Filling the Remaining Holes
Free Agency cannot fill all the holes this team has. Eliot Wolf, Ryan Cowden and Mike Vrabel have done a good job upgrading the Defense with Vrabel kind of guys and leaders. However, they have swung and missed on Offense. They offered Center Drew Dalman a high salary, but he chose Chicago. Chris Godwin’s offer was $8M more than what he signed for to stay in Tampa Bay. Tackle Jaylon Moore was offered a contract by the Patriots’, but he chose to play for Kansas City and a chance to win a Championship. Albert Breer reported Kansas City offered Ronnie Stanley 20+M a year and Washington and New England offered him 24+M. All three offers were before the legal tampering period and the league is looking into this potential violation. Stanley re-signed with Baltimore for $20M before Free Agency started.
It’s not like they haven’t been trying. Mike Vrabel can attract some defensive players, but it doesn’t seem like he has the same cache with Offensive players. They did sign 34-yo RT Morgan Moses and soon to be 32-yo WR Mack Hollins.
The Patriots also released longtime Captain David Andrews on Thursday creating another area of need.
Priority of Needs
Left Tackle – Cam Robinson is still available and that’s for good reason. His agent saw what a ridiculous contract Dan Moore got (4 years $20.5 M/year) and is asking for the moon. He has offers but they have been for much less. OL Coach Doug Marrone knows Robinson well because he drafted him when Marrone was Head Coach of Jacksonville. Robinson has a reputation as a dog and teams, including the Patriots are afraid that Robinson will just take the money and revert to his lazy self. It is believed that Robinson has been offered a 1 year show me contract that is heavily incentive laden. Tyron Smith the ancient 35-year-old is available, but he hasn’t played a full season since 2019.
Otherwise, the Patriots will stick with Vederian Lowe. You have to remember that Lowe is entering his 4th season. He played just 33 snaps in his rookie year, 407 in 2023 for the Patriots and 804 last season. His numbers were better than Robinson and didn’t give up as many sacks or pressures. They both had 13 penalties. I wonder what Lowe would be like with a better LG? This season is the 3rd different (and best) Offensive Line coach he has had since he was traded to the Patriots.
Jedrick Wills was the #1 (10 overall) number selection of Cleveland in 2020 out of Alabama. He looks every bit of the part of a Tackle but he has struggled. He is only 26 and stands 6’4”, 307-pounds. Maybe a change of scenery and some new coaches can help him. Another possibility is to move him inside to Guard. Mike Vrabel worked with the Cleveland Offensive line as a consultant last season. He would know the good or bad about Wills. Perhaps he waiting for a crazy offer like what Dan Moore received. Wills PFF Rating was 52.9 good for 109th. Vederian Lowe was 102nd. Wills played just 5 games last season for the Browns. The one season (2022) he played in all the games (1,152 snaps) he had a 62.9 rating.
D.J. Humphries would be a bridge option since the Patriots are likely to draft a Left Tackle. Humphries isn’t a long-term answer, but he could provide solid play for a year while a rookie develops. He is coming off an injury and could be signed at a discount, making him an affordable stopgap starter while still allowing flexibility for a draft pick to take over later. He wasn’t great in limited snaps last season, but he was fresh off a major injury. Before 2024, Humphries was a very reliable veteran tackle, and he would give the Patriots another solid locker room fit.
Tee Higgins
(PHOTO: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images)
Wide Receiver They are looking for a true #1 Wide Receiver. They offered Chris Godwin the most money and he turned them down. Cooper Kupp signed with Seattle. He wanted to stay on the West Coast and the 3-year contract at $15M a year is a ridiculous contract for a player of his age and declining skills. Kupp’s stats have steadily declined over the last 5 years and last season he had his worst Yards After Catch. I am glad the Patriots weren’t serious players in that competition.
The trade market is still available. The two prominent names are Tee Higgins and Brandon Aiyuk. San Francisco is desperate to get out from under the Aiyuk contract. He is coming off a knee injury and frankly I wouldn’t help them out. Higgins is an interesting case. He is quite upset at being Franchise Tagged for the 2nd year in a row. Would he hold out and not sign his Franchise Tag until the very end and then hold out of training camp and possibly into the regular season? Cincinnati has Trey Hendrickson and Jamar Chase contracts to deal with. Hendrickson is available in a trade as well. This may play out well after the draft and then you are talking about 2026 draft picks.
I am going to throw out another possibility and that is a trade with New Orleans Saints. They are looking for a long-term solution at QB and the Patriots have been letting it be known that QB Joe Milton is available at the right price. The Saints offer the often-concussed WR Chris Olave for Milton and say a 2026 3rd Round pick. The Patriots could make that a contingency deal based upon Olave’s health. That is taking a stab at a terrific young player with a history of concussions.
