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Post by patriotsk1d on Feb 26, 2016 16:36:53 GMT -5
Kenneth Dixon and Jonathan Williams are two RB's to watch for in the 2nd or 3rd round. Both guys would be excellent scheme fits in New England and have all the physical tools that the Pats usually like in RB's.
Bigger issue in 2015 with our running game was more to do with the offensive line then the RB's. Blount isn't any special, but he will look good with the right oline and role. Dion Lewis looked great because he is a rare talent and his recovery has him on pace to play week one.
The return of Dante Scarnecchia is a much bigger deal than anyone realizes. Should be huge for the development of Stork, Mason, Jackson, and Andrews. Cannon also played consistently well with Scarnecchia.
Pats have yet to begin negotiations with their upcoming free agents, or any restructures/extensions with current players. We probably wont hear anything until next week. Amendola and Cannon are the most likely contracts to be redone, and something will need to happen by March 9th.
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Post by patriotsk1d on Feb 29, 2016 11:07:13 GMT -5
Brady has agreed to a two year extension. The expectation is that the deal will lower his 2015 cap hit, while giving him more cash up front.
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Post by patriotsk1d on Feb 29, 2016 11:11:42 GMT -5
And while there has been a lot of local Jimmy G trade talk recently, I do not see that happening. He is under contract for two more seasons, has a 900,000 cap hit, and is a very good backup QB. Most likely best case scenario is they would get a second rounder for him, maybe a late first rounder if a team was desperate. But they would still have to replace him with a quality backup, which through the draft would generally take a 2nd rounder minimum and through free agency would take 3-5 million. Either way it isn't worth it at the moment.
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Post by patriotsk1d on Feb 29, 2016 11:14:57 GMT -5
Brady's deals also set the maximum offers to other Patriots players.
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Post by patriotsk1d on Feb 29, 2016 13:53:43 GMT -5
Pats have 13.6 million in cap space before Brady's extension. My guess is that number will climb to between 18-20 million, but we might not know the exact number for some time. Unclear when/if Pats will announce his extension.
Hightower should be the next Patriot to get extended. Doing so can lock him up long term, while lowering his 2015 cap hit. That free space should then be applied towards a Collins extension which will likely significantly increase his 2015 cap hit.
I am not entirely sure what the Pats will do with Chandler Jones, but my guess is they will keep him at 8 million this year and let him walk in 2017. It is way cheaper to lock up Collins/Hightower than Jones(do to the money LB's get vs DE's), and those two are the far superior players.
My guess is Hightower, Collins, and Butler all get extensions this offseason and Jones walks in 2017 netting a 3rd round compensatory pick.
Next move that should happen is a Amendola restructure. He is currently our highest paid offensive player(other than Brady) and that likely won't fly as he is the number 3 offensive weapon. He showed last season he was an extremely valuable number 2 receiver and led the NFL in punt return average. His 5 million dollar cap hit would be acceptable for most teams as the number 2 receiver, but I don't see the Pats paying him more than Edelman, which would be the case if nothing happened. Pats worked it out last year with him and I am sure it will happen again. Expect a straight forward restructure that cuts his cap hit down to 3 million, or an extension that does better than that.
Only way I see the Pats adding a contributer at the receiver position is by free agency or trade. The guys that will be around in the 2nd or 3rd round don't offer a ton of value and will end up being the typical project receiver that doesn't work out here. Pats have shown heavy interest in Percy Harvin every time he has been available and that is where I would start. He should come cheap and would have a chance to fix the direction his career is headed in New England. Mohamed Sanu is the next guy I would look at.
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Post by patriotsk1d on Mar 2, 2016 16:57:37 GMT -5
Pats release LaFell and Chandler. Not what I predicted, but not a surprise.
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Post by patriotsk1d on Mar 2, 2016 17:00:45 GMT -5
I guarantee there will be big changes to the scheme this season. Just a question of who and how we aquire them.
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Post by patriotsk1d on Mar 2, 2016 22:19:28 GMT -5
Pats cap space is now at 17.5 million, not including Brady's extension.
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Post by patriotsk1d on Mar 3, 2016 13:37:25 GMT -5
Chandler was waived with a failed physical designation. Not really surprising, considering he looked no where close to healthy after the regular season game against Denver.
LaFell being waived is pretty much proof the Pats will be completely overhauling the receiving group/scheme. They could have kept him until preseason as they didn't save any additional money by cutting him now.
If history repeats itself the Pats will go out and make a big move this offseason. After the Pats two losses to Peyton in the postseason they made a major overhaul of the receiver position, had one of the best offenses ever(added Moss/Welker) and did the same with the secondary(added Revis, Browner, Chung).
Arian Foster would be a good fit in New England if he is looking to win and will sign a contract close to the minimum. I still expect the Pats will add Forte, but could see a scenario where they add both guys.
Pats are going to need to do something with the outside receiver position, as right now Aaron Dobson is literally the only "X" receiver on this team.
Alan Branch, Danny Amendola, and Marcus Cannon are the next potential Patriot cuts/restructured contracts. I expect Amendola will redo his deal again and stick around in 2016. Branch has a team option which I could see being declined if the team resigns Hicks. Cannon is making way too much money for his 2015 performance, but he was a consistently solid tackle with Scar as the oline coach.
Rishard Mathews and Mohamed Sanu are the most likely receiver additions IMO. Both would be good fits in this scheme and the dollars should make sense. Pats have opted for the free agent receivers like this before(LaFell and Lloyd). Have also traded for bigger name players like Moss and Ochocinco.
Pats currently stand at 17.5 million in cap space. While we haven't seen Brady's extension numbers yet, most likely this number will jump 3-8 million in cap space. So expect the Pats to have a minimum of 20.5 million in space at the moment.
I expect Hightower and Sheard will see contract extensions this offseason, but it isn't a pressing matter. Both deals would lower their 2016 cap hits and combined would likely save about 8 million in space. Restructuring Amendola will save between 2-3 million in cap room. So it isn't too far off to say the Pats could be in the mid 30 million range if they take care of some of these deals this week. I would expect some of that money would then go to Butler and Collins extensions, which would like increase their cap hits by a combined 5-8 million. So realistically if the Pats take care of all of their extensions/restructuring in the next couple of weeks they will have a little over 20 million in space, need to save a little over 1 million for rookie deals and another million or two for in season deals/incentives.
I don't expect the Pats will be huge players in free agency, but I do expect to add a solid RB or two, and make a splash at the receiver position.
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Post by patriotsk1d on Mar 4, 2016 12:39:00 GMT -5
Patriots have released special teamer/LB Darius Fleming. It only saves 150,000 in cap space.
Lamar Miller is apparently close to a deal with Miami around 5 million a year. That would set another really cheap market for RB's, if the top guy only gets 5 million a year. My bet is Forte only gets around 3 million a year.
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