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Patriots Free Agency Rumblings Regroup

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Small bits of news are starting to drip out, most of them courtesy of Jeff Howe who seems to have the most vocal sources on the Patriots beat. Again, I can’t state this enough, this is the season of misinformation so before you overreact to anything it’s important to remember that every bit of news often has a purpose behind it. Whether it’s to drive up a players price or to spark interest around the league, very few pieces of information that make it to the public can be taken at face value.

Here’s what Howe and others most recently broke.


If ever there was a free agency slam dunk this offseason, Develin might be it. We last remember Belichick seeking him out after the Super Bowl praising him for setting the toughness tone. Develin is an old school fullback and it’s easy to see that it’s a great fit for both the player and the team where the money won’t be an issue.


This all sounds nice and it gives me a slight ray of hope that maybe Hightower really does want to come back to New England. But I remain skeptical of that.


We saw pictures of Vollmer recently and he looked like he had dropped a ton of weight. I think everyone was pencilling him in for retirement as soon as he stayed on the PUP list for the whole season. He was old when he was drafted in 2009, but the Pats squeezed plenty of good work out of the massive German. The Pats are pretty set at tackle, but could look to extend Nate Solder this offseason to give them even more stability.


I think most of us know that Harmon’s going to get starter money somewhere which will far exceed third safety money from the Patriots. This will open up a need for a third safety to maintain flexibility with McCourty. 2015 2nd-rounder Jordan Richards was missing in action this year and is firmly on the bubble, but he’ll compete for the role.

As for Ryan I think he’s going to get a very good deal somewhere else and the Pats will let him walk. It’s unfortunate. He really blossomed into a stalwart after an up and down start to his career. The last two years he has been outstanding. He can tackle, he can blitz and he bounces back after mistakes. That’s pretty much all you can ask of a cornerback. Someone else will get a very solid player.


Gotta imagine Branch is trying to get every last penny he can at this point. It’s weird when you remember he was suspended during training camp and we never knew why. Didn’t seem to affect his season though, he was maybe their front seven MVP for quite a few games. As much as I’d like Calais Campbell, Branch is proven in New England and should have at least another good year in him.

 

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  1. I’d concentrate on retaining the secondary and let Hightower walk….too injury prone…then draft a stud linebacker with our first round pick….Zac Cunningham would be great.