Patriots News 3-10, Patriots Make Solid Moves, The Dynasty?
(PHOTO: Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 6 minutes
Posted Under: Patriots Commentary
(PHOTO: Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 6 minutes
New England Patriots > Patriots Blog
(PHOTO: Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports) Good morning, and here is your Patriots news and notes for March 10.
The docuseries “The Dynasty” really continues to raise the question of whether there was a dynasty. If you were dropped on Earth after spending 20 years in outer space, or maybe the place formerly known as the Soviet Union, and watched this without knowing any of the subject matter, what would you think?
Right in the first episode, instead of the story of the underdogs shocking the world, we have to see the questions levied at Belichick that he was wrong in keeping Brady over Bledsoe, but it somehow worked out for him. Super Bowls 2-3 were glossed over like a kid trying to hide a failing test from his parents.
The 21-game winning streak…nada, nicht, nuttin’ to see here. Oh yeah, “it has been covered before.” That is what made “The Dynasty,” or did we miss something? Then the Spygate fiasco gets an entire episode…hmm. Wasn’t that covered ad nauseam before? Then the Aaron Hernandez episode, where it was subliminally suggested that Belichick was somehow responsible for the murder of Odin Lloyd. Belichick is clearly painted as the bad guy here, and despite them tell each other that they love one another after a Super Bowl win, the seeds are already planted for the breakup between the two.
And we can’t forget the Deflategate trumped-up (pardon the pun) lie that they went at in great detail but left out small tidbits. First, the Patriots won the game 45-7 and outscored Indy 28-0 in the second half AFTER the referees reinflated the game balls.
Second, no mention is made of the Indianapolis game balls being underinflated. The Ideal Gas Law is played off as a childish excuse rather than the science that debunked the entire case of the NFL. But that was left out. The episode was finally played out as a Tom Brady tour de force, which ended with the Patriots beating Seattle in the Super Bowl. And the amazing comeback against Atlanta in another Super Bowl.
One would think that this docuseries was for Patriots fans, but the way it is presented suggests that it was made for the fans of 31 other teams with an axe to grind for losing to New England so often during the Belichick/Brady era.
A former writer for Boston Sports Media Watch, a longtime great site that once wrote about the local media by Bruce Allen, made a great point in a post on Twitter/X with his thoughts on how it was presented.
“The Dynasty the book was a great read, very enjoyable and fair. Unlike the documentary. Very disappointed in @authorjeff he either didn’t obtain or didn’t exercise editorial controls to capture the spirit and themes of the book. Instead we got a sensationalized, unfair doc.”
Perhaps the best quote of the episode was from Scott Pioli, who had left New England and was then working for the Falcons. See below for more.
Quick Hitters For the Patriots and NFL News:
Mac Jones: The Patriots QB appears to be on the move shortly. The Athletic’s Ian Rapoport posted a story that the Patriots are fielding calls from teams regarding a trade. Jones was drafted in 2021 with the 15th overall pick and had a very good rookie season, passing for more than 3800 yards and 22 TDs, leading the Patriots to the playoffs.
Since then, Jones has spiraled downward due to revolving and inadequate ( in 2022) coaching, poor overall personnel, and his crushing mistakes of trying to do too much. Now, it appears a fresh start elsewhere would be best for both Jones and the team.
Kyle Dugger: The Patriots have placed Dugger on the transition tag, which will pay him $13.815 million for one year. He will still hit free agency, but the transition tag allows the Patriots the right of first refusal.
This allows the Patriots to either match a potential offer from another team or negotiate a long-term extension for Dugger on their own.
Tyrone Wheatley Jr.: The Patriots have resigned the ERFA tackle to a one-year $915,000 contract. He was traded to the Patriots for Pierre Strong at the end of training camp and was active for the season’s first two games. He didn’t play an offensive snap but did contribute a bit on special teams.
Alex Austin: The Patriots have resigned the ERFA cornerback to a one-year $915,000 contract. He spent TC with the Bills, was released, picked up by the Texans, and then released again in November. The Patriots picked him up, and he played a relatively significant role down the stretch.
He appeared in five games (one start) and leapfrogged others to garner 36 percent of the defensive snaps.
Patriots 4th & 2 Podcast: Last week, we discussed the latest news from Foxboro in our PatsFans.com podcast.
Derek Havens and I discussed the NFL Combine, Eliot Wolf, the upcoming NFL Draft, and The Dynasty series. Please check it out. We’ll be back this week to talk about the beginning of free agency.
