose to extend one and franchise the other, but either way, they'll have a plan. Rest assured.

Also, some of these names on the list will move on just the same as any other year. As usual, many will overreact (Vereen, Anderson, Ayers, Hicks) in dramatic fashion for no good reason whatsoever, but the world will keep spinning and those "names" will be replaced via draft picks (Belichick's preference) and/or other free agents. As usual, Belichick will likely choose to prioritize some of the core players who aren't exactly stars to the rest of the league like Develin etc over others, just the same as any other year.

I mostly agree, but I'm not sure that Hightower's going to fetch a top-of-the-market deal in FA. I think a lot of teams won't be quite sure what to make of a 270 pound linebacker, and getting strong production out of him may require more creativity than a lot of coaches have at their disposal.

FWIW I do think Collins and Hightower get locked up to long-term deals (if only one stays I'd bet on Hightower), Butler gets a first round tender, Bennett hopefully leaves a bit of money on the table and takes a ~3 year deal. The rest are more or less luxuries, IMO: probably want to keep at least one of Long or Sheard, but I don't think either are the kind of guys that you absolutely have to keep around. I'd guess that whoever's willing to take a team-friendly deal has a chance to stay, whoever isn't is probably gone.