The initial wave and excitement of free agency are over as we now start to settle in on the mid and lower tier free agents and the draft. The team building process is a year-long activity for the Patriots, but last week is the short little window that everyone loses their minds over. Each season I find myself caring less and less about talking people off the ledge. Bill Belichick has 18 offseasons of precedent and if you don’t understand how they do business you’re willfully not paying attention.
Sometimes they do make a splash, like with Adalius Thomas and Stephon Gilmore, but most often it’s things like swinging low-risk trades for affordable vets like Kony Ealy or Jason McCourty, signing vet free agents to short, affordable deals like Jabaal Sheard or Adrian Clayborn, grabbing unremarkable castoffs who turn into special players like Rob Ninkovich or making in-season moves to shore up weaknesses like Akiem Hicks or Akeem Ayers.
I included a few busts in there because in the NFL no one bats a thousand. It’s just as easy to point out personnel moves that missed the mark as it is those that were hit out of the park. The important thing, as most of us should’ve learned by now, is to build a team that is strong top-to-bottom because injuries and poor performance can torpedo any best-laid plan. I know having Tom Brady certainly helps cover up personnel misfires as does an established system and clear expectations handed down by a well-organized coaching staff that is designed to disseminate Belichick’s coaching points.
The bottom line is that the team building process is far more than one week in mid-March and there are plenty of moves to come despite the fact that outside of left tackle the Patriots already have a pretty impressive roster that could compete in the playoffs without adding any rookies.
I’ve gotten a little behind this week outside of the major acquisitions, so here are some quick-hit thoughts on all that has been going on.
- Jeremy Hill signed a one-year deal and it seems like the fans and analysts see this move as ranging from him being the next Antowan Smith to him getting cut in training camp. Obviously, he showed a lot of potential in his first few seasons with the Bengals, scoring 29 touchdowns. He has great size and runs hard but it’s hard not to wonder how he and Mike Gillislee can co-exist. They seem role redundant but at a position where injuries are inevitable, it’s good to go into camp with both guys and just let it play out. The Bengals certainly declined in Hill’s time there and last year there wasn’t much for him. Once again we’ll hope the Patriots firmly established system and support network can help him recapture some magic. On a one-year deal, he should run with something to prove, with a clear vision of resurrecting his career then cashing in next offseason.
- I saw Mike Giardi’s tweet this week that “planet players” are unhappy with Belichick and don’t feel appreciated. It left me wondering, how is this news right now in the dead of the offseason? Are “planet players” like Brady and Gronk even doing anything with Belichick at this point? Brady’s in Montana. Gronk was last seen down south in a leprechaun outfit. How is Belichick still unappreciating them at this point? Or is this just chatter to chatter about? Just feels like a retread of the same storylines we heard most of last year and this is just a reminder that the Belichick-Brady (and now Gronk) rift narrative is going to be with us until the end, unfortunately. There’s simply no way to put it to bed and it’s gold to reporters as an easy way to generate takes. Belichick vs. Brady will continue to be a talking point until one or both leaves and that just sucks. Even if they came out and had a joint press conference expressing their undying love and devotion to each other, this will be a talking point the Boston media will never let go of and it will be the first driving narrative of summer training camp. You already hear it now “Can Belichick win back the locker room?” That’s their story and they’re sticking with it.
- I’ve always believed there’s no happy ending to the Patriots Belichick-Brady dynasty and with each new season is confirming that. Everyone outside the Patriots and their fans are going to throw as much gasoline on their demise as possible. Rifts will be hammered. True joy will be taken as the Patriots fall back to the middle of the pack. Probably won’t be this year, but it sure is coming to the delight of a great majority of football fans and media pundits. The silver lining will be that only when it’s over will everyone realize how truly incredible it all was. I think at this point I’m starting to just hope they win a sixth and sail off into the sunset together, skipping and holding hands. For us fans, it’s the only thing close to an easy ending. And even then be prepared for a whole lot of “haha you guys suck now.”
- An athletic middle linebacker remains my biggest need on the defensive side of the ball and there isn’t really anyone left on the free agent market to get excited about. Along with tackle, this is the other glaring draft need. Still, they could get by with Hightower, Van Noy and (maybe) McClellin, who intends to return after concussion issues last season. I’m just not sure Elandon Roberts is ever going to be the kind of linebacker you need for today’s NFL. Loved the pop he brought as a rookie, he made strides in his second year and I think he’s a good rotational run-stopping piece, but the coverage in the flat and sideline-to-sideline range must improve for the whole defense. Ideally, Luke Kuechly is the prototype in my mind. I know those players are hard to find, but that’s what the D most lacks, and a player with that kind of skillset would only make things easier for Hightower and Van Noy on the strong and weak sides.
- Here’s how I generally see the depth chart right now:
