2009 Patriots Off-Season Thread

[Mr Crunchy]

Same source that had this thing sewn up now says its very unlikely to happen and its the Pats who are skeptical about blowing all that cap money on 1 guy.

it would be a treat seeing him colvin and mayo with the 3 headed monsters in the middle but the f***ing cap is what it is and for the Pats to lay it out for 1 guy goes against their principles.

you would have no depth at all if they were to get peppers.

but the upside would be just tremendous and what the dr ordered for a team that has a weak secondary and mediocre pass rush.

[riverside sluggers]

At the end of the season, both Seymour and Wilfork could be free agents. Plus Tom Brady's contract ends after the '10 season. As much as Peppers would be a force in NE, the Pats are better off trying to lock up these 3 guys

[mtbykr]

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/reiss_pieces/2009/03/schefter_99_per.html

 

 

The NFL Network's Adam Schefter this morning tossed a little cold water on Patriots Nation, saying he found it extremely unlikely the Patriots would trade for Panthers defensive lineman Julius Peppers.

 

"That trade is not gonna happen. ... Julius Peppers will not be a New England Patriot next season," Schefter said on Boston sports radio station WEEI this morning, seeming to counter yesterday's report by fellow NFL Network reporter Vic Carucci that has caused enormous buzz among Patriots fans. Carucci reported that, according to sources, the Patriots were primed to trade for Peppers for the No. 34 pick in the draft, which they acquired for Kansas City in the trade that sent Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel to the Chiefs.

 

"There are a couple of technicalities to point out first and foremost," Schefter said. "The Carolina Panthers right now are not allowed to trade Julius Peppers because he has yet to sign his franchise tender. When Matt Cassel signed his franchise tender, that gave the Patriots the right to trade him anyplace they wanted without his authority ... Julius Peppers has not signed his tender. The only trade rights that can be brokered right now are between his agent and a team. And his agent would not be talking about trade compensation, his agent would be talking about a new contract. So clearly there can't be anything in place to trade him to New England. And even if there were, it is not a trade that I believe the Patriots would make."

 

Why not?

 

"You're talking about an enormous sum of money you're going to have to invest in Julius Peppers for starters," Schefter continued. "You're talking about a deal that basically changes the dynamics of the salary structure within the locker room when you've got pending deals coming up with Richard Seymour and Vince Wilfork."

 

Schefter also said he didn't think Peppers, despite his name recognition and NFL credentials, was a consistent enough performer to be attractive to the Patriots at the price it would take. Under the franchise tag, Peppers is set to count $16.68 million against the cap for 2009.

 

"He flashes," Schefter said. "He doesn't always come through when it matters most. That doesn't seem to me to be a Patriots kind of guy."

When asked how sure he was that Peppers would not be with the Patriots next year, he answered "99.9 percent sure".

 

Later in the WEEI interview, he said he thought there was a 50-50 chance of free-agent linebacker Jason Taylor signing with New England.

[mtbykr]

Good read:

 

 

http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/2009/03/the-draw-of-playing-in-new-england/

 

 

Before you start to call me a Belichick supporter, or someone who’s trying to put down the rest of the AFC East, look at the facts because that’s all I’m doing,

 

I’ve been in locker rooms, and in film rooms across the league, and I can tell you that every player wants to run out of the tunnel in the Super Bowl. We have to realize that veteran players look to one place for that to happen when they’re picking teams, and that place is settled between Boston and Providence.

 

Players are drawn to New England because of the coach, the wins, the “team” idea that seems to exist there compared to every other dysfunctional NFL franchise.

 

I despised the Patriots when I played because every January, when I was home after an early exit from the playoffs, or if my team didn’t even make the postseason, they were still playing. I used to ask myself why they were so good, just as I used to ask myself why their press conferences were so flat-out dull.

 

But I would have driven up there in a second if they had offered me a contract.

[mtbykr]

BB was on WEEI's "the big show" and talked at length.

