PatsPropaganda

As I size up the offseason, I think Wright is one of the most interesting players to see develop. I went back and took a look at Garoppolo’s preseason snaps recently and Wright was all over the place in the last game against the Giants.

Not only was he thrown into the fire with the Patriots, this was only his second season as a tight end after playing wide receiver in college. So there are a couple learning curves there.

But I think we all saw the potential last year, especially in the red zone. 

For me it boils down somewhat to Wright vs. Amendola this summer (assuming Amendola is back as the 3rd WR), and that will largely dictate the direction of the offense. There should still be a spot for both, but will they lean more on the 12 personnel or 11?

In a perfect world, I think they might prefer to be more of an 12 team. We saw in 2011 and 2012 what that kind of offense is capable of, with Wright filling the Aaron Hernandez role.

I’m excited to see Wright this summer, maybe moreso than anyone else on the roster, except Easley.

As for Hooman, he’s one of the most upgradeable players on the roster, and many have him getting cut anyways.

The inbox had a couple Arrington questions this morning, so he continues to be one of the more divisive players on the roster. Of course the thing that is fresh on everyone’s mind is him getting burned and pulled in the Super Bowl, but I still think he’s an important part of the defense.

Look, he was tasked with covering a receiver who is seven inches taller than him. Granted you might hope his experience would help him out against a rookie like Chris Matthews, but still, that’s a tall task.

But against traditional slot receivers, I’m not sure how many slot corners there are out there who are better. Just take a look at how he’s played Wes Welker the last two years for an easy example.

He also brings special teams value (underrated by fans but not the Patriots) and is extremely tough. He tackles well and throws his body around with reckless abandon. I like those elements of his game and his experience in the system cannot be underrated.

That being said, his salary is currently the 11th highest on the team for 2015 and that does seem a bit high, though we have to remember he is a starter since the Pats were had 5+ DBs on over 70% of the snaps last year.

Next year it’s a little more palatable to cut him vs. this year ($3.25 million in dead money vs. $1.6 million), but injuries on defense, especially in the secondary are often prevalent, so there’s still good reason to keep him around.

My big question focuses on Malcolm Butler. Can he compete for that starting slot spot? I’m still not sure if he fits better inside or outside, though I lean he’s an outside guy. If that’s the case, Arrington is really the only guy other than Logan Ryan who can play the slot, and as much as people hate on Arrington, they hate on Ryan even more.

So is there a chance they dump him? Possibly, but I think there are more reasons to keep him. It’s easy to pick on cornerbacks, especially when offenses are avoiding Revis and Browner, but I continue to think Arrington is a necessary piece of the puzzle.