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- Jul 11, 2005
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s1. Solder is gong to get a big LT type long term deal sometime before he becomes an UFA in 2016. Book it. You can also book that McCourty will either also get a long term deal or be franchised before the season starts. (BTW- anyone know what his brother got when he signed his big deal with the Titans)
2. I have long thought that Vareen was a likelihood to come back, and Ridley a lock to leave. I'm now thinking that I could be wrong. Ridley is by far the better runner and will come back cheap after his injury....and he LOVES it here. Vareen is going to get some looks and might be more of a west coach guy and want out when his market will be at his highest. If we can get Vareen back at a reasonable number (under 3MM/yr) they'll bring him back, and Ridley will be gone. I have no faith in White. CJ Spiller anyone?
3. Including the playoffs, I read where Danny Amendola had 35 catches in the last 5 games. That would be well over 100 catches and well over 1000 yds a if done over an entire season. Also 2 players had 3 TD catches this playoffs. Gronk and Danny Amendola.
The Pats have an real problem here. In that time, against the toughest competition, , Amendola proved that given the looks, he can produce the kind of production that would justify the money we are paying him. But the problem is that I'm not sure he will ever get those number of looks, and THAT makes it tough to keep him here with a $6MM cap number. Its a simple matter of duplication of skills. Barring a massive number of injuries to the WR position DA will never get the kind of looks that would justify that number fighting Gronk, Jules, LaFell, Wright, Dobson and Tyms, and that's just to start
So what IS the number? Amendola has value as a blocker, ST's guy, as well as a receiver. If anything happened to Julian, the drop off could be almost nil. So he does have a lot of value, just not $6MM worth. As late as early December I thought he'd jump at the chance to stay at $2MM. Now I "hope" we can keep him for $3MM plus incentives
4. I like Ayers, but I wonder about why his snaps dropped off so much toward the end of the season. Also I'm optimistic that we can duplicate his production with improved play from Moore and Buchannon.
5. I hear Vince has thrown his hat in the ring once again, so his cap number is going to have to be looked at closely. He gave us more than we had any reason to expect coming off such a horrible injury for his age size and position. However much like Mankins, I think Vince is still a fine player, but is he an elite one worthy of his larger cap number? Also like Mankins, the issue here is less about the actual real dollars the Pats have to pay him up front, than that cap number which is much higher.
Vince is like Family, so maybe this might be one of those rare Kraft decisions.
6. Its interesting that Arrington, coming off his finest year as a CB might be the last man standing in that CB logjam if Revis comes back. Butler looks like he's ready to take over at the slot CB, and Dennard will be there as well as Ryan. Lots of CB's Lots of S's, all who are pretty good. We've come a long way from needing Sergio Brown and Julian Edelman as starting DB's
2. I have long thought that Vareen was a likelihood to come back, and Ridley a lock to leave. I'm now thinking that I could be wrong. Ridley is by far the better runner and will come back cheap after his injury....and he LOVES it here. Vareen is going to get some looks and might be more of a west coach guy and want out when his market will be at his highest. If we can get Vareen back at a reasonable number (under 3MM/yr) they'll bring him back, and Ridley will be gone. I have no faith in White. CJ Spiller anyone?
3. Including the playoffs, I read where Danny Amendola had 35 catches in the last 5 games. That would be well over 100 catches and well over 1000 yds a if done over an entire season. Also 2 players had 3 TD catches this playoffs. Gronk and Danny Amendola.
The Pats have an real problem here. In that time, against the toughest competition, , Amendola proved that given the looks, he can produce the kind of production that would justify the money we are paying him. But the problem is that I'm not sure he will ever get those number of looks, and THAT makes it tough to keep him here with a $6MM cap number. Its a simple matter of duplication of skills. Barring a massive number of injuries to the WR position DA will never get the kind of looks that would justify that number fighting Gronk, Jules, LaFell, Wright, Dobson and Tyms, and that's just to start
So what IS the number? Amendola has value as a blocker, ST's guy, as well as a receiver. If anything happened to Julian, the drop off could be almost nil. So he does have a lot of value, just not $6MM worth. As late as early December I thought he'd jump at the chance to stay at $2MM. Now I "hope" we can keep him for $3MM plus incentives
4. I like Ayers, but I wonder about why his snaps dropped off so much toward the end of the season. Also I'm optimistic that we can duplicate his production with improved play from Moore and Buchannon.
5. I hear Vince has thrown his hat in the ring once again, so his cap number is going to have to be looked at closely. He gave us more than we had any reason to expect coming off such a horrible injury for his age size and position. However much like Mankins, I think Vince is still a fine player, but is he an elite one worthy of his larger cap number? Also like Mankins, the issue here is less about the actual real dollars the Pats have to pay him up front, than that cap number which is much higher.
Vince is like Family, so maybe this might be one of those rare Kraft decisions.
6. Its interesting that Arrington, coming off his finest year as a CB might be the last man standing in that CB logjam if Revis comes back. Butler looks like he's ready to take over at the slot CB, and Dennard will be there as well as Ryan. Lots of CB's Lots of S's, all who are pretty good. We've come a long way from needing Sergio Brown and Julian Edelman as starting DB's
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