Robert Kraft Explains Letting Darrelle Revis Go

If you want to hear the exact reason why the New England Patriots weren't willing to match the Jets for Darrelle Revis, owner Bob Kraft has your back.

"We thought we made a very competitive offer [to Revis]," Kraft said in a media address. "I speak as a fan of the New England Patriots, we wanted to keep him. We wanted him in our system, and we have certain disciplines. We had hoped it worked out. It didn't. We just don't think about short-term decisions. For example, next year we have three very good young defensive players coming up and we have to factor that."

And that's that.

Edge defender Chandler Jones, and linebackers Dont'a Hightower and Jamie Collins are all free agents after the 2016 season, assuming the team picks up the fifth year options of the two former first round picks. The Patriots cannot negotiate an extension with Collins until after he has three seasons in the NFL, so the Patriots are likely to try and strike long term deals after the 2015 season.

But that's why the Patriots couldn't enter a bidding war with the Jets. First, and it should be the only needed reason, the Jets had way more cap space than the Patriots and could/would have outbid New England at every turn. New York also managed to fully guarantee the first two and a half seasons of Revis' contract, which is a whole lot of money to lock up in one player.

Bill Belichick and the Patriots organization aren't thinking about any window closing with Tom Brady. They're thinking about the long term success of the franchise, and that involves retaining three quality starters on defense for the price of one star cornerback.