James White gets a 3 year contract extension

[BradyFTW!]

I fully expected that the Pats would go the same route they went with Woodhead and Vereen, by drafting/signing a replacement in advance of his final season and letting him walk in FA next summer. But I'll count this as a pleasant surprise. I have mixed-positive feelings about White's game on the whole: I think he's good., but I don't think he's the sort of core talent that you can't afford to lose or anything. For the money it sure seems like an overpay, but at the same time the backfield is so crowded that they may have not had roster space to carry an understudy at 3DRB anyway. It all depends on the structure of the contract, really, and even if they didn't overpay for him at least it means one less draft need in given how few picks we have.

 

[JayNM]

I could be misinterpreting, but that's 12 M (up to 15) for this year and three years after. White was awesome in the SB and is great at receiving, but I can't trust a RUNNING back that can't run

PS - We are spending more on Running backs than we are spending on Defensive Ends lol

 

[50-yard-line]

What a strange off-season. Watching the Pats go and pay THREE running backs (assuming Gillislee signs) more than 3m/per?

Unexpected. But I like that BB has built great redundancy in a position where injuries are common (even the nagging ones that turn A-backs into B-backs in a hurry.

Love that all four are value players, and I think Deus is onto something in the Burkhead might quickly become the Amendola/Edelman replacement guy.

 

[maineman209]

Lewis is signed pretty cheap isn't he? Why just give him away? It sucked when Brandon Bolden became the recieveing back when Vereen got hurt in 2013.

The 2017 cap hit for Lewis is $1.49M. Until the Burkhead signing and the Gillislee offer, he was the Pats' highest paid RB.

Bolden wasn't horrid in 2013:

Rushing: 55/271 (4.9 ypa), longest 46 yds, 3 TDs
Receiving: 21/29 (72.4%), 152 yds (7.2 ypc)

Always a top special teamer, in 2014 that became Bolden's specialty. And it showed in the second half of 2015when the Pats needed to put him in as a "dire emergency" injury replacement at RB.

 

[maineman209]

That's Burkhead, White, Lewis, Bolden, plus Gillislee most likely.

Something has to give right?

There's also DJ Foster:
5100/193, Arizona State, 3.35 vertical, 117 long jump, 4.07 shuttle, 6.75 3-cone

Rushing: 444/2355, 5.3 ypa, 18 TDs
Receiving: 222/2458, 11.1 ypc, 14 TDs

The Pats kept him on the 53-man all last season rather than expose him to waivers trying to get him to the PS.

Bolden is a critical special-teamer. He won't be counted as part of the RB competition.

Gillislee hasn't signed the offer sheet yet, and the Bills could still match it.

So, really, the Pats have only Burkhead, White, Lewis and Foster. For the 90-man OTA/Camp roster, they typically have 6-8 RBs under contract. That's four more to sign, not counting Gillislee.

 

[Ivan]

I could be misinterpreting, but that's 12 M (up to 15) for this year and three years after. White was awesome in the SB and is great at receiving, but I can't trust a RUNNING back that can't run

PS - We are spending more on Running backs than we are spending on Defensive Ends lol

They gave him Vereen money, and if he continues to play the way he did in the SB he will be worth every cent of it.

 

[maineman209]

Burkhart would most likely be the backup 3rd down back now or DJ Foster rather than Brandon Boldin.

Even if Gillislee signs the offer sheet, AND the Bills decide not to match it (neither of which has even happened yet), Burkhead won't be "backup" anything - not at $3M/year. He and Gillislee would most likely share lead RB carries the way Ridley and Blount did in 2013.

Foster is a receiving-back type. He'd be in competition with Dion Lewis for the 4th RB spot (assuming Gillislee is under contract).

Bolden is a core special teamer. He should never see the field as an RB unless (A) the Pats are winning in a blowout, or (B), three of the other four RBs have suddenly suffered IR-worthy injuries after the trade deadline. He really shouldn't be part of the conversation about RB roster spots.

 

[maineman209]

Foster can convert to slot receiver
Folks he maybe our Edelman replacement down the road.

Not at all out of the question, really. Arizona State was more or less converting him to slot receiver during his senior season. Over the course of four seasons, Foster had 222 receptions for 2458 yds, 11.1 ypc, 14 receiving TDs - and only four fumbles in 667 career touches rushing and receiving.

Foster is the same height as Edelman, a couple pounds lighter. Pretty close to Edelman on testing numbers, too.

