Pats trade Sony Michel to LAR

[Sicilian]

Do you have examples of the other ones that were traded? I have a vague memory of people being shocked they went for what they did.

I was using this as a reference:

NFL Transactions

Sortable NFL transactions updated daily, including signings, trades, fines, suspensions, releases, etc...

www.spotrac.com

It's tough because a lot of the trades involve another player (either stand alone or with a pick), so without having a definitive idea of what that player added, it's hard to gauge the true value of the trade compared to the (presumed) 4th for Sony. Ones that stand out to me:

Matt Breida for a 5th
Kenyan Drake for a 6th
Jordan Howard for a 6th
Jay Ajayi for a 4th
Marshawn Lynch (plus a 6th) for a 5th (plus a CB)

 

[Triumph]

5th and a 6th

We will likely never know if there were even other buyers that offered more for Sony.

But "maybe" a 4th tells you all you need to know about Sonys value. I would have hated to lose JJ Taylor or Bolden.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Hmmmmm....
Wonder if Bill knows he can use draft picks as trading chips to secure new players, maybe just maybe, this summer and fall?

Please no. Well I guess it depends on the position. Not another Sanu bust. They need a big fat nose tackle.

 

[Uptown]

 

[Uptown]

 

[PittPatriot]

I wonder if we could’ve gotten better offers but wish Sony continued success. He was solid in the SB run and the Rams likely wished they had him over Gurley that game.

 

[Triumph]

lol, well played.

For my next prediction...

The Pats will sign a true threat at WR.

 

[PScottman]

We are horrible at trading our own players. Never get good value.

It's amazing how terrible the Patriots are isn't it? How do they draw any fans?

What other offers were on the table pray tell??

 

[Stu Pidassle]

Apparently they think Rham and JJ are ready and Harris will hold up.

Sony was a key player in the 2018 SB season. We don't win it without him. Good luck to him in LA.

In isolation this trade seems like the Pats got no return on their investment. While it would have been nice if he had been more successful on the field or the team got more in the trade, the Pats did get reasonable value from the Sony selection. 1st round draft choice = 3 years of service + 1 super bowl + 2022 draft picks + 2021 cap room/roster flexibility.

 

[Taco]

Is Stephenson doing well? I haven’t been able to watch the games, but if Sony is gone hopefully we have the depth.

 

[WaterfallJumper]

All right, @Triumph, I apologize for doubting you. Take a victory lap. You too, @ChrisR2223 -- you called it a month ago.

I liked Sony more than most, and I thought with his improved pass-catching and solid work in pass protection, he might have a shot at becoming our next third-down back in the future, but clearly the younger guys showed more versatility, power, or explosiveness. Let's hope this improves the versatility of our team and makes us less predictable.

I do think there's a solid chance Sony will play very well in LA this year. They seem to have a RB-friendly scheme.

 

[BobDigital]

I mention this as a possibility earlier. Not the only one. I think it is a good thing for the team and Michel. He wasn't going to get the touches he deserved here. He looked really good this preseason, but he was still behind Harris no matter what. They weren't going to pay him what he was worth next year. It was good to get value now, and have a very minimal loss. And it is good that Sony can get to another team to get more touches before his first big contract year. He deserves every chance to show his stuff.

Best thing for everyone. Good Luck Sony!

 

[Sicilian]

Is Stephenson doing well? I haven’t been able to watch the games, but if Sony is gone hopefully we have the depth.

He's done very well against backups and 3rd stringers. That's not to take anything away from him, because there are plenty of guys that DON'T look good, even in those situations, so he's doing what he should be doing. And in fairness to him, he's also running behind a lesser quality OL in those parts of the game too.

What's stood out to me is his agility and speed for a guy his size. He had a 91 yard TD run against Washington, which was basically uncontested within the first 10 yards due to the competition, but the fact that at 230+ pounds he was able to outrun everyone to the end zone is physically impressive. There's no doubt he has talent, it's just a matter of can he pick up the nuances of the position enough to not be a liability in some areas (pass protection, ball security, etc).

 

[203Pat]

His career stats show you are underrating him. Show me a JAG UDFA who has these kind of stats during their first 3 years.

535

2,292

4.3

14

Despite injuries and missed games, averaged 178 carries a year, and 764 yards, and 5 TDs a year. His only fault was health. When healthy he was a good back.

He was a first round pick who never hit 1000 yards and lost his job in his third season. We got similar production out of Lagarrette Blount and Benjarvus Green-Ellis and invested far less in them.

Sony couldn't stay healthy. He offered nothing as a pass catcher. He wasn't fast. He didn't make anyone miss. He wasn't powerful. He was just there. The guy was a JAG.

 

[Wozzy]

The last 3 rings look at the players, the key guys who were homegrown were from the Reese/O'Brien era. Or gotten externally. The cupboard kept getting bare. Losing Gronk. Edelman. No offensive talent also led Brady to leave.

Perpetually borrowing from future cap to “win now” is what led to empty shelves more than draft picks. The best GM’s hit on roughly 30% of their picks, expecting a ridiculously high success rate is unrealistic. If a few more picks worked out it wouldn’t have changed the fact they were in cap hell in 2020, they had dead cap left over from something like 72 players. 3 rings, the juice was worth the squeeze.

 

[PatriotSpy]

another bill draft bust.

 

[patchick]

Gave him away nearly

Traded for a bag of balls

We basically gave a low-mid tier starter away for nothing.

It's amazing how much more the Patriots' picks are worth than other teams'! When NE spends a mid/late pick on a kicker or punter, or packages one in a trade to move up, it's a shameful waste of an an incredibly valuable asset. But when they receive one from another team it's utterly worthless.

I like Michel but he was a major injury risk, in the last year of his contract, and wasn't even going to suit up here. Harris 1A, Stevenson for short yardage, White for 3rd downs, Bolden & Taylor for special teams...even if they had managed to find roster space for Michel he was on track to be a gameday inactive. And RB is a heavily devalued position leaguewide with few needy teams. Fair value IMO.

 

[Ross12]

IMO - a 4th rounder for 1 year of Michel is a good value. This also relieves the RB depth chart a lot - it tells me Stevenson is going to see meaningful snaps this year (which is uncommon!), JJ will see a good amount of time, and Bolden probably makes the team. I was pretty sure Bolden wouldn't make the cut if they kept Sony, which weakens Special Teams. This way you still have decent RB depth and you maintain more strength on ST too.

 

[Uptown]

 

[203Pat]

It's amazing how much more the Patriots' picks are worth than other teams'! When NE spends a mid/late pick on a kicker or punter, or packages one in a trade to move up, it's a shameful waste of an an incredibly valuable asset. But when they receive one from another team it's utterly worthless.

I like Michel but he was a major injury risk, in the last year of his contract, and wasn't even going to suit up here. Harris 1A, Stevenson for short yardage, White for 3rd downs, Bolden & Taylor for special teams...even if they had managed to find roster space for Michel he was on track to be a gameday inactive. And RB is a heavily devalued position leaguewide with few needy teams. Fair value IMO.

I agree. I think at some point over the last month I said Sony could potentially end up a healthy scratch on game days as long as Stevenson and Harris were healthy.