Keenan Allen is not an X Receiver and is far past his prime, but if the Patriots were willing to go after Cooper Kupp at his age and declining skills why not take the ever-reliable Allen. I would take him if for no other reason than to teach those young players how to be professionals and the nuances of running pass routes in the NFL.
Left Guard they had a chance at signing any number of Guards and they passed at trading for Joe Thuney. There are a few guards left such as Teven Jenkins. The former Bears lineman had a true PFF ranking of #12 amongst Guards with a 74.5 rating. Curious that the Bears didn’t try to retain him. Jenkins is 6’6”, 321-pounds, and is 27 years old. I think if the Patriots have to go into the season with Lowe at Left Tackle, having an experienced player like Jenkins next to him would improve his play immensely.
Brandon Scherff is a veteran Guard that is available. The 33-year-old played for Jacksonville last season. The 6’5”, 315-pound Guard was the 1st round selection (#5 Overall) of Washington in 2015. He is a 5x Pro Bowl selection and an All-Pro 1st team in 2020. Could the Patriots add another older veteran on the line to teach the younger players what it means to be a professional in the NFL?
Center With the release of David Andrews the patriots now have a hole at Center. Ben Brown gave it his all, last season when both David and Jake Andrews went down. He just wasn’t very good. Cole Strange played Center in the last game versus the Bills but he struggled against the Bills backups. Jake Andrews is back from injury but he has done nothing in two seasons and looked pretty bad in Pre-season work we have seen.
Daniel Brunskill is one of the most versatile linemen in the NFL, having played right guard, center and even left tackle in emergency situations. He would serve as a cheap upgrade over Ben Brown and would provide the Patriots some stability. Adding a veteran depth piece like Brunskill ensures the Patriots have insurance across multiple spots on the line. Brunskill could start at center if needed, or he could be a high-end backup at multiple positions.
Garrett Bradbury is about to be released by Minnesota if they can’t trade him first. I would offer them the pick we received for Davon Godchaux in next year’s draft. Bradbury was a 2019 1st round selection of Minnesota out of NC State. The 6’3” 300-pound Center won the Rimington award in 2018 as the best Center in college football. He had a 62.1 PFF grade good for 29th true rating. This would be a significant upgrade at Center.
Kicker Old friend Nick Folk is a Free Agent. I can’t believe he got paid over $3M last season at nearly 40. If you are looking at younger players Michael Badgley who kicked for the Lions and Greg Joseph who was with the NY Jets are two more names. Wouldn’t be surprised to see a college kicker signed after the draft.
Patriots sign G/C Wes Scweitzer
In a low-cost move, the Patriots signed the former NY Jet to a one-year contract. Terms of the contract haven’t been released yet. Patriots Wide Receivers coach Todd Downing was a coach with the Jets last year and is familiar with Schweitzer who has only played a handful of plays for the Jets. This move will not prevent the team from going out and getting a Left Tackle, Center or Left Guard in Free Agency.
FS Marcus Epps signs 1-year Deal
I have been calling for the Pats to sign a pure Free Safety and Epps just might be it. This is a below the radar signing that could benefit the team greatly. Epps was a 17-game starter in Philly in 2022 where he had 90 tackles. He signed on with Las Vegas in 2023 and followed that up with another 17 games as a starter and 66 tackles. Last season he started the 1st 3 games until a knee injury knocked him out for the season. His recovery time should make him available for the start of Training Camp. Prior to the knee injury, Epps was never a burner but ran a 4.55 40 and a 6.77 3-cone drill at his Pro Day in 2019. I wouldn’t call him a ball-hawk either with just 3 Interceptions in his career. This is a low-cost, high-ceiling type of move.
This was posted by Oliver Thomas on X – Josh McDaniels in 2023 on Epps “He’s been a really good, positive leader for our entire defense, our secondary, our safety group since he walked in the door. He just has a presence about him. He’s very mature. He’s intelligent. He understands the entirety of the call. It’s not just his job. He understands what the corners are doing, what the nickel is doing, what the linebackers are doing. He’s a great communicator. Very consistent approach to him every day, every play. Does his job well, does it at a high level. We were looking for somebody to be able to do that and have that kind of impact. And obviously Marcus was voted a captain here, so he’s certainly doing it now.”
Another leader to help fill the void.
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About Mark Morse
Merrimack Valley native and lifelong fan of the New England Patriots. My earliest memories of the Patriots were attending as a child with my dad, the off-season practice at Phillips Academy. I was at the Patriots game at Harvard Stadium in 1970 where Bob “Harpo” Gladieux was called out of the stands by the stadium announcer over the PA to play in the game. Analyzing the draft since ESPN first started to televise it in 1980 and former writer for the Lowell Sun Newspaper.
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