The Pats don't talk to the media, so don't expect confirmation on problems with Lloyd. I didn't say Lloyd's
quirks were unknown, however much as was the case with Haynesworth there have been occasions when the Pats believe a new environment can remedy defects when at times it cannot.
I cannot answer the unanswerable here. Nor can you. There are degrees of injuries. Try not listening to doctors and running on a sprained ankle and tell me how long it limits your abilities and takes to heal. That would be a long time with continued use. If he were injured, and the team wanted him at 70% because 70% of Amendola was better than the other options, then the injury may well have never healed. If 100% of Edelman became a more palatable option for Brady and thus Brady threw to him more, then that says nothing of a healthy Amendola.
If you walk to work with a groin injury, it hurts. If you are not Joe Somebody on the streets and have to make high speed cuts with that injury playing a sport at the highest level imaginable, then it will impact your ability to play to some degree. Unless you have played professional football, you cannot fathom how much that can affect your play. Stats, with all the variables that can make a nobody a star on a given day, do not answer that question at all as a player can look stellar because nobody is really defending him. The numbers could be the injury, could be the fit in the system, or could be a product of any number of scenarios. We will never know.
I do not doubt that he was injured and less than 100%. I just feel by week five very few, if any players are 100% so it is all about overcoming adversity. The great players overcome adversity better than the other players do, that is separates them. I also have to account for the medical staff in the NFL. They are the best of the best, and they have access to solutions to help manage pain. Will it eliminate it all together? Hell no, but it helps. Combine that with the adrenaline of the game itself and muscles loosen up once they warm up. I believe the groin limited his ability to practice with the team during the week, which I am sure hurt him, I do not think it was that big of an issue during the actual games. He had his best game on the day he suffered the injury, if pain was going to limit him it would have been that day, if would never have been worse in week 20 of the season than it was in week 1.
I do not think Amendola would have played if he were not capable. His agent and he would not have put him in the predicament where he was going to go out there and get himself released in the offseason; they knew that his contract relied heavily on his production. I also do not think the Patriots would be floating his name as a player for trade or release if they felt the groin injury limited his ability to perform.
I am not looking at 2014 only. I read Miguel's summary quickly and missed that, so I agree it is a $2.9 million savings this year. The net loss over 2014 and 2015 is still $4.8 million with a quick termination of the deal. How are things much better long term by that? If the Pats bail and Amendola stays healthy, then that is about a $5 million failure in decisionmaking. In a multi-year deal, a first year cut is a major decision that should only be made if there is little chance of success. The salary cap, now and in the future, has risen, so $2.9 million savings this year should not greatly affect the ability to offer JE a multi-year deal if that is the direction chosen.
I personally have no issue with Amendola remaining on the Patriots for 2014 and beyond. He is a solid contributor, seems to be a hard worker, and I really appreciated his willingness to give to the one fund. I do believe where there is smoke there is fire and these rumors are widespread; I received an NFL.com alert on my iPhone today that said “Patriots sour on Amendola”. So I have to assume the Patriots are moving in a different direction, and I do not see enough upside in Amendola to care if they do.
I would not keep Edelman and Amendola unless we did not have a salary cap. They are very, very similar players and having them both on the field limits this offense. They can run deep routes but neither one of them are respected as threats beyond 10 yards, they are played the way Rajon Rondo is played when he is outside the paint.
Amendola and Edelman combined to be targeted 234 times resulting in 159 receptions in 2013, and only 30 receptions were made on balls that traveled 11+ yards in the air.
And the fact they both can play slot does not mean they are redundant. They are not the same player, with pros and cons physically, so they can both be on the field as wide receivers, which is ultimately the position they play. The Pats are known for creatively using players, and for a team with 5 receiver sets that may use a RB as a receiver or a LB as a receiver, it is not necessarily a case of one or the other.
Other factors to keep in mind (stats include playoffs) –
- Amendola had 3 receptions inside the red zone.
- Amendola had 37 of his receptions on our side of the field, once we crossed the 50-yard line 20 receptions.
- Amendola had 7 receptions when the temperature was below 50f. Our two warmest games of the year were week 1, which was 80f, and week 13, which was 85f in those games Amendola had 23 catches combined.
- Amendola had 14 receptions on third down.
These are all things that Belichick is going to take into consideration.
