For all the fun of speculation, suppose...

[50-yard-line]

Suppose the Patriots stand pat.

They lose Talib and Edelman, resign Fletcher, Blount, and Wendell, and bring no one else in in Free Agency other than the typical JAG receiver or O-lineman or whatever.

What faith do you have that this team can stand up without substantial additions and a pair of pretty substantial losses in Edelman and Talib?

 

[patsinthesnow]

I would call for resignation as BB the GM.

There is absolutely no reason for that to happen. We have 15 million in cap space and can easily reach 17 with a Sopoaga release.

Wendell, Fletcher, Blount would take up 4 million of this year's cap at most.

 

[SB39]

Suppose the Patriots stand pat.

They lose Talib and Edelman, resign Fletcher, Blount, and Wendell, and bring no on e else in in Free Agency other than the typical JAG receiver of O-lineman or whatever.

What faith do you have that this team can stand up without substantial additions and a pair of pretty substantial losses in Edelman and Talib?

If they stayed healthy, they would probably be on par with what we saw last year.... a team worthy of getting to the AFCCG, but certainly no further.

They simply are not going to beat Denver without an improved defense. But I have no doubt that improvements will be coming. It's hardly time to panic.

 

[cstjohn17]

What faith do you have that this team can stand up without substantial additions and a pair of pretty substantial losses in Edelman and Talib?

So start the year as a worse team that the year before, I would say make the playoffs and lose in the first round.

 

[Froob]

Healthy Amendola, SHOULD be able to get similar production to Edelman last year. I liked to see both stay but, it shouldn't be backbreaking to lose Edelman. Not like it would have been last year. Might not even had made the playoffs.

 

[Bhelmet]

Suppose the Patriots stand pat.

They lose Talib and Edelman, resign Fletcher, Blount, and Wendell, and bring no one else in in Free Agency other than the typical JAG receiver or O-lineman or whatever.

What faith do you have that this team can stand up without substantial additions and a pair of pretty substantial losses in Edelman and Talib?

They will give the cupcakes a good game and get destroyed by the playoff caliber teams. I would rather see a TOTAL rebuild than staying put with your scenario. I honestly believe NO WAY do they stay put - moves will come. I only hope they are good moves.

 

[Kontradiction]

They'd struggle to get to the playoffs and get absolutely crushed in their first and only game in the postseason. Wendell should not be re-signed. He's garbage as a starting C. He can easily be upgraded by a rookie.

 

[Brady6]

Suppose the Patriots stand pat.

They lose Talib and Edelman, resign Fletcher, Blount, and Wendell, and bring no one else in in Free Agency other than the typical JAG receiver or O-lineman or whatever.

What faith do you have that this team can stand up without substantial additions and a pair of pretty substantial losses in Edelman and Talib?

I think we would be in big trouble. The NFL is a passing league and we would enter the season with questionable WRs and DBs. It is hard to win when you cannot throw the ball offensively and you cannot stop the pass defensively.

I am not worried about it though, the Patriots are not going to let them walk and not replace them, Belichick and Kraft are conscious of the fact that the window is closing on Brady’s career and if they want another SB 2014 is likely their best shot.

 

[Brady6]

Healthy Amendola, SHOULD be able to get similar production to Edelman last year. I liked to see both stay but, it shouldn't be backbreaking to lose Edelman. Not like it would have been last year. Might not even had made the playoffs.

Yeah absolutely he has so many 100+ receptions, 1000+ yard seasons since he entered the NFL in 2008 he SHOULD do it in 2014.

Tavon Wilson SHOULD produce 64 tackles, 16 interceptions, and 32 pass defends next season too, because he played at that pace in week 1 of the 2012 season, his knee and hamstring injuries held him back in 2013.

Wilson is not going to win DPOY because Kyle Arrington SHOULD produce 80 tackles, 16 run stuffs, 32 forced fumbles, and 16 pass defends, that’s how he played in week 1 of 2013 but then he hurt his groin.

Vereen SHOULD produce 1616 rushing yards, 112 receptions and 928 receiving yards in 2014, did you see his week 1 game? That damn broken wrist limited him.

We are going to have the top two DPOY, the OPOY and the best slot receiver in the NFL as long as we stay healthy.

 

[stinebot]

Goodbye Talib. Let some other team pay you big bucks to get hurt and sit the most important game your team plays that season. If you could stay on the field I'd love to have you back. But you cannot.

Edelman would be nice to have back but I think some team will offer him more money than he's worth.

Solution: Sign Alterraun Verner, CB, Tennessee. Hope Amendola and Dobson (and Gronk of course) can stay healthy next season, draft the best TE available to hedge against Gronk's eventual injury.

With Verner and the drafted TE plus healthy guys we already have we should be fine. Use the rest of the draft to shore up the DL and OL. If D'Qwell Jackson can also be brought in all the better.

 

[TomNGisele]

Myse well trade Brady to the Raiders for a few first round picks if that were to happen

 

[patsfan-1982]

i could see this happening both Edelman and Talib gone with LeGarrette Blount being the biggest name signed with Wilson, Sopoaga cut and wilfork redone start the draft with over 10 million in cap room and starting the season with about 8 million,


i hope that does not happen but if it did the pats would still get to the AFCCG cause Gronk will be at 100% but they will lose because the defense would give up 600 yards again

 

[Miguel]

Suppose the Patriots stand pat.

