Hightower will not be given the tag, now a free agent

[bormio]

So if brady is cut, BB would just find a "replacement?"

No, we would disband the franchise.

 

[ashley]

I'm probably in the minority here, but I just have a feeling he will be back.

 

[obgod3]

I do think Donte is not going to be with the Patriots this year. He has two rings, he can go get top dollar, and the Pats are not going to pay top dollar for a linebacker. Guess it also depends on how solid the draft looks this year but I still dont think the Pats will pay him what he wants.

 

[patfanken]

Some comments on the comments

1. One ofBB's most important Mantras is "don't be afraid of FA". Bill has too often seen that when players hit FA they often see that the market isn't as high as the media always suggests. Guys like Felger haven't seen a player yet he wouldn't pay a top dollar for.

2. I think letting a player get to test FA is a sign of respect to the player. After 5 years he deserves a chance to see what is out there. BB understands this, and if someone is going to pay him 13-15MM/yr then god bless. Best example of this was WW. During his drama, I posted I was willing to pay him $8/yr, and got killed for lowballing him. When he finally hit FA, the ACTUAL market turned out to be $6.

3. Put me in the camp that doesn't equate not putting the tag on him makes it likely he's gone. I believe the faster he gets to FA and sees his value, the fast we get a long term deal done. Right now the negotiations are being ruled by perceptions. Come 3/9 we will know the reality..,..and move on from there.

4. The ILB postion is becoming a dying position in the pass happy NFL. There are so few 3 down LB's these days as teams go for nickel and dime packages on anything longer than 3yds to go, and widen the search for hyprid speed guys to take over on passing downs (which is almost every down these days.

5. I heard today that Hightower played just 67% of the defensive snaps this season. I ask, how difficult would it actually be to replace Hightower's production of 64 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and one forced fumble. 114 players had more tackles this year. So really, are there a lot of teams that are going to want to break the bank for THAT kind of production. I wonder. He wants to make more than Bobby Wagner who had over 100 more tackles and twice as many sacks this year

6. In my mind Hightower's true value goes beyond the production numbers. His leadership, versatility, and the respect he commands in that lockerroom makes me willing to make him a top 5-7th best paid ILB, but no more. I'd go up to 12/yr and make sure at least a third of his money was tied to how many games he plays. In the end Hightower might have more value to the Pats than he will another team.

7. Tennessee might be a real threat to go after Hightower hard. They have a lot of cap space, a lot of draft picks, and might feel the need to make a splash and over pay a quality team guy to help build the culture. And if I recall correctly, their GM is a BB guy. It is what it is.

8. IF Hightower ends up going it will be interesting to see how BB spends ALL that cap space, and given the floor requirements, that are going to have to spend a LOT of it on someone.

 

[1960Pats]

I'm probably in the minority here, but I just have a feeling he will be back.

I wish I had that feeling.

 

[deroc5050]

The open market will not deduct for a few minor injuries that are not chronic. History proves this.

I didn't say the open market would deduct, but teams are stupid and over pay 1 guy and kill themselves. If you invest 14m a year in 1 guy and he goes on IR, it s a huge risk.

You think HT is better than Von Miller? Von Miller almost single handedly won a Super Bowl for the Broncos. Miller always makes key plays in crucial situation. All the time. Like every game.

Hightower is not the pass rusher Miller is.

 

[mrscruff]

I think the Patriots love Hightower's ability and leadership and I think he also would love to stay, and the Patriots are probably prepared to pay a hefty price for his forthcoming services. His situation seems a little complicated with his injury history where he has missed games or, to his credit, has played injured so the structure of any deal is most likely an issue.

The Patriots would probably want a highly incentivized deal with staggered guarantees which a needy team may well prioritize less. I could see Hightower leaving some money on the table to return but it really depends on how high another team is willing and able to break the bank.

