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Archives for March 14, 2018

Burkhead Back for Three Years

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Outside of Nate Solder going to the Giants and becoming the highest paid tackle in the game, free agency has unfolded as I pretty much expected, and that includes the Patriots latest move of locking up Rex Burkhead for three more seasons.


Burkhead certainly flashed a handful of times in 2017, his first with the Pats, but injuries derailed him every time. He still managed to finish with career highs in touchdowns (8 — 5 rushing, 3 receiving) and receptions (30), despite only appearing in 10 games and playing a total of 196 offensive snaps. He also blocked a punt against the Broncos to go with a touchdown.

His best stretch of the season came from weeks 9-12, where he had 40 attempts for 180 yards and three touchdowns to go with 12 catches and two receiving touchdowns. If that’s the Burkhead we get for the next three seasons, look out.

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Nate Solder to the Giants

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Nate Solder was my centerpiece to this free agency season and now he’s signed with the Giants for four years, $60 million, leaving the Patriots with a giant hole at left tackle.

I’m never one to panic about free agency, especially when we’re not even 24 hours in, but the team currently has just Marcus Cannon on the roster, with last year’s third-round pick Tony Garcia behind him recovering from an illness that caused him to lose a bunch of weight. Andrew Jelks and Jason King are also on the roster, while Cameron Fleming and LaAdrian Waddle continue to weigh their options in free agency.

This is new territory for the Tom Brady Pats. They seamlessly transitioned from Matt Light (2001-2011) to Solder, who has locked down the left side for the past six seasons. In 2015 he played in just four games, but otherwise, Solder has been a rock, missing just two games total and starting 95.

It is worth pointing out that Solder was managed through most of the preseason and had a really slow start to the season. We cut him plenty of slack given his personal situation, but it’s not like Solder was the lights out best left tackle in football who made it all work. He was very good, especially by the end of the year, and certainly the best option in free agency, but is he worth what the Giants paid him? We’ll see.

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Dion and Malcolm Go to Tennessee

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As expected Dion Lewis and Malcolm Butler signed big free agency deals outside of New England, and with both going to Tennessee and joining Mike Vrabel‘s team, the Titans will have a distinct “land of misfit former Patriot toys” feel.

These were two of my favorite players of the last few seasons, but for whatever reason, the Patriots just could not figure out how to best use Lewis’ dynamic ability, even as he put up a career year in 2017. Meanwhile, no one had a more rapid ascent and descent than Butler, whose career was bookended by two of the most dramatic Super Bowl stories ever.

I do always love it when former Patriots all get together on another team. It gives me another side team to keep a close eye on. To be honest, Vrabel has always been on my wishlist for eventual Belichick replacements. Now the Titans will have Butler and Logan Ryan starting at cornerback and will see if they can find a way to just make Lewis a more central focus of their ground game than he was here.

Lewis was a monster when he was the featured back down the stretch. Yes, I held my breath every time he carried the ball because of his injury history, and that’s something that has to be considered, but the more touches the guy got the more efficient the offense was. I thought the 2017 Patriots offense was its best when Lewis was the guy.

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