 

 

Link:

 

Listen Online:

http://audio.weei.com/m/22007967/bill_belichick_hc_nep.htm

 

MP3 Download:

http://media.weei.podzinger.com/archive/TheBigShow/2009-03-19_Bill_Belichick_HC_NEP.mp3

 

 

Some of what he said:

 

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/reiss_pieces/2009/03/insight_from_be.html

 

 

The Denver Broncos might have wanted Matt Cassel to replace Jay Cutler, but they weren't nearly as aggressive in pursuing the quarterback as some reports have suggested, according to Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

 

"They never made that offer to me," Belichick said when asked on sports radio WEEI's "The Big Show" this afternoon whether the Broncos had offered first- and third-round picks for Cassel.

 

Belichick who spoke to WEEI via telephone while on what he said was a college scouting trip, was uncharacteristically candid regarding several topics, including:

 

# Why the Patriots traded Cassel to the Kansas City Chiefs for a second-round pick when conventional wisdom was that they might have received more elsewhere.

 

# The complexity of the club's reported pursuit of Carolina defensive end Julius Peppers.

 

# Whether he showed favoritism by trading Cassel and Mike Vrabel to the Kansas City Chiefs and Scott Pioli, who spent nine years with Belichick in New England:

 

Here are a few of Belichick's more notable comments from the wide-ranging interview:

 

On whether receiving a second-round pick for Cassel was his expectation after he was designated the team's franchise player:

 

Belichick:"We put the franchise tag on Matt because we felt he had value to our football team and we wanted to protect that value. If that was with us, fine, and if it wasn't, then that was an option too. We were prepared to have Matt on our team this year, and we would have welcomed that. By rule, you can't trade a player who's not under contract, and when we tendered Matt in early February, that didn't give us the right to do anything. Now, in discussions with Matt and his representatives, he ended up signing a contract [at the end of the NFL Combine]. It was actually hand delivered by his representative. Once we had a signed contract in place, we could technically talk about trading him.

 

"Not to digress, but with the Julius Peppers situation, I've read things out there about, 'Well, there's trade talks going on.' There's no trade talks going on with Carolina. They don't have a signed contract [because Peppers has not signed his franchise tender]. They can't talk about trading a player who's not signed.

 

"So [trading Matt before he was under contract] wasn't an option. So in that time period [after the Sunday when we got the signed contract at the Combine] we talked to some teams about Matt's availability, and teams had contacted us. But again, because he wasn't signed, we really couldn't talk about that [before then]. Once he was signed, we followed back up on some of that interest, and by the end of the week, we ended up getting the deal done with Kansas City. But a big component of that was that Matt was under contract.

 

"And again, you look at it through the Peppers situation, and as we all know Peppers is a great player, still a young player and has a good future in this league, [but he] isn't under contract, can't be traded by Carolina, and is taking up a lot cap space on their roster, which is forcing them to a lot things on their roster . . .

 

"[With Cassel] in the end, when you trade a player who has only one year on his contract, we weren't in position where we could offer Matt a long-term contact, that just wasn't something that we could do . . . When you trade a player who has only one year left on his contract, that's a lot different than trading a player who has multi-years that a team can commit to. In another situation, we might have been able to get more for a player. So the same player with three years left on his contract is probably worth more in this market than a player with one."

 

On why he didn't wait longer to make the trade:

 

Belichick: "We pretty much had the deal done with Kansas City because there really wasn't any interest. And some of the teams said a three-way trade and that kind of thing, and those teams -- and I don't want to get into specifics -- but believe me, those teams I had contact with 24-48 hours before confirmation of the trade with Kansas City and those teams said they had no interest in the player. And you know, all of a sudden, we've got a situation at the last minute, 'Well, we would have done this, we would have done that.' There was no offer. I think there's speculation as to what a team might have been willing to trade.

 

"What I didn't want to do in the whole situation was to have a trade that dragged on. . . . And at the same time, we saw an opportunity to improve our football team, and when we made the trade for Matt, that brought us a draft choice, and it gave us the chance to sign some players that we think will give us some good depth and good quality on our team. . . . A lot of the talk I've heard out there about what would or wouldn't have been done is a) after the fact and conditional on a lot of other things working out. And there's not guarantee all of that would have come together.

 

"The bottom line is it was never really there, presented. It was like, 'yeah, maybe this could happen,' but it was never presented like here's a firm offer."