They lose Talib and Edelman, resign Fletcher, Blount, and Wendell, and bring no one else in in Free Agency other than the typical JAG receiver or O-lineman or whatever.

What faith do you have that this team can stand up without substantial additions and a pair of pretty substantial losses in Edelman and Talib?

I have faith in the awfulness of the Dolphins, Jets and Bills that the Patriots would still win the AFC East.

I can not see how the Patriots could win a Super Bowl constructed that way.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

Suppose the Patriots stand pat.

They lose Talib and Edelman, resign Fletcher, Blount, and Wendell, and bring no one else in in Free Agency other than the typical JAG receiver or O-lineman or whatever.

What faith do you have that this team can stand up without substantial additions and a pair of pretty substantial losses in Edelman and Talib?

Well, I suppose it would mean that they'd have the money to extend all of Solder, McCourty, Gostkowski, Jones, and Vereen pretty easily, so at least there's that.

 

[mgteich]

I think that Wilfork's cap hit will be about $4M less than now. This puts us at $21M, after we cut Sopoaga. Re-sign Hooman and Collie (to bring us closer to the status quo) and we are still over $19M. Presume drafting a TE in the first or second round.

So, where would we be? We would have a team close to last year's with $19M in the free agent bank.

Why would anyone think that Belichick wouldn't use some of this money for the secondary and wide receiver?

Even given an expensive free agent market, we are in extremely good shape.

I would call for resignation as BB the GM.

There is absolutely no reason for that to happen. We have 15 million in cap space and can easily reach 17 with a Sopoaga release.

Wendell, Fletcher, Blount would take up 4 million of this year's cap at most.

 

[Deus Irae]

Suppose the Patriots stand pat.

They lose Talib and Edelman, resign Fletcher, Blount, and Wendell, and bring no one else in in Free Agency other than the typical JAG receiver or O-lineman or whatever.

What faith do you have that this team can stand up without substantial additions and a pair of pretty substantial losses in Edelman and Talib?

If this were to happen, I would expect that this would be BB's last season as coach/GM. He'd either win the SB with a final "screw you" to everyone, or he'd fail and get 'promoted'.

 

[50-yard-line]

If this were to happen, I would expect that this would be BB's last season as coach/GM. He'd either win the SB with a final "screw you" to everyone, or he'd fail and get 'promoted'.

I'm just going by last year...remembering all the names that floated past and out the other door.

They could have easily signed Abraham, or Freeney, or Phillips, among others. They did bring in Amendola, after losing Welker and Lloyd and Woodhead...but other than that, they re-signed a couple of their own (Talib and Vollmer) and otherwise spent next to nothing in FA (Kelly, Wilson, Jenkins, Hawkins, Donald Jones...). Am I missing anyone? They kept the cash and brought in a couple of folks - Sopoaga, UFA's - as people went down.

So Jackson, Bryant, Ward, Griffen, Allen, Houston, Hatcher...yeah,, they all sound good.

Are we kidding ourselves to think they'll seriously go after any (or maybe 1 at a value price)?

 

[Brady_to_Moss]

Suppose the Patriots stand pat.

They lose Talib and Edelman, resign Fletcher, Blount, and Wendell, and bring no one else in in Free Agency other than the typical JAG receiver or O-lineman or whatever.

What faith do you have that this team can stand up without substantial additions and a pair of pretty substantial losses in Edelman and Talib?

Do you really expect them to bring in big names this FA? Becasue i don't. Some role guys here and there..but no one like Byrd ect

 

[mgteich]

You are really switching scenarios a bit.

If we keep our own (except Spikes), I think that we'll be fine. That means re-signing Blount, Fletcher, Wendell, Hooman, Collie and Aiken. It also means re-signing Talib and Edelman.

I don't expect a MAJOR free agent unless it is a replacement of Talib or Edelman, although a safety is certainly possible as a replacement for Gregory (and Wilson).

I'm just going by last year...remembering all the names that floated past and out the other door.

They could have easily signed Abraham, or Freeney, or Phillips, among others. They did bring in Amendola, after losing Welker and Lloyd and Woodhead...but other than that, they re-signed a couple of their own (Talib and Vollmer) and otherwise spent next to nothing in FA (Kelly, Wilson, Jenkins, Hawkins, Donald Jones...). Am I missing anyone? They kept the cash and brought in a couple of folks - Sopoaga, UFA's - as people went down.

So Jackson, Bryant, Ward, Griffen, Allen, Houston, Hatcher...yeah,, they all sound good.

Are we kidding ourselves to think they'll seriously go after any (or maybe 1 at a value price)?

 

[CISGS]

Yeah absolutely he has so many 100+ receptions, 1000+ yard seasons since he entered the NFL in 2008 he SHOULD do it in 2014.

Tavon Wilson SHOULD produce 64 tackles, 16 interceptions, and 32 pass defends next season too, because he played at that pace in week 1 of the 2012 season, his knee and hamstring injuries held him back in 2013.

Wilson is not going to win DPOY because Kyle Arrington SHOULD produce 80 tackles, 16 run stuffs, 32 forced fumbles, and 16 pass defends, that’s how he played in week 1 of 2013 but then he hurt his groin.

Vereen SHOULD produce 1616 rushing yards, 112 receptions and 928 receiving yards in 2014, did you see his week 1 game? That damn broken wrist limited him.

We are going to have the top two DPOY, the OPOY and the best slot receiver in the NFL as long as we stay healthy.

There is so much negativity, hate, and sarcasm on this board.

Its just sad at this point.