The options for the Patriots are not so rosy with the free agent crop and the Draft may not have too many players where the Patriots are projected to pick, who can come even close to Hightower's contributions. The franchise tag was too rich for their liking and lessens the time they can negotiaite with the player. Maybe they can use the intermediate time to inch closer to Hightower's price.

 

[deroc5050]

Some comments on the comments

1. One ofBB's most important Mantras is "don't be afraid of FA". Bill has too often seen that when players hit FA they often see that the market isn't as high as the media always suggests. Guys like Felger haven't seen a player yet he wouldn't pay a top dollar for.

2. I think letting a player get to test FA is a sign of respect to the player. After 5 years he deserves a chance to see what is out there. BB understands this, and if someone is going to pay him 13-15MM/yr then god bless. Best example of this was WW. During his drama, I posted I was willing to pay him $8/yr, and got killed for lowballing him. When he finally hit FA, the ACTUAL market turned out to be $6.

3. Put me in the camp that doesn't equate not putting the tag on him makes it likely he's gone. I believe the faster he gets to FA and sees his value, the fast we get a long term deal done. Right now the negotiations are being ruled by perceptions. Come 3/9 we will know the reality..,..and move on from there.

4. The ILB postion is becoming a dying position in the pass happy NFL. There are so few 3 down LB's these days as teams go for nickel and dime packages on anything longer than 3yds to go, and widen the search for hyprid speed guys to take over on passing downs (which is almost every down these days.

5. I heard today that Hightower played just 67% of the defensive snaps this season. I ask, how difficult would it actually be to replace Hightower's production of 64 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and one forced fumble. 114 players had more tackles this year. So really, are there a lot of teams that are going to want to break the bank for THAT kind of production. I wonder. He wants to make more than Bobby Wagner who had over 100 more tackles and twice as many sacks this year

6. In my mind Hightower's true value goes beyond the production numbers. His leadership, versatility, and the respect he commands in that lockerroom makes me willing to make him a top 5-7th best paid ILB, but no more. I'd go up to 12/yr and make sure at least a third of his money was tied to how many games he plays. In the end Hightower might have more value to the Pats than he will another team.

7. Tennessee might be a real threat to go after Hightower hard. They have a lot of cap space, a lot of draft picks, and might feel the need to make a splash and over pay a quality team guy to help build the culture. And if I recall correctly, their GM is a BB guy. It is what it is.

8. IF Hightower ends up going it will be interesting to see how BB spends ALL that cap space, and given the floor requirements, that are going to have to spend a LOT of it on someone.

Tennessee is also where Hightower is from. Hightower is best utilized as a Patriot. He isn't great in coverage but he does everything else good to great. I would say 12/m a year is fair.

 

[PatriotsPimp136]

I think the Patriots love Hightower's ability and leadership and I think he also would love to stay, and the Patriots are probably prepared to pay a hefty price for his forthcoming services. His situation seems a little complicated with his injury history where he has missed games or, to his credit, has played injured so the structure of any deal is most likely an issue.

The Patriots would probably want a highly incentivized deal with staggered guarantees which a needy team may well prioritize less. I could see Hightower leaving some money on the table to return but it really depends on how high another team is willing and able to break the bank.

The options for the Patriots are not so rosy with the free agent crop and the Draft may not have too many players where the Patriots are projected to pick, who can come even close to Hightower's contributions. The franchise tag was too rich for their liking and lessens the time they can negotiaite with the player. Maybe they can use the intermediate time to inch closer to Hightower's price.

This year's draft is deep on the DL and CB.

 

[Banjo]

This is really frustrating. I can't go back to watching a defense with zero playmakers

 

[1960Pats]

It's funny how a completely blown block by Freeman in the SB upped the ante in the Hightower sweepstakes.

 

[JarOfMayo51]

Yup. Somewhat funny in a way. All the people here who shouted down those like me who said not so fast on them signing Jones, Collins etc last season are being proven right.

How's that looking now? Where I will state I have zero idea of what happens next is....who the hell do they spend their 65ish million in cap space on?

