Let's talk about the Hightower situation.

[102 Pat]

You can't call scoreboard on a game that hasn't been played.

Well, the SuperBowl was played this past sunday and I am still celebrating, feel free to focus on free agency if you want too, I'll join you all in a few days...

 

[JMC00]

Do we really want a guy who doesn't want or care about being here?

Pats have 2 more SB losses if it wasn't for Hightower. So ya I would prefer to keep a great LB who makes clutch SB altering plays than go into a season with a huge question mark about the #1 LB.

It isn't a matter of him not caring or not wanting to be here. Hightower is just doing what the Pats do, treating it like a business. After seeing what happened to Mayo he probably has in his mind that this could be his only chance at a big deal.

Also don't forget McCourty was practically on his way to Philadelphia and the Pats ended up paying him.

 

[Ring 6]

Weak excuse to skip the parade. Can't imagine he's back the way he's talking.

He skipped the parade in 2014 also.

 

[DaBruinz]

They ended up paying McCourty, they will end up paying Hightower

But they didn't pay McCourty outrageously.
Do you honestly believe that Hightower is worth more than the likes of Lavonte David, Luke Kuechly, Navarro Bowman, or Bobby Wagner? Because that's where the money puts him at.. In the same company as those 4 guys depending on how you look at Hightower (4-3 OLB/ILB).

It sounds like the Pats were willing to put Hightower into that group of guys with the contract offer and he turned it down. That's not a good sign. And, Unfortunately for him and his injury history, he's probably going to have to take less guaranteed money and some other reductions on the open market.

 

[DaBruinz]

Hightower on not going to the parade:



Going through Reiss's Twitter feed, it seems like he's quoting Hightower speaking to Wendi Nix.

Also, a quote from Hightower in this article in the ProJo:

Sounds to me like a guy who already has his bags packed to get outta the area..

 

[mosslost]

We have no idea why he chose not to go the Parade, I doubt its because of spite. And I wouldn't count on Bennett being here next year. He is going to want big money and quite frankly its hard to tell how good he is. He is certainly well below Gronk in terms of his performance.

If HT doesn't want to be a Patriot anymore, I am not sure if its a wise idea to franchise him.. but BB will know what to do.

He was asked some question about who his favorite player was, or who was the best or something, and he said "Jamie Collins". I think he is totally gone. We may franchise him though.

 

[BradyFTW!]

But they didn't pay McCourty outrageously.
Do you honestly believe that Hightower is worth more than the likes of Lavonte David, Luke Kuechly, Navarro Bowman, or Bobby Wagner? Because that's where the money puts him at.. In the same company as those 4 guys depending on how you look at Hightower (4-3 OLB/ILB).

It sounds like the Pats were willing to put Hightower into that group of guys with the contract offer and he turned it down. That's not a good sign. And, Unfortunately for him and his injury history, he's probably going to have to take less guaranteed money and some other reductions on the open market.

Short answer: yes. Long answer: with a rising cap, paying him more than them doesn't even necessarily mean he's worth more than them.

I think he's worth overpaying for. I hope the Pats agree. The Pats would still be sitting on 3 SB wins if he wasn't here. But sure, if he's not willing to play ball, I'm fine with the Pats franchising him and revisiting next year while developing his potential replacement.

 

[FCB02062]

If they pay him he'll stay, if they **** around he'll leave, simple as that... Hope they use a good portion on their 65M to sign him up....

 

[mosslost]

We have no idea why he chose not to go the Parade, I doubt its because of spite. And I wouldn't count on Bennett being here next year. He is going to want big money and quite frankly its hard to tell how good he is. He is certainly well below Gronk in terms of his performance.

If HT doesn't want to be a Patriot anymore, I am not sure if its a wise idea to franchise him.. but BB will know what to do.

I would franchise him for now to keep him from the Broncos, Steelers, Dolphins, or Colts.

 

[zoostation]

i've heard he's thrilled to be a Patriot ..... loves BB and Matt Patricia. My $ says the Pats pony up the cash like they did for Vince.