 

On whether the Patriots would try to work out a deal for Peppers through his agent if the player and the Panthers come to an agreement that he will be traded but he doesn't sign the franchise tender:

 

Belichick: "I think it would probably be possible for a team to . . . well, I think essentially what you're saying is we work out a trade through the agent. They can't talk to the team, they can't talk to the player, but the team could talk to the agent and try to work the trade out through the agent. I mean, I guess that would be possible, but I don't think that's a good way to do business. I personally would not do it that way. I think if a player wants to be traded or wants to be in a position where he could be traded, then the best thing for that player to do is do what Matt Cassel did, sign the tender, be under contract, and then go to the team and say, 'Okay, I don't want to be here, trade me, this is where I want to go.' I mean, that was essentially the Deion Branch situation.

 

"But you can't trade a player that's not under contract. That's a simple rule. And I'm sure Carolina hasn't tried to do that."

 

On whether he is handling more of the personnel work now since Pioli's departure:

Belichick: The combine, and all the free agency preparation and draft preparation, we're kind of on the normal schedule there. I guess what is a little bit different this year is that internally, with the new people on the coaching staff and the new people in scouting, we've spent more time probably meeting and going over things and just all trying to get on the same page and making sure that everybody kind of sees things the same way. . . . Otherwise, I'd say it's about the same.

 

On why Vrabel was traded:

 

Belichick: "Again . . . you do what you think is best for your team, and Kansas City did what they thought was best for their team. We reached a point of agreement."

 

On the accusation that the trade to the Chiefs was a favor of some sort to Pioli:

 

Belichick: "Uh . . . look, I have all the respect in the world for Scott Pioli. He's a great friend, and he's a terrific executive and personnel manager, but I work for the Patriots, I have no loyalty to anybody or any team other than the New England Patriots. Everything I do is for our team to win and be successful. And that's what my commitment is."

[mtbykr]

Pats get 3 picks, including the first one.

 

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/reiss_pieces/2009/03/pats_get_three.html

 

 

DANA POINT, Calif. -- The NFL announced its compensatory draft picks today and the Patriots received three picks -- a third-rounder (No. 97 overall), a fifth-rounder (No. 170 overall) and a sixth-rounder (No. 207) overall.

 

The Patriots were awarded the choices based on losing free agents Asante Samuel, Randall Gay and Donte' Stallworth following the 2007 season.

 

Compensatory selections are picks that the NFL puts in after the standard 32 choices in each round. The Patriots' third-round pick was the highest of the 32 compensatory picks awarded by the NFL.

 

New England now has six selections in the top 100. They have their own first-round pick (No. 23 overall). Three second-round selections -- No. 34 (acquired from the Chiefs for Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel), No. 47 (acquired in a trade with the Chargers during the 2008 draft) and their own pick at No. 58. Then they have a pair of third-rounders -- their own pick (No. 89) and the compensatory pick.

 

The Patriots now have a total of 11 picks in the seven-round draft. However, compensatory picks cannot be traded.

 

The number of compensatory picks equals the net loss of compensatory free agents for a team.

 

Compensatory picks are determined by a formula based on salary, playing time and postseason honors. Not every free agent lost or signed by a club is covered by the formula.

[mtbykr]

BB interview on Sirius:

 

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/reiss_pieces/2009/03/belichick_on_si_1.html

 

 

Patriots coach Bill Belichick was a guest on Sirius NFL Radio's "Movin' the Chains" program on Tuesday. Belichick spoke with hosts Pat Kirwan and Tim Ryan.

 

A few nuggets from the interview:

 

# 1) Shawn Springs -- size and flexibility. When speaking on the addition of free-agent cornerback Shawn Springs, Belichick first mentioned his size (6-0, 207), which makes him the team's sturdiest corner. Belichick also said the team placed a value on Springs' versatility as he's played outside corner, slot corner, and safety. Belichick said Leigh Bodden, another free-agent signee at cornerback, has similar flexibility to play both outside corner and in the slot. "You can never have too many defensive backs," Belichick said. " It seems like every team's always got a handful of receivers, and you can never have enough guys to cover them."

 

# 2) Terrence Wheatley update. Belichick was asked about last year's second-round pick, cornerback Terrence Wheatley. He said that Wheatley has been participating in the team's offseason program "doing all the things that we would expect him to do at this time of year." Wheatley's 2008 season ended in early November with a wrist injury. Belichick said Wheatley was challenging for more playing time at the time of the injury.