I said that they absolutely had to sign all 3 in Jones, Collins and HT... then they traded Jones and I got over it.. then proclaimed it would be the most epic blunder of Belichick's career to let either of them get way.. then he traded Collins lol...

Now HT is hitting free agency haha... so what the **** do I know about anything? Not a whole lot lol

 

[JarOfMayo51]

People need to calm down. Two years ago everyone said McCourty was gone too when the Pats decided not to tag him. And the Pats ended up making McCourty one of the highest paid safeties in the League after free agency began with McCourty as an UFA. Hightower isn't gone yet.

If they aren't afraid of the top of the market for him, they could essentially have some other team do all the contract work for them, then have Hightower come back to them with that offer and use that as the template

 

[The Gr8est]

Well, if HT leaves the Pats, it will not be to chase a ring, he already got two with the Pats.

I guess this explains why there was never news about any extensions with Collins and Hightower; I'm sure the Pats made an effort, but getting paid was high on both Collins and HT's agendas.

 

[Raymond]

Crap, this thread is too big to read now. I so wanted to keep High. I fear he's gone.

When you have a great player, wanting to keep him is hard to do. There is a VERY good chance some team among the other 31 will pay him much more.

 

[Joey007]

How about changing it to Jordan Richards?

I was actually gonna say Bequette but his blackmail on BB finally wore off after last year.

 

[chasa]

Why can't Krafty Bob give him his $?

because that not how you win titles.

He's going to get a contract that pays him like the best ILB in the league. unfortunately, those contracts don't match up with team performance.

You pay one guy like a superstar, even if he is one, and you have to have three other guys who are not as good. This isn't the nba where one guy can carry a team. you need 22 starters and at least another 22 who can play at a moments notice.

 

[long distance]

4. The ILB postion is becoming a dying position in the pass happy NFL. There are so few 3 down LB's these days as teams go for nickel and dime packages on anything longer than 3yds to go, and widen the search for hyprid speed guys to take over on passing downs (which is almost every down these days.

5. I heard today that Hightower played just 67% of the defensive snaps this season.

I was thinking along this lines as well.

Maybe the fact that they couldn't reach the agreement with Hightower (albeit they still might) is not only the reflection on different evaluation of High personally but of BB's evaluation of the LB position as a whole - looking (as always) a few steps ahead.

1. A couple of times during the season BB dismissed discussions on base D stating they play mostly nickel and dime anyway - and that the whole league is going in this direction. That would mean that the value of ILBs is diminishing as well and would continue to diminish. As you say Hightower played 67% of D snaps - partly due to injury & precaution, partly due to game plan. He did play all 49 D snaps in SBLI but Id guess that was partly because of the way the game was going. Still, compared to McCourty (for obvious reasons) he played 761 snaps in regular season (708 on D, 53 on ST) while D-Mac played 1163 (1021+142) so 400 more (in 3 more games). Chung and Butler were on the field all the time as well.

2. The biggest liability on 2016 D was the speed of LB unit IMHO, esp. lateral speed and covering/mirroring agility. This is of course not a comment on Hightower (with slugs like Freeny and McClellin on board) but a comment on what Pats might be looking for going forward, with or without Hightower. My guess is they will look to add speed and agility to the unit looking for some faster LBs and hybrid players like they already did with Roberts, Mingo and KGH (with moderate success).

This is more a comment on questions how can they replace Hightower. They don't have to. Firstly, they didn't directly replace CJ, JC, Easley or Hicks. They will do like they always do: add enough players for solid depth at the position - and put the “next man up“ in the best position to succeed.

So I believe this decision (and evaluation of what they want to pay) is not only about HT but the future of LB position as a whole.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

Well that kinda sucks.. I'm not too confident in our ability to retain him and was hoping we'd at least keep him one more year knowing we have a boatload of cap space for next year. Remaining somewhat hopefully something is in the works but i dunno

 

[FourierSeries]

This is really frustrating. I can't go back to watching a defense with zero playmakers

You said the same thing after they traded Jones and Collins.