Chandler Jones:

Chris Long interacts with fans over Twitter to discuss his new jersey number.

McClellin was originally drafted by the Bears in the first round of the 2012 draft from Boise State with the 19th overall and used as a defensive end. He was reportedly on the Patriots radar in the draft but the Bears selected him two picks before New England selected Chandler Jones.

Adding Long was a master stroke by Bill Belichick as within hours he was able to swing a trade for DE Chandler Jones to the Arizona Cardinals for a 2nd round draft pick as well as G Jonathan Cooper and then add Long to replace Jones on the roster.

Chandler Jones thanks Patriots organization following trade to Cardinals, teammates react on social media.

Regardless, the trade is a win-win for both teams, Arizona is looking for a pass rusher having Dwight Freeney now a free agent and the Patriots have questions with the offensive line and have lost their 1st round draft pick with Deflategate sanctions.

Brady was signed through the 2017 season and was set to make $10 million in 2017 and $9 million this year. His salary cap hit of $15 million will most certainly come down now as a result.

According to Adam Schefter and Dianna Russini from ESPN, Brady and the Patriots signed a two-year extension that will have him in a Pats uniform thru the 2019 season.

The talk of trading Jimmy Garoppolo has been broached by several writers recently and while it’s an interesting topic, until the battle against the league is ultimately put to bed between Tom Brady and the NFL, it’s just too risky of a move.  

In this episode, we started by discussing the latest in Patriots news and speculation. After that we graded and analyzed the Patriots defense for the 2015 season, and then looked at each unit looking towards the 2016 season.

Patriots lineback Jerod Mayo announces his retirement from the NFL in an instagram posting, teammates reflect on career.

That shows his versatility, besides filling in for Jones at defensive end, he can play either the SAM or WILL linebacker positions and is a core special teamer. He sprung Danny Amendola for a big punt return against the Chiefs.

The big 6’4, 325-pound lineman is versatile, a Bill Belichick staple and can play anywhere from 0-technique to a 5-technique. His ability to stop the run and collapse the pocket were big parts of the Patriots defense down the stretch.

The Patriots currently have 74 players on the roster, the 53-man unit that faced Denver in the AFC Championship and 21 players who are on IR. Of those 74, the team has 11 un-restricted free agents, four restricted free agents and three exclusive rights free agents

Tom Brady with both Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski in the lineup is 22-1 in his last 23 games. In those contests, Brady has completed 67.3 percent of his passes for 7322 yards, 64 TDs and just 13 INTs for a passer rating of 107.

Brady in the postseason has faced the #1 defense three times, all of them on the road. The Patriots are 3-0 in those games and in all three instances went on to win the Super Bowl