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Today in Patriots History
The 2012 Offseason
The 2012 Offseason
March 19, 2012:
Patriots sign WR Donté Stallworth, OL Robert Gallery, TE Daniel Fells and CB Marquice Cole
The Patriots were AFC champions in 2011, despite having the 31st ranked defense. The offseason spending focused on key offensive players, and adding more receivers. While the headlines focused on one particular signing (WR Brandon Lloyd), there was also a lot of shopping at the Dollar Store for old veteran names - with expectations exceeding production.
◉ Stallworth was waived as part of final roster cuts. He was re-signed in December when Julian Edelman went on injured reserve; a week later he too was placed on IR.
◉ Gallery tapped out and retired on August 4.
◉ Fells played in 13 games and was on the field for 25% of the offensive snaps, sharing backup duties to Gronk and Hernandez with Michael Hoomanawanui.
◉ Cole was 8th in special team snaps, and on the field for 18% of the Pats plays on defense.
Report: Patriots Sign Donte Stallworth To One-Year Contract
The Patriots continue to stockpile wide receivers.
www.cbsnews.com
The Patriots continue to stockpile wide receivers.
On Monday, the team agreed with free-agent receiver Donté Stallworth on a one-year contract, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
It will be Stallworth's second stint with the Patriots, as he caught 46 passes for 697 yards and three touchdowns in 2007 with New England. Since then, he's played 30 games for the Browns, Ravens and Redskins. He was also charged with manslaughter for striking and killing a man with his car in Florida in March 2009. Last season, he caught 22 passes for 309 yards and two touchdowns in 11 games for Washington.
Over the weekend, the Patriots signed free-agent receivers Brandon Lloyd and Anthony Gonzalez.
Sources: Patriots sign 3 vets
The Patriots on Monday reached agreements with a trio of free agents: tight end Daniel Fells, receiver Donte' Stallworth and offensive lineman Robert Gallery, according to sources.
www.espn.com
The 28-year-old Fells received a three-year deal that could be worth up to $7 million, according to a source. The contract includes $2 million in bonuses and guarantees, with a minimum total value of $5.25 million, the source said. It maxes out at $7 million if all incentives are reached.
The length of the deal is consistent with how the Patriots have approached free agency this year. They haven't signed a free agent to a deal longer than three years and have focused on the middle class of the roster.
The mini-column below provides a fun retrospective on what the media/Patriot fans were talking about 13 years ago:
Patriots sign wide receiver Donte Stallworth and offensive lineman Robert Gallery
The Patriots also signed cornerback Marquice Cole, but lost out on LaRon Landry, who signed with the New York Jets.
www.masslive.com
• Patriots sign wide receiver Donté Stallworth and offensive lineman Robert Gallery
• Do you want to see Tim Tebow on the Patriots? (Poll)
• Peyton Manning to join the Denver Broncos; team will now look to trade Tim Tebow
• Patriots reportedly sign tight end Daniel Fells
• Chad Ochocinco on talk of him possibly being released by the Patriots: 'Child please'
• Brandon Lloyd is an absolute steal for the Patriots
The New England Patriots' free-agent frenzy continued Monday as the team agreed to terms with three more players.
Wide receiver Donté Stallworth, offensive tackle Robert Gallery, tight end Daniel Fells and cornerback Marquice Cole became the latest batch of names to be summoned to Foxborough in what is quickly becoming an extremely hectic offseason for the Patriots.
The New York Jets signed safety LaRon Landry, who visited with New England over the weekend, to a one-year contract on Monday. Landry’s last two seasons were cut short by Achilles injuries and the Patriots are believed to have been concerned with his medical reports.
With the benefit of hindsight, the Patriots were fortunate that the first two draft picks were able to contribute right away. Their two best pass rushers from 2011 were free agents, and not re-signed. DE Mark Anderson (10 sacks) got a big payday with Buffalo (which the Bills immediately regretted), and Pro Bowl DE Andre Carter (also 10 sacks) signed with the Raiders. Shaun Ellis was a waste of space and not re-signed. Free agent replacement Jonathan Fanene was penciled in as a starter, but he was a disappointment, and cut in mid-August. Jones and Ninkovich made for a good pair of DEs, but the depth behind them (Trevor Scott, Justin Francis, Jake Bequette) was lacking. Kyle Love was okay at DT, but much of that had to do with playing next to Vince Wilfork; Brandon Deaderick and Ron Brace were adequate at best.
Matt Light retired, but the Patriots had already planned ahead by drafting Nate Solder the previous year. Brian Waters refused to report because he wanted to live near his family in Texas; fortunately the Pats had Scar, and Dan Connolly slid over from C to RG, and Ryan Wendell became the new C. The Pats got Ochocinco to agree to a pay cut - and then released him anyways.
