{"id":5028,"date":"2016-02-20T10:15:16","date_gmt":"2016-02-20T15:15:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/?p=5028"},"modified":"2016-02-20T11:32:19","modified_gmt":"2016-02-20T16:32:19","slug":"patriots-free-agency-outlook-tight-ends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2016\/02\/20\/patriots-free-agency-outlook-tight-ends\/","title":{"rendered":"Patriots Free Agency Outlook, Tight Ends"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Patriots are set to enter the free agency phase of the 2016 off-season and we\u2019ll explore some of the biggest needs of the team moving forward. And some of the names of their own free agents as well as some of their potential targets.<\/p>\n

Next up on the free agency positional list: Tight Ends<\/strong><\/p>\n

Team Need: Medium<\/strong><\/p>\n

Returning players: <\/strong>Rob Gronkowski, Michael Williams, Scott Chandler, A.J. Derby (IR)<\/p>\n

Free Agents<\/strong>: none<\/p>\n

The Patriots entered 2015 with a pair of big tight ends in Rob Gronkowski and Scott Chandler and the hope that the \u201cTwin Towers\u201d would be able to improve on an already potent offense. QB Tom Brady worked with the two tirelessly over the spring and summer, as they worked on getting both involved, especially in the red zone.<\/p>\n

Gronkowski was entering 2015 healthy for the first time in a few years and it was thought the addition of Chandler would be a difficult one to stop. Things didn\u2019t work out that way. Gronkowski had a fantastic season and caught 72 passes for 1176 yards, good for a stellar 16.3-yards per catch average and 11 touchdowns. He battled injuries late in the year but was Brady\u2019s go-to guy for much of the season.<\/p>\n

Chandler had a disappointing 2015, his first with the team. He caught only 23 passes for 259 yards and four touchdowns. After he had his best two statistical games against the Broncos and Eagles with Gronk out, he didn\u2019t catch a single down the stretch and was relegated to the 3rd<\/sup> TE spot behind blocker Michael Williams.<\/p>\n

Now the team has to decide whether to bring back Chandler who also battled injuries last season for a second go around and cover his cap hit of $3 million-dollars or cut him for a savings of $2.05 million. The value for that production says no but like Brandon LaFell, they\u2019ll have to ask themselves if his lack of production was tied to not being completely healthy or was is just a poor fit?<\/p>\n

After Gronkowski, the receiving options currently on the roster are limited to very little if they cut loose Chandler. Williams is a blocking tight end and Derby, a converted quarterback was never completely healthy and is pretty much an unknown quantity at this point.<\/p>\n

If they delve into free agency here are a couple of names that could be of interest\u2026<\/p>\n

Benjamin Watson<\/strong><\/p>\n

Watson should be a familiar name to New England fans. He spent six seasons with the Patriots catching 167 passes and 20 touchdowns before leaving as a free agent to the Cleveland Browns prior to the 2010 season.<\/p>\n

Fans will always remember the speed he showed chasing down Denver CB Champ Bailey from the far side of the field during the Divisional Playoff Game there in 2006. A very athletic tight end, Watson never really had the impact that was projected for him during his time here.<\/p>\n

He had three productive years in Cleveland with the Browns catching 154 passes for 1674 yards and eight touchdowns before moving over to the New Orleans Saints. After two sub-par seasons, Watson had a re-birth with the Saints and Drew Brees in 2015 catching 74 passes for 825 yards, both career highs and six touchdowns. He was one of Brees\u2019 most trusted targets and now is a free agent.<\/p>\n

At 35, Watson isn\u2019t going to command a ton of money and may decide to return to New Orleans to finish out his career where he seems to have found a niche in their passing game. But a return for the big guy from Georgia is an intriguing one where he started his NFL career.<\/p>\n

Watson has always been a solid player not only on the field but off it as well, being a finalist for the Walter Payton Man of the Year award while in New Orleans. He was a favorite of owner Bob Kraft and traveled with the owner to Israel on one of Kraft\u2019s many trips there to promote the game of football and tour the religious sites.<\/p>\n

Watson knows the offense, although much has changed in the six years that he\u2019s moved on, the terminology remains the same and he\u2019d pick it back up seamlessly. As a second tight end behind Gronkowski, he\u2019d prolong his career a bit and perhaps end things where they all began.<\/p>\n

Next up, a big man from South Carolina who just was released\u2026<\/p>\n

Jared Cook<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cook was just released by the Rams who, fresh off their move to L.A. have begun a purge of their high priced veterans. Also released were MLB James Laurinaitis and DE Chris Long.<\/p>\n

Cook, 28, was originally drafted in the 3rd<\/sup> round (89th<\/sup> overall) of the 2009 NFL Draft. He was due to cost $8.3 million-dollars against the salary cap in 2016 and he\u2019ll carry $2.6 million in dead money for the Rams which should factor in his next deal.<\/p>\n