Russ Francis/Chuck Fairbanks: The former Patriot tight end and head coach should be in the Patriots team Hall of Fame, and the fact that Francis isn’t in is an absolute travesty. Francis and the Raiders’ Dave Casper changed the game with how teams used the tight end position. This will be discussed in our Sunday posts until it happens. Casper is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Francis’ numbers stand up well against Casper’s, yet he isn’t even in the team’s HOF.
The Patriots brought back one of their most important free agents on Friday, signing TE Hunter Henry to a three-year contract worth $27 million. Another $3 million is tied up in incentives, which could turn his deal into a $30 million deal.
His average APY is now $9 million, down a bit from the $12.5 million when he signed with the team in 2021. His production was never quite what was expected, but that had more to do with play-calling and QB play than Henry’s ability. The Patriots’ top three TEs from 2023 were all free agents, and in resigning, Henry, the best of the lot, answered a big need heading into 2024.
Henry has been a reliable and productive red-zone target for the Patriots, scoring nine TDs in 2021 and six in 2023. He is well-respected by his teammates and was elected a captain last season.
Henry has done well, mostly in the traditional “Y” tight-end role. He runs good routes, is a good blocker, and can use his body to box out defenders. Whoever is the quarterback for the Patriots in 2024, they’ll need a reliable, productive TE to work in Alex Van Pelt’s offense. Resigning Henry was a very good first move.
New head coach Jerod Mayo highlighted Henry’s leadership both on and off the field as a big factor in wanting to keep him in Foxboro.
“You look at the offensive side of the ball, however you want to slice it,” Mayo said in January to WEEI, “whoever the quarterback is … has to have some type of leadership ability … David Andrews, great leader on the offensive side of the ball as well. Hunter Henry, great leader on the offensive side of the ball.”
According to ESPN’s Field Yates, the Patriots have signed Okorafor, the former Pittsburgh Steelers tackle, to a one-year $4 million contract with incentives that could reach $8.25 million.
Okorafor, who will be 27 this year, has played in 77 games in the NFL, with 59 starts. The Steelers selected him in the third Round of the 2018 NFL Draft. He was a fixture at RT until he spoke disparagingly about the Steelers’ offensive coaches following a loss to Jacksonville in 2023. Rookie Broderick Jones replaced him, and he only played a limited number of snaps, mainly as a 6th offensive lineman down the stretch.
He was charged with allowing 1.5 sacks in his seven starts and is considered a below-average run blocker but a good pass protector. With Michael Onwenu as a free agent, Okorafor will be a very good depth signing with the possibility of earning the starting position at right tackle. Okorafor is 6’6, 320, and is athletic for his size.
With Onwenu and Trent Brown both free agents this spring, Okorafor’s signing brings a depth of experience to a group that underperformed in 2023. The tackle group currently consists of Okorafor, Calvin Anderson, Conor McDermott, Vederian Lowe, Tyrone Wheatley Jr., and Andrew Stueber, who are under contract for 2024.
Free agency begins in earnest on March 13 at 4:00 p.m. The Patriots have plenty of cash to sign players to fill their roster holes prior to the draft. According to our local salary cap guru and good friend Miguel Benzan, aka @Patscap, the Patriots’ salary cap is currently at $84,611,056.
Weekly Picks… See You in September:
2023 Season 178—94
2022 Season: 178—92—2
2021 Season: 183—88—1
2020 Season: 169—86—1
2019 Season: 162—93—1
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“We had a suite for the entire personnel department, and all the folks I’m working with are high-fiving… you know, out of control, but I was a mess. I felt this nervousness, and as I’m sitting there, someone slaps me on the back, and he says, ‘C’mon Scott, lighten up. You’ve got to enjoy this moment.’ And I just erupted.
“And I whipped around and said, ‘You effin’ people just don’t get it. That friggin’ guy, #12 across the field, is Freddy effin’ Krueger. He’s coming back, and he’s going to get a bunch of us. I just hope he doesn’t get us all. ”
Patriots former Vice President of Player Personnel Scott Pioli, who worked for the Falcons during Super Bowl LI, explains why he was still nervous despite being up 28-3 midway through the third quarter: Tom Brady was on the opposing sideline.
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“Talent sets the floor; Character sets the ceiling.” Bill Belichick
Follow me on Twitter @SteveB7SFG or email me at [email protected]
Listen to our Patriots 4th and 2 podcasts on Apple and YouTube as Russ Goldman, Derek Havens, and myself from PatsFans.com discuss the latest Patriots news and game analysis.
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