Overall it looks like a whole lot of throwing a bowl of spaghetti against the wall and hoping some sticks - and not much of it did. Obviously many are just camp bodies, but there were plenty of 'name' veteran signings that didn't make it (Stallworth, Gallery, Anthony Gonzalez, Will Allen, Joseph Addai, Bo Scaife), or contributed very little (Bobby Carpenter, Visanthe Shiancoe, Greg Salas, Deion Branch). The major moves were signing Lloyd, tagging Welker, and extending Gronk and Hernandez.
Here is a look at how March and April of the 2012 offseason worked out for the Patriots:
Designated WR Wes Welker as the franchise player.
Re-signed WR Mathew Slater (core ST)
Signed DT Marcus Harrison (cut Aug 31)
Re-signed LB Tracy White (backup, ST)
Signed S Steve Gregory (became starter)
Signed DE Jonathan Fanene (cut Aug 21)
Signed WR Anthony Gonzalez (cut May 29)
Signed DE Trevor Scott (14 games, backup depth)
Signed WR Brandon Lloyd (74 catches, 911 yards, 4 TD)
Signed CB Will Allen (IR, Aug 27)
Signed CB Marquice Cole (played 20% of defensive snaps, 47% of ST snaps)
Signed TE Daniel Fells (30% of offensive snaps, 25% of ST snaps)
Signed WR Donte' Stallworth (cut Aug 27)
Signed OL Robert Gallery (quit on Aug 4)
Signed QB Brian Hoyer (cut Aug 31)
Re-signed WR Deion Branch (cut Aug 31; re-signed 9/19 and 12/12)
Signed FB Tony Fiammetta (quit on Aug 4)
Signed FB Spencer Larsen (IR on Aug 27)
Signed LB Bobby Carpenter (cut Sept 1; re-signed Oct 3)
2012 Draft, April 26-28:
• Chandler Jones
• Dont'a Hightower
• Tavon Wilson
• Jake Bequette
• Nate Ebner
• Alfonzo Dennard
• Jeremy Ebert
And the May-June signings:
Re-signed DL Gerard Warren (cut Aug 27)
Re-signed WR Jabar Gaffney (cut Aug 27)
Signed RB Joseph Addai (cut July 25)
Signed UDFA RB Brandon Bolden (core ST)
Signed UDFA DL Marcus Forston (1 game, then PS)
Signed UDFA DL Justin Francis (waived-injured, Aug 31)
Signed UDFA TE Brad Herman (IR, June 12)
Signed UDFA WR Matt Roark (cut July 20)
Signed UDFA OL Jeremiah Warren (cut Aug 31; PS)
Signed UDFA OL Markus Zusevics (NFI, Aug 27)
Signed UDFA OL Jon Opperud (cut June 7)
Signed UDFA TE Nick Melillo (cut June 7)
* WR Wes Welker signs franchise tender contract
Signed OL Jamey Richard (IR Aug 2)
Later additions prior to the start of the season:
Signed TE Bo Scaife (cut June 19)
* Gronk signed to six-year extension
Claimed TE Jake Ballard off waivers from Giants (spent season on IR)
Re-signed S James Ihedigbo (cut Aug 31)
Signed DL Tim Bulman (cut Aug 27)
Signed TE Visanthe Shiancoe (IR Sept 5; cut Dec 12)
Signed OL Darrion Weems (cut Aug 31)
Signed OL Derek Dennis (cut Aug 31)
Claimed OT Dustin Waldron off waivers from Miami (cut Aug 31)
Signed DB Derrick Martin (cut Aug 31; re-signed Oct 31)
Signed FB Kareem Huggins (cut a day later, Aug 5)
Signed OL Kyle Hill (cut 13 days later, Aug 21)
Signed RB Jeff Demps (IR, Aug 31)
* Signed TE Aaron Hernandez to a five-year contract through 2018
Acquired WR Greg Salas from St. Louis for an undisclosed draft pick (cut Sept 18; PS)
Claimed OL Matt Tennant off waivers from New Orleans (cut 3 days later)
Signed RB James Develin to the practice squad (good move)
Signed RB Lex Hilliard (cut 2 weeks later)
Signed TE Michael Hoomanawanui (good depth, ST)
Here are some PatsFans articles and threads from this time period.
Should Tebow-Mania Head Our Way?
The Red Sox have Kevin Fowler. Do the Patriots now have Rich Mullins?
www.patsfans.com
Patriots
Much to the chagrin of many in the fan base, the Patriots were quiet during the early days of free agency, but that has never been Bill Belichick’s way.
www.patsfans.com