 

# 3) Focus on outside linebackers. After trading Mike Vrabel, the Patriots have a void in the pass-rushing area. Belichick was asked about some of the players who could step in, and he said he feels that the Patriots have good competition at outside linebacker with "a couple of different types of players -- speed and power and size on the edge." He said it is hard to predict how big of a jump players like Vince Redd and Shawn Crable will make from their rookie seasons to year two. He noted that Pierre Woods and Tully Banta-Cain both made a nice jump from year one to year two.

 

# 4) Kevin O'Connell and his progress. Belichick was asked about backup quarterback Kevin O'Connell and he noted that O'Connell played in a pass-oriented offense at San Diego State, and last year in New England, he got more work directly under center in a pro-style offense. "He did a good job. He came along well," Belichick said, noting that he was helped by taking snaps as the No. 2 quarterback.

 

# 5) With 11 draft picks, trading some of them into 2010 is a good possibility. Belichick pointed out examples of how the Patriots have traded draft picks into the next year, and he seemed open to doing that again if the opportunity arises. Another possibility is packaging picks to move into position to select a specific player who might have fallen in the draft more than expected. Belichick also said it's probably not realistic to think that 11 rookies would make the final roster. "I think that would be asking a lot," he said. "If we could package those together, or move them into next year, I think that would certainly be something we would consider. But only if we had good value for those spots."

 

# 6) Recommending John Harbaugh to Ravens owner Steve Biscotti. Belichick spoke highly of John Harbaugh when Harbaugh was interviewing for the Ravens head coaching job last year, and he mentioned how he felt his own experience as a special teams coach was some of his best training to become a head coach. "That's one of the things I mentioned to Steve, because John had such an extensive special teams background [that] sometimes there's a little reluctance about hiring somebody like that as a head coach thinking it would be better to have a guy that's been longer as an offensive or defensive coordinator, but I don't think that's necessarily true, particularly in John's case," he said. "John's just an outstanding football coach."

[mtbykr]

Pats to wear throwbacks 3 times this year:

 

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/reiss_pieces/2009/03/pats_to_wear_th_1.html

 

The Patriots will be wearing replicas of their 1963 uniforms -- and the helmets with old Pat Patriot -- when they open the season on Sept. 14 against the Buffalo Bills at Gillette Stadium.

 

The "Monday Night Football" opener has been dubbed a legacy game by the NFL, which is commemorating the 50th anniversary season of the American Football League. The Patriots were one of the eight original AFL franchises that began play in 1960.

 

Both the Patriots and Bills will be wearing throwback jerseys for the game, as Buffalo will wear replicas of its 1965 uniforms. Then in the "Monday Night" nightcap of an old AFL doubleheader both the Oakland Raiders and San Diego Chargers will also wear throwback uniforms.

 

In a release the Patriots said that they will have three games this season where they will wear throwback jerseys designed as replicas of what the '63 team, which advanced to the AFL title game, wore.

[mtbykr]

Full transcript of the BB interview on Sirius:

 

http://www.allthingsbillbelichick.com/transcripts/2009/09mar24sirius.htm

[BSN07]

Pats to wear throwbacks 3 times this year:

 

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/reiss_pieces/2009/03/pats_to_wear_th_1.html

 

Cool, always nice to see the old Red and White jersey's occasionally.

[mtbykr]

Some good news which was expected...but still good to hear:

 

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/articles/2009/04/20/man_with_plans/

 

 

"We traded for Corey Dillon prior to the draft in '04. We traded for Randy Moss during the draft two years ago, so I wouldn't rule anything out . . . So, what about acquiring Carolina Panthers disenfranchised franchise player/premiere pass rusher Julius Peppers? "I think I answered that question," Belichick said."

 

"There is no question, however, about who is going to be Belichick's quarterback this season, as the coach said that Tom Brady, coming back from a torn ACL and a torn MCL in his left knee, "is working in the offseason program now without any limitations."

[mtbykr]

From the Globe:

 

Mike Reiss: Shawn, I think the approach is to go with what they have for 2009, but plan for the future (2010) by drafting a possible No. 3 option. Galloway is on a one-year deal. On an aside, Galloway was apparently catching passes from Brady this week and was blown away at the experience. He's played with more than 20 different quarterbacks in his career and I think he has the excitement of a rookie because of the chance to play with Brady. Galloway was marveling at how accurate Brady was in the practice session.