 

[maineman209]

Ugh as usual total nonsense from you. What are you basing this off of?

Foster is about the same size as Edelman with similar testing numbers.
Foster's four year receiving stats at Arizona State were 222/2458, 11.1 ypc, 14 TDs.
Arizona State was converting Foster to slot receiver during his senior season.

In three years at Kent State, Edelman caught only ONE pass, and yet he eventually replaced (and surpassed) Welker.

Not sure why it's "nonsense" that Foster could become a Pats slot receiver of the future, even if he doesn't "replace" Edelman immediately.

 

[RobertWeathers]

I could be misinterpreting, but that's 12 M (up to 15) for this year and three years after. White was awesome in the SB and is great at receiving, but I can't trust a RUNNING back that can't run

PS - We are spending more on Running backs than we are spending on Defensive Ends lol

White is an elite passing back option and is being paid like one.

Speculating here but the team must think he has more room to grow as a runner.

 

[maineman209]

Jammies Whitey?

And his SB heroics notwithstanding, I sure hope that Bill didn't sign him for Burkhead/Gillislee money (though I wouldn't have given either of those 2 guys $3.15M/year either), or even Sugar Shane Vereen money.

White's 3-year extension adds $12M to the $690k he was going to make in 2017 under his original contract. IOW, right around the same APY that Burkhead is getting for the one year.

 

[luuked]

White is an elite passing back option and is being paid like one.

Speculating here but the team must think he has more room to grow as a runner.

I think you are right on. Lombardi said that he looked amazing early in his first offseason as a rookie until the pads came on. Mayo followed this up by saying he looked like **** then. And then kept grinding and taking the advice from BB and Fears and slowly worked himself from a fringe player to almost SB MVP. They must be thinking (and have been seeing it in practice) that there is still another untapped level he can built upon after his first "real" season as a NFL RB.

White is one of those players that convinced me despite my pre-established bias. BB knows..

 

[maineman209]

I totally hear what you're saying, but I think we just have to accept that with the way the cap is going up, contracts are going to undergo "inflation." Look more at the percentages of the cap rather than the raw money.

It's entirely possible that, by 2019, $4M per year will look like a steal for a top-notch receiving back.

 

[maineman209]

That's a bad contract for a receiving only RB and completely unlike the Pats model of value.

11 M per year in RBs? What the?

By the end of the contract in 2020, it might look like a steal.

 

[RobertWeathers]

I think you are right on. Lombardi said that he looked amazing early in his first offseason as a rookie until the pads came on. Mayo followed this up by saying he looked like **** then. And then kept grinding and taking the advice from BB and Fears and slowly worked himself from a fringe player to almost SB MVP. They must be thinking (and have been seeing it in practice) that there is still another untapped level he can built upon after his first "real" season as a NFL RB.

White is one of those players that convinced me despite my pre-established bias. BB knows..

I don't think he'll ever be a 1k yd runner but if he runs hard like he did on the winning TD he is absolutely a respectable running threat.

 

[maineman209]

I don't think he'll ever be a 1k yd runner but if he runs hard like he did on the winning TD he is absolutely a respectable running threat.

Agree. White seems more in the Kevin Faulk mold ... ultra-reliable pass-protector, reliable receiver who can grab a quick 4-6 yards running the ball when the defense is playing pass ... maybe 3-4 carries per game.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Agree. White seems more in the Kevin Faulk mold ... ultra-reliable pass-protector, reliable receiver who can grab a quick 4-6 yards running the ball when the defense is playing pass ... maybe 3-4 carries per game.

Yep. 300 yards on the ground and 600 yds in the air....900 yards for $4m a year is a great deal for the team

 

[Marqui]

I don't understand how you can get better at running.

 

[50-yard-line]

I think you are right on. Lombardi said that he looked amazing early in his first offseason as a rookie until the pads came on. Mayo followed this up by saying he looked like **** then. And then kept grinding and taking the advice from BB and Fears and slowly worked himself from a fringe player to almost SB MVP. They must be thinking (and have been seeing it in practice) that there is still another untapped level he can built upon after his first "real" season as a NFL RB.

White is one of those players that convinced me despite my pre-established bias. BB knows..

And BB just said that he only wants to coach players he likes. I think he likes James White!

 

[JarOfMayo51]

Belichick just did this to screw with Pats fans who play fantasy football!