PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

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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Report: Danny Amendola Signing with Dolphins

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It looks like the end of an era with reports coming out that Danny Amendola is cashing in on a two-year, $12 million deal with $8.5 million guaranteed with the Dolphins. I think most of us just assumed after three-straight years of taking pay cuts to remain in New England that the Pats and their clutch slot receiver would find a way to tack on another year, but alas Miami was ready to pay the kind of dough the Pats wouldn’t.

Danny reduced his 2017 salary from $5 million down to $1.25 million. Now the 32-year-old receiver will make well over that as he concludes his career.

Amendola had one of the most fascinating careers of a Patriots wide receiver in the last 17 years. He came in as the supposed Wes Welker replacement but battled injuries in his first season that only empowered those who believed he was too injury prone to be the go-to slot receiver that Welker was. Julian Edelman emerged into that role leading some to label Amendola a bust, but slowly and consistently Amendola began to rack up big catches in big moments.

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Tom vs. Time Finale Review

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Tom Brady dropped the final episode of Tom vs. Time on Monday, the fascinating six-part documentary that gave a rare look behind the curtain of all things TB12. The finale dealt with the Patriots’ Super Bowl loss, with a special focus on Brady’s thumb injury that had us all holding our breath leading up to the AFC Championship game.

If there was one takeaway from this series for me it was how cool it was to see Brady reacting to wins and losses just like we the fans do. Certainly, there was a humanizing element to the series like seeing Brady at home with his kids, how impossibly dedicated he is to training and even a supermodel like Gisele just at home cooking a meal in her kitchen or supporting her husband’s unquenchable desire to win football games was also a highlight.

But most all we just get so used to seeing the even-keeled reaction of the players after games, toeing the line to the press, not showing their excitement or heartbreak. Here we got a glimpse of how they really are just like us. From telling Gronk how lucky they were to win the AFC Championship without him, to Gronk being amazed at how good Danny Amendola is in the playoffs, to the crushing disappointment of losing a Super Bowl. Many of those conversations feel ripped right from my own discussions with fellow fans.

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Pats Posits: Let the Tampering Begin!

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It’s an exciting time to be a football fan with the start of free agency this week, the 2018 season will finally start to take shape. For the Patriots, they already grabbed Danny Shelton and another draft pick for what will likely be a 2019 3rd round pick, making a solid investment in this coming fall without sacrificing much more than a couple million in cap space this season.

There are still plenty of moves for them to make, starting with Nate Solder and the tackle position.

From there they can move on to running back, linebacker and cornerback, doing what they always do — targeting the cost-effective vets in the middle-to-lower tiers. 2017 was a shocker when they made a big splash on a cornerback. Since Adalius Thomas they really had avoided big time external free agent deals, with consideration to Darrelle Revis, who was expensive but really just a one-year rental.

They had the cap space last year, this year they don’t. So until Solder is resolved I don’t expect any big moves. After that there should be quite a bit of action.

More on that and everything else that might come at us this week in a very offseason Posits!

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Report: Patriots Acquire DT Danny Shelton

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After spending the better part of two days wondering how a large contingent of Patriots Nation thought cornerback was the biggest need for this defense, the Patriots made the kind of splash I wanted them to in the front seven, acquiring monstrous defensive tackle Danny Shelton and a 2018 pick from the Cleveland Browns for a 2019 mid-round pick..

Shelton is entering the last year of his rookie deal at an affordable $2 million, with an option for 2019 that @Patscap estimates would be in the $6-7 million range. Shelton was the 12th overall pick in 2015 and is really the perfect fit for the Patriots’ defense that looks for their two defensive tackles to control the interior of the offensive line while the ends and linebackers make the plays.

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Patriots Cut Bennett, Continue Opening Cap Space

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As expected, the Patriots parted ways with Martellus Bennett yesterday, a move that opened up over $6 million more in cap space. Now, per the reliable Patscap maestro Miguel Benzan, the team is sitting on $24.4 million in cap space. Other moves that opened up space include the retirement of David Harris as well as the decline of Alan Branch’s option.

All of this is of course setting the stage for free agency, which opens next week, and in usual Patriots fashion, there hasn’t been much to get excited about, even as we hope for extensions for Trey Flowers and Shaq Mason, and perhaps a couple other moves that could open up some space.

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Top 10 Patriots Draft Prospect Traits

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It felt like the NFL scouting combine snuck up out of nowhere this year. We’re no strangers to having a quick turnaround from the Super Bowl to the combine in just a few short weeks, but for some reason it flew by this year for me and honestly I’m kind of happy it did, and for more reasons that having a palate-cleansing good guy Bill Belichick appearance on NFL Network.

The advantage for me jumping into the draft now is that all the measurements and times are already recorded and readily available. I don’t touch the NFL draft until, well, now. I come at it with a fresh set of eyes and for the past seven seasons I’ve tried to hold myself to some level of accountability by sticking to the same formula — a 50 prospect draft board where I try to hit as many picks and signings as possible and one solitary mock draft.

 

Last year I got back on track after my worst Top 50 performance ever, when Cyrus Jones was the lone pick I hit, however I still haven’t hit a mock draft pick in two years after hitting at least two in four of my first five mock drafts. Something to shoot for this year when I release my mock a week or so before the draft.

Before I start jumping into prospect articles I thought a better place to start is with what I look for when “scouting” players. The advantage of focusing solely on one team’s drafts is that you start to get a sense of what they look for.

Here are the top 10 things I look for in Patriots draft prospects.

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