Cook caught just 39 passes for 484 yards and no touchdowns in 2015. For a player with his cap hit, the value for the Rams just wasn\u2019t there to retain the 6\u20195 veteran tight end on their move to California. Now he\u2019ll hit the market and look for a good fit elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Would New England be a good fit? It is debatable, but Cook is a good receiver, albeit with poor blocking skills and as a backup to Gronkowski or a 2nd<\/sup> option at the tight end position, he could be another intriguing option. Whether Cook would agree to being the second fiddle to Gronk is another matter.<\/p>\n

But with Williams entrenched as a blocking tight end and with Devlin back in the fold this season, Cook could be utilized strictly as a receiver and his size along with Gronkowski could make for some interesting matchups.<\/p>\n

As for money, they could work out a one-year, prove it type deal with the Patriots and give him a chance to play himself right back into a good contract. His guaranteed money from the Rams would make the move easily doable and the exposure he could get being in New England could be used as a teaser. That and the chance to go deep into the playoffs every season is tempting.<\/p>\n

Next up is a player woefully under-utilized in 2015\u2026<\/p>\n

Dwayne Allen<\/strong>
\nAllen is a complete tight end that can block as well as catch and has been very productive with the Colts since being drafted in 2012 from Clemson.<\/p>\n

The Fayetteville, NC native has 91 career catches for 1045 yards (11.5 avg), and 13 touchdowns while a member of the Indianapolis offense. He was their go-to guy in his rookie season with 45 catches and three touchdowns but his problem has been staying on the field and staying healthy.<\/p>\n

He missed nearly all of the 2013 season and has played in 13 games both in 2014 and this past season. Due to his injury issues, the team has moved to Coby Fleener as the go-to tight end in the passing game and now the Colts have decisions to make as both are free agents.<\/p>\n

Last season the Colts used Allen, much to his chagrin as strictly a blocking tight end and he had only 16 catches for 109 yards and a touchdown on just 29 targets. The year before he was targeted 50 times and 29 catches for 395 yards and eight touchdowns. Of his 29 catches in 2014, 24 of them went for first downs. With the Colts signing blocking tight end Cameron Clear from the Steelers practice squad, that likely signifies that\u00a0Allen will be moving on.<\/p>\n

Allen would be a versatile player where like Gronkowski, he can block and catch and it isn\u2019t an either\/or scenario. He\u2019d be a nice fit in the Patriots offense, helping out in the running game and being a nice secondary target from Brady in the passing game.<\/p>\n

The only issue would be money, how much he\u2019d want to come to play in New England and if he can come to grips with being the second tight end on the roster.<\/p>\n

Options are there:<\/strong> The ball is in the Patriots court; They can opt to keep Chandler and renegotiate his deal and hope that with another season here, his familiarity with the offense as well as improved health would make a big difference. But if they cut ties with him, these are a couple of free agents that could make a difference.<\/p>\n

If they opt for the draft, there are a couple of names of what is admittedly a weak class for tight ends that may be available in the middle rounds to keep your eyes on. We\u2019ll have more on these players as we move closer to the draft; but they include: Jerrell Adams<\/strong>, 6\u20195, 245-pound tight end from South Carolina who played well despite poor play from the QBs. Bryce Williams<\/strong>, 6\u20196, 260, from East Carolina and Tyler Higbee<\/strong>, 6\u20195, 250, a converted wide receiver from Western Kentucky.<\/p>\n

Follow me on Twitter\u00a0<\/em>@SteveB7SFG<\/em><\/a>\u00a0or email me at\u00a0<\/em>stevebpatsfans@gmail.com<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Listen to our\u00a0<\/em>Patriots 4th<\/sup>\u00a0and 2<\/em><\/a>\u00a0podcast on blog talk radio as the writers Russ Goldman, Derek Havens and I from\u00a0<\/em>PatsFans.com<\/em><\/a>\u00a0discuss the latest Patriots news Wednesdays at 12 noon.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Now the team has to decide whether to bring back Chandler who also battled injuries last season for a second go around and cover his cap hit of $3 million-dollars or cut him for a savings of $2.05 million. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":2897,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,10],"tags":[185,460,823,806,799,48,865,866,870,868,867,869,44,70,8,803,863,201,117,864,13,871],"class_list":["post-5028","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-patriots-commentary","category-patriots-news","tag-2015-nfl-season","tag-2015-patriots","tag-2016-free-agents","tag-2016-nfl-off-season","tag-2016-patriots-roster","tag-53-man-roster-projection","tag-a-j-derby","tag-benjamin-watson","tag-bryce-williams","tag-dwayne-allen","tag-jared-cook","tag-jerrell-adams","tag-new-england-patriots","tag-nfl","tag-patriots","tag-patriots-free-agents","tag-patriots-tight-ends","tag-pittsburgh-steelers","tag-rob-gronkowski","tag-scott-chandler-michael-williams","tag-tom-brady","tag-tyler-higbee"],"yoast_head":"\nPatriots 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