[mtbykr]

Good tidbit on the pats new ILB:

 

http://blogs.tampabay.com/usf/2009/04/from-bulls-to-belichick-tremendous-for-tmac.html

 

 

Tyrone McKenzie would have liked to hear his name perhaps a round earlier, but beyond that, the former USF linebacker is elated by his future in the NFL after being selected by the New England Patriots in the third round Sunday.

 

"It's the best thing that could have happened to me -- this is the best team in the NFL," said McKenzie, who watched the draft from his family's Riverview home. "It's always been a dream of mine, and now I'm living it. This is a tremendous honor for me."

 

The Patriots had shown interest in McKenzie before the draft, flying him up to Boston to meet with coaches, including head coach Bill Belichick. Several teams had told him and his agent they had him graded as a second-rounder, so he was disappointed when he wasn't taken Saturday night. That frustration disappeared when Belichick called him two picks before the Patriots' choice Sunday afternoon.

 

"I was ready to be off the board," said McKenzie, who points to an injured hamstring that kept him from working out in the past two months as factoring in his draft position. "But everything happens for a reason. There's not a team in the NFL I'd rather be playing for."

 

Playing in New England will afford him the chance to learn from veteran Tedy Bruschi, and he's familiar with last year's first-round standout, Jerod Mayo, because they have the same agent. He's already buying in with the Belichick secrecy, saying that the Patriots have asked him not to share exactly where he'll be lining up at linebacker -- the early reports out of Boston say he'll play inside, but McKenzie's played both in his college career.

 

"Wherever they have me playing, I'm going to go in and try to earn the respect of my teammates," said McKenzie, who leaves Thursday for his first rookie minicamp. "And Tedy Bruschi is one of the best linebackers to play the game. It's not just how he plays, but how he leads, how he is a leader on that team. I want to learn everything I can from him."

 

[riverside sluggers]

Patriots acquired TE Alex Smith from the Bucs for an undisclosed 2010 draft pick.

Bill Belichick loves his tight ends. Smith is a well-rounded player, not unlike recent signee Chris Baker, who can block and catch a little. He'll compete for snaps with Baker and Ben Watson. Don't expect any of them to provide fantasy value, but the depth will allow New England to use two end sets more often.

[BSN07]

As first reported by ESPN and confirmed by Christopher Price of WEEI.com, the Patriots are interested in trading a 2010 draft pick to acquire Oakland Raiders pass rusher Derrick Burgess. The purported deal the Patriots are considering would send either a second-round pick (New England has three in 2010) or a third-round pick to Oakland for Burgess, who is in the final season of a five-year deal he signed after leaving Philadelphia for Oakland as a free agent in 2005. The 6-2, 260-pound Burgess, a two-time Pro Bowler, has played defensive end in his career, but would be a 3-4 outside linebacker for the Patriots, helping fill the void created when the team traded Mike Vrabel to Kansas City. Reports out of the Bay Area have said Burgess is unhappy with his contract status. He attended the Raiders mini-camp earlier this month, but didn't practice due to stomach flu.

[mtbykr]

Al Davis doesn't like dealing with the pats after the Moss trade, so who knows if this gets done.

 

Mike Lombardi of the National Football Post files his "Sunday at the Post" article and includes the following under the category of "Things I heard around the NFL last week":

 

 

"The trade rumors about Oakland Raiders defensive end Derrick Burgess are real. So real, in fact, the Raiders asked the Patriots for their second-round pick this year, Sebastian Vollmer, and back-up quarterback Kevin O’Connell in exchange for Burgess. The Pats turned down that trade proposal, just as the Raiders have turned down a few of the Patriots’. New England remains interested in Burgess, but the prevailing thought in the NFL is that the Raiders will not trade him – they’re just making it seem that they’re making the effort. Burgess has made it clear to anyone who listens that he wants out."

[WhiskeyBreath]

I really hope they don't get cheap with Wilfork. Second most important player on the Pats imo.

[Mr Crunchy]

Historically hold outs have been ostracized with the exception of Richard Seymour.

[Spudboy]

The Pats just cut Ken Walter.