Some news and notes for this morning:
Patriots Extend Parker, Hopkins Fallout
There was some surprising news on Wednesday night as Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported that the New England Patriots had reached a 3-year deal with a wide receiver, albeit it wasn’t the name people expected to see.
The team reportedly extended veteran receiver DeVante Parker after the wideout received a 3-year, $33-million deal from the club.
No details have become available yet on his contract, but the fact the move came at all surprised a lot of people and it likely changes the outlook in terms of what dominoes might fall regarding DeAndre Hopkins.
Parker was potentially thought to be the odd man out given his style of play and some of the struggles he had last season. The veteran even seemed to feel like he might have been in peril, with Parker not exactly sounding excited about the prospect of Hopkins joining the team as he spoke to reporters recently.
Instead, it now leaves some to wonder if, should the club land Hopkins, it could instead be Kendrick Bourne who could be the one at risk.
NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry talked about this Wednesday night following the news.
“My instinct is this might knock his cap number down for 2023, which was about $6 million,” said Perry of Parker. “So it could be a little bit lower, depending on how they structure this thing. Maybe it frees some space up for them to make a move, maybe even at the same position, maybe, maybe.”
“But it also does guarantee his spot if they make a move. So maybe there was some discontent on the side of Parker and his camp saying, ‘You guys are bringing in DeAndre Hopkins, we’re working hard for you here, we thought we were going to have a big role here, are we sure we’re part of the plan here?’ and the Patriots are saying, ‘Yeah, you are,’ and this is how they show it.”
Perry then went on to talk about how Bourne might be affected.
“I would wonder, if they do show a little bit of a commitment here to DeVante Parker and say, ‘You’re part of the plan moving forward here, don’t worry if we get Hopkins,’ I wonder if Kendrick Bourne should be worried,” said Perry. “Because I look at the rest of that room and I say, ‘Well, JuJu Smith-Schuster ain’t going anywhere, they just gave him money as a free agent. Tyquan Thornton’s a second-round pick, there’s no reason for him to go anywhere, he’s still cheap. Now that you’ve given money to Parker, is he the ‘odd man out’ quote, unquote, in that receiver room if they end up landing Hopkins?”
Mike Giardi, who was also on with Perry during the segment, sort of agreed that it’s a surprising situation that might leave Bourne in a tough spot should the club ultimately sign Hopkins.
“This is a situation last year where your name came out there quite a bit if you were Kendrick Bourne because of a lack of production, lack of playing time for him last year, unhappiness with the coaching staff, they were unhappy with him, and now, a relatively uneventful spring,” said Giardi.
“While I still think he’s really talented, I still think he’s the twitchiest guy they have in their wide receiver group in terms of that in and out break stuff, feels like he’s sort of the odd man out right now.”
Mills and Jones Stand By Embattled CB
As Jack Jones continues dealing with his legal situation, his teammates appear ready to let things play out ahead of training camp.
ESPN’s Mike Reiss asked Jalen Mills and Jonathan Jones about their teammate at the end of a press conference during an event by Fanatics, with the two players among those who took part in a local ‘Merch Madness’ fan gear giveaway at Gillette Stadium this week.
Both players offered little, although Jonathan Jones did say he’ll support the second-year cornerback as the process plays out.
“Kind of leave that to the coaching staff and the organization,” said Mills. “Just let them handle it.”
“Same,” said Jones. “Just support him and let whatever happens work itself out.”
The team hasn’t said anything further regarding the incident since their initial statement, with Jack Jones next reportedly facing an August 18th court date.
Sea Conditions Not Cause For Mallett’s Death
While some media outlets following Ryan Mallett’s death had suggested riptides had played a role in the accident, apparently that’s not the case.
The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office has since clarified what happened, releasing a statement that said claimed there had been ‘widespread media misinformation’ about the conditions in the water at the time of Mallett’s death, he did not die in a riptide.’
While the flag colors between June 14th and June 25th ‘were either Single Red or Double Red due to large surf and life-threatening rip currents’, that apparently wasn’t the case on June 27th.
On that day, according to the Destin Fire Control District, the ‘flag condition was yellow. A yellow flag indicates medium hazard, moderate surf and/or currents.’ The District also said in their statement on its Facebook page, ‘There were no rip currents present in the area in which we responded to Ryan Mallett.’
According to Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office investigators, prior to the accident, Mallett was apparently trying to swim to a second sandbar, which was about 150 feet off shore.
He then ‘began struggling,’ and was not breathing when he was pulled from the water. He was later pronounced dead at the Destin emergency room.
The Patriots along with Bill Belichick and former teammate, Tom Brady, each reacted to the news following his passing.
“The New England Patriots are deeply saddened to learn of the sudden and unexpected passing of former quarterback Ryan Mallett,” the club said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with the Mallett family, his former teammates and all who are mourning his loss.”
“I am extremely saddened by Ryan’s tragic passing,” wrote Belichick. “My thoughts and prayers are with his family and the many people whose lives he touched.”
“We lost a great man,” wrote Brady. “Thank you for everything Ryan.”
“Praying for the Mallett family and all their loved ones tonight.”
Mallett was selected by the New England Patriots in the the 3rd round (74th overall) in the 2011 NFL Draft, and played with Brady and the Patriots for three seasons before being traded by New England to the Houston Texans at the end of the 2014 preseason.
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
