Wednesday Patriots Notebook 6/26: News and Notes
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Some Patriots news and notes for this morning:
Some people have talked about where exactly Rhamondre Stevenson falls among the league’s top running backs in terms of his talent, but if nothing else, his contract definitely has him among the league’s best.
NFL Network analyst Rich Eisen pointed out last week on The Rich Eisen Show following Stevenson’s extension that according to Spotrac, Stevenson’s 4-year $36 million deal has him coming in third in annual salary.
San Francisco’s Christian McCaffery comes in first in that category at $19 million, followed by Philadelphia’s Saquan Barkley ($12.6 million), and Green Bay’s Josh Jacobs ($12 million). Stevenson is next at $9 million, while Houston’s Joe Mixon comes in fourth at $8.5 million.
Eisen notes that what transpired this offseason is certainly unprecedented compared to the last three years.
“Eight running backs signed multi-year contracts worth at least $7 million per year on average this offseason,” said Eisen. “There were only five such contracts signed by running backs the previous three years combined.”
“So let me repeat that. From 2021 through 2023, only five running backs signed a contract with an annual per year average of $7 million plus, and we’ve seen eight this offseason alone.”
“Four of the largest contracts signed by an unrestricted free agent running back in NFL history were signed this offseason. Saquan, Josh Jacobs, and D’Andre Swift. The number one largest annual per year salary for an unrestricted free agent running back, so we’re not talking like an extension like McCaffery by his own team, where one running back switched teams and got paid the best ever. Saquan Barkley of $12.6 million APY is the second best.”
“You want to guess who’s number one on that list? Went from one team to the other, an annual per year average $13.1 million – I’ll give you a hint, it was 2019 – went from one team to another, running back highest annual per year pay handed to that free agent? Want to take a guess?”
“His name is Le’Veon Bell, when he went from the Steelers to the Jets. And everyone’s like, ‘Well, Le’Veon went ahead and stuck to his guns, and it worked out for him, and then the rest of everything else happened.”
As a result, this was clearly a big offseason. Especially considering the comparison to previous years after what was a soft offseason last spring.
“We’re seeing APYs being given out that are some of the highest that we’ve seen given out,” said Eisen. “And we’ve seen the number of contracts in just this offseason dwarf the same number of contracts over the previous three years combined for running backs.”
Former running back Damien Harris talked about the frustration with that market recently in a podcast with The Athletic’s Robert Mays, which saw him come away with just a one-year deal after he tested the market following the 2022 campaign and ultimately signed with Buffalo ahead of the 2023 season.
Harris and the rest of his peers expected the phone to ring with what they thought would be an offseason that “reset” the market. It didn’t happen.
“I remember last offseason when I was going through free agency and nobody was really signing multi-year deals, nobody was really getting high-level extensions. I was even talking to my agent like, ‘What’s going on?’ Because it was such a surprise because I remember that was supposed to be the class that was supposed to reset the running back market,” said Harris. “Everybody was looking at my class that was coming up in free agency. This is going to be the class that reshapes the market for the running back position. They’re going to get guys paid more. They’re going to get guys more guaranteed money, more extended deals, so on and so forth. And it just wasn’t happening. Because, obviously my phone wasn’t ringing.”
“And so I was in touch with my agent like, ‘What’s going on?’ He’s like, ‘Bro, nobody’s phones are ringing because just the market is just not doing what everybody thought it was going to do.’ And it was the weirdest thing, for a lack of better words. I didn’t really describe it as that at the time. I thought it was a bunch of bulls**t. But it was just the strangest thing because you got all these guys who were expected to do it.”
Harris admitted that while the receivers certainly get a lot of attention and, as a result, big contracts, he feels running backs play a key role in that success given the dynamic of how those players open things up for teams’ offenses.
“You designate two guys to him,” said Harris, referring to a team’s leading wideout. “Try to eliminate them from the other half of the field, and that’s it. But you got such a dynamic player at running back who can not only run the ball, can catch out of the backfield, can block, can draw defenders in play action.”
“You literally have to base your entire game plan around this guy. So whenever you think about it in terms like that, why are running backs so undervalued?”
That’s where Eisen agrees. He feels that when things hit crunch time, it’s generally not the receivers that teams turn to in big moments.
It’s the running backs.
“We’re seeing a devaluing of the position financially,” said Eisen. “But when rubber meets roads during the games, these are the guys they turn to. Not the wide receivers. [They] just don’t. These are the guys they turn to.”
The Patriots have announced their 2024 training camp practice schedule, with quite a few dates initially being released by the team on Tuesday.
That’s a stark change from past years when it felt like a lot of it was TBD, and the details typically weren’t revealed at the level that we saw yesterday.
The club announced the schedule for the first several weeks, with the team set to hold sessions over the following spans:
July 24, 25, 26
July 28, 29, 30
Aug 1, 2, 3
Aug 5, 6
Aug 12, 13 (8/13 – Joint practice with PHI)
Gates will open at 10 am, with practice beginning at 11 am.
As always, the team encourages people to check the club’s official website for any changes before heading to the stadium.
While it might be a surprise, seeing these appear was a reminder that it won’t belong until it all gets started.
For now, everyone will anxiously be awaiting that July 24th date when the team hits the field in preparation of the upcoming 2024 regular season.
ESPN’s Aaron Schatz recently had a suggestion for the Patriots and the rest of the NFL in terms of who he believes should be a “final move” for each club to sign ahead of training camp. The name for New England was somewhat of a surprise, with former Patriots CB Justin Bethel being his choice. “Let’s suggest a depth cornerback who can also help on special teams and bring back Bethel, a former Patriot who spent the past two seasons in Miami,” writes Schatz. “Right now, the fourth cornerback is former Raven Shaun Wade, and the fifth is sixth-round rookie Marcellas Dial, so New England could use some help there.” One name mentioned by many has been Stephon Gilmore, who remains a player to watch. Although, in his piece, Schatz has Gilmore as a potential option in Houston. … ESPN’s Mila Kines also recently gave a ranking of her top five teams she believes has the top defense in the NFL. New England came in at #4, with Cleveland (1), the Jets (2), Dallas (3) and Baltimore (5) rounding out that list. “In my mind, they are the best tackling defense in the entire NFL,” she said via Mike Reiss. … Former Patriots defensive back Hank Poteat, will see his son soon head off to the college ranks and carry on the tradition at cornerback. Poteat recently committed to Tennessee, which is also the same team that Christian Harrison – son of former Patriot Rodney Harrison – also plays for. Both Poteat and Harrison were former teammates, having played together as part of New England’s Super Bowl 39 winning team. Hank Poteat remains a part of the sport and is currently Iowa State’s cornerbacks coach.
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Defensive rankings… so Dallas’s D is in the top 5 on a stats/regular season basis, but they play a smaller front 7 designed for pass rush/penetration. But then playoff time comes and they have to play teams like SF or beat Philly for the NFC east crown and they can’t stop the run against solid teams that can play with run/pass balance. The Jan football often recoils back to good old fashioned trench work yielding the winners. Run/pass balance and being able to play that game on both side of the ball are key as your playing playoff teams. So… Read more »