FanPost

Year Of The Wide Receiver

I really thought last off season was going to be the one where New England completely revamps its wide receiving corp. However replacing Danny-Playoff-Amendola with gadget receiver/return specialist, Cordarrelle Patterson, wasn't exactly what I had in mind.

This year though, this is the one.

It's gotta be right?

Super Bowl victory or not, New England offensively hung on to that victory by the skin of their teeth. Relying on the run to set up the passing game is great strategy, but when it comes down to crunch time you're going to need to rely on Brady, and he will need receivers that he relies on.

This will be the prefect offseason to give Brady just what he needs.

Brady loves him some undersized, quick not fast, precise route running slot receivers with toughness and a high football IQ. Boy is he in for a treat.

Golden Tate, Cole Beasley, Adam Humphries, Jamison Crowder and potentially the aforementioned Playoff-Dola (if the Dolphins do decide to part ways with his inflated contract) are all hitting the open market next month.

Tate stands alone from this group as more than just a slot receiver. He is a proven outside threat as well, with more top end speed than the other receivers listed above. Tate's toughness, speed, ability to create separation and his electric run after the catch ability makes him the number one receiver target for New England in my opinion. Unfortunately of this group, he is the second oldest behind Amendola at 30 years old and probably the most expensive option. The average annual salary for Tate's last deal, according to Spotrac, was $6.2M. That might be more than what New England would be willing to spend, but with Tate being on the wrong side of 30 it would come down to whether he wants to play in New England for less or the higher salary.

Regardless Tate will be in higher demand than the rest of this group, which could sway Belichick to go for a cheaper alternative. Seeing how keeping Flowers and/or Trent Brown will cost a hefty chunk of change, maybe a 4 year-$16M slot receiver rather than a 3 year-$18M Tate would be the smarter approach.

Edelman is on the books for $4.5M next year per Spotrac. They're not going to pay another slot receiver more than Jules and he is also not getting a raise.

Humphries and Crowder are both only 25 years old. In their prime they may be looking to cash in. Beasley being 29 could be the cheapest of the three despite his larger body of work.

Amendola will certainly cost the least. The question is, if available, would he want to come back to New England? Would Belichick want him back after the interview he had with Mike Reiss shortly after signing with Miami? I don't believe Danny said anything earth shattering but it could be a factor for Bill. Maybe he'd retire upon being released by Miami. What is almost certain is that he will not be paid $6M by anyone next year. So if he wants to keep playing it'd probably be his best bet to team up with Brady and his buddy Jules again and play for probably the same amount, if not less than what he'd get anywhere else.

Crowder has an injury history, but is he more elusive and has better run after the catch ability than Humphries. However Humphries is more durable and has come up in clutch situations. Humphries has been a security blanket for Winston much like Edelman and Amendola have been for Brady.

Now for the big boys.

DON'T SLEEP ON FLASH. I am telling you.

There is a reason why Gordon is a restricted free agent this spring and not unrestricted. New England didn't cut him; instead they decided to pay for his rehab in Florida. They're not looking to place a tender on him and get a 7th round pick in exchange. They certainly won't be able to get the 5th round pick that they traded for him back. Signing Gordon to a one year RF tender gives him one more chance to live up to his potential and if he doesn't, New England only lost a 5th round pick. The risk is worth the potential 7th rounder you might be able to get in return for him.

I've said it before; the OBJ-Brady-Gronk-Edelman powerhouse could be a reality! Rebuilding organizations don't want super stars in their prime hogging up all the cap space. New York didn't want to trade Beckham last year because they believed they could be a contender in 2018. LOL.

Reality has struck the G-Men and they will be looking for Eli's heir and also be looking to open up some cap space while simultaneously gaining a boat load of draft capitol. OBJ: two birds one stone.

Give New York your 1st round pick this year and next years 2nd and 4th round picks. If that's still not enough then maybe it's not in the cards.

And yes I'm ok with buying high on a legitimate game-changing receiver. They tried it before, it didn't work out but they landed on their feet with a higher 1st rounder for Cooks. Looking at the offense (aside from the receiving corp) there isn't much need for improvement with most of the line and running back stable signed for the foreseeable future. The defense does need an injection of youth so sending away potential defensive draft picks would be the downside of acquiring Beckham, I still think it'd be worth having a talent like him.

Don't talk to me about using that first round pick on Kyler Murray, just don't.

This draft is loaded with edge defenders; the Pats can find talent in the mid rounds. Don't forget about Bentley coming back next year, he looked very promising before his injury.

I don't trust Belichick drafting a receiver and neither should he. Success at the receiver position has come via free agency so I think it best to stick with what works.

So to wrap things up here, I think Dorsett and Patterson walk. Hogan comes back on a super team friendly deal. Gordon signs a 4th round tender to stay in New England for next year. Antonio Brown is traded to Oakland and OBJ is traded to Cleveland. Tate signs with New England on a 3 year-$20M deal including hefty bonuses/incentives to keep his cap number right around $5M per year. New England also signs Humphries to a 5 year-$25M back-loaded contract that keeps his salary under Edeleman's current contract. Amendola retires. Beasley and Crowder sign elsewhere.

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