 

[farn]

i've heard he's thrilled to be a Patriot ..... loves BB and Matt Patricia. My $ says the Pats pony up the cash like they did for Vince.

It's true that Vince had a similar situation that was eventually resolved.

There are definitely some interesting days ahead. Can't wait to see how it goes down. This situation & JG are the most interesting ones.

 

[stinkypete]

Belichick gave Mayo a 5yr/$51M deal in 2011. This was back when the cap was $12oM. The salary cap will be 33% higher in 2017. Proportionally speaking, if Hightower is Mayo's equal, he should be worth 5yr/$67M.

IMO, Hightower is not Mayo's equal, he is a far superior player. He has proven his worth on the biggest stage, twice. The Brady/Belichick Patriots are 3 - 4 in Super Bowls without Hightower. Without him, there is no GOAT, instead, a legacy of unfulfilled promise.

Think that's replaceable? Ask Monty Beisel. Pay the man.

 

[mosslost]

Ian Rapoport ?@RapSheet 5m5 minutes ago
Ian Rapoport Retweeted Jeff Howe

Hightower was offered more than $10M, like Collins, before the season. It didn’t take.


Jeff Howe?@jeffphowe
Jeff Howe Retweeted Andrew Hauck

For the last year, I've projected a fair deal for Hightower to be 5 years, $51M, approaching $20M guaranteed.


Let's get it done and get him back!!!

He has missed a lot of games last three seasons. ( like eleven games I think) The Patriots look at what happened with Mayo, and have legitimate hesitation. It is a shame though. I love him. He has his two rings though and made hugely importantly plays in both games.

 

[RIpats88]

Players never take these before season offers. Its always smart to see where the market is at. And right now the market is set. He likely will get 10-12 million and pats will pony up as he is the captain

Also he did say he thinks they want to keep him by trading collins and jones

 

[BradyFTW!]

Players never take these before season offers. Its always smart to see where the market is at. And right now the market is set. He likely will get 10-12 million and pats will pony up as he is the captain

Also he did say he thinks they want to keep him by trading collins and jones

I think that's pretty much right on, although I guess it depends on what the offer is. I think it makes sense to take the offer ahead of time--purely as insurance against injury or poor play--if you're confident that the offer you're getting now is close to what the market value will be a year out. But if you think you're being lowballed, then yeah it definitely makes sense to wait it out. And let's be honest, the Pats probably lowballed him (which is totally fine, just doing their job).

 

[JarOfMayo51]

What about melvin ingram?

I think Ingram is more of a pass rushing OLB type in the Chargers 3-4 1 gap defense

 

[condon84]

Just saw SB SoundFX. They showed Hightower prominently in the episode. The guy is a real leader out there AND he delivered with impact plays. Not the first game he's delivered with impact plays in critical games either.

This guy should retire a Patriot.

 

[JarOfMayo51]

Sounds like a man who is ready to explore his options.

I can't blame any player from the south, the weather here really does suck big time.. maybe not Wisconsin bad, but its pretty horrible during the winter

 

[RobertWeathers]

I can't blame any player from the south, the weather here really does suck big time.. maybe not Wisconsin bad, but its pretty horrible during the winter

Yep. The winters up here do suck

Of course it depends what you are used to.

Personally I hate humidity/really hot weather. I kinda like the cold but don't confuse that with driving in it, shoveling, snow-blowing or helping my plow guy finance his trip to Bermuda in mid-April.

 

[mosslost]

Just saw SB SoundFX. They showed Hightower prominently in the episode. The guy is a real leader out there AND he delivered with impact plays. Not the first game he's delivered with impact plays in critical games either.

This guy should retire a Patriot.

I agree. We need some Dynastic long term Pats on the D, like we did with Willie, Bruschi, Law, Vince, and others. I feel like at least Butler and Hightower should be our stalwarts. They wanted Mayo for that but injuries wrecked him. Ninkovich is kind of in that role too.
EDIT: McCourty too