It will certainly be a hotly-debated topic very shortly for sure.
The biggest thing, as I see it, is if you’re another team, how confident are you that Edelman is not a product of the New England system? Unless you have an elite QB at the trigger, it might be a stretch to think that Edelman can put up the same kind of numbers.
No question, he is an elite punt returner on any team, but do you pay him like a #1 WR? The Patriots have some insurance with Amendola, who should take some good strides forward next year after a full season in the system. I mean, most of us thought Amendola would be the main slot guy anyway.
It took Edelman some time to develop and, maybe most important of all, he’s stayed healthy. Don’t think there’s much dropoff from Edelman to Amendola next season if Edelman walks. But Amendola would just need to stay healthy like Edelman has this year.
But Edelman’s a homegrown player and is showing how much he’s earned Tom Brady’s trust. They knew what they were getting into when they gave him a “prove it” deal (just like with Talib) and they might have to live with having his pay bumped a bit because he’s proven it.
Edelman got to test the free agent market last season and really only got interest from the Giants as I remember. I’m just not convinced any team will believe he’ll play up to the money it will take to get him out of New England with a different QB.
Right now I’d say it’s likely they can figure something out that will work for both sides. But if the Pats can survive Welker’s departure, they can certainly survive without Edelman.
Still, you want to keep homegrown players in house and Edelman is one of the few WRs they’ve developed. They re-did the passing offense this season, there’s no reason to let the receptions leader walk again after he just emerged.
A more interesting question might be if they’d consider cutting Amendola and putting some of his cap space towards a long-term deal with Edelman…?
