BroadwayRay Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 Remember when free agency started and all the sports media ran photos of Bill Belichick and his girlfriend frolicking in the waters of Barbados without a care in the world, while GMs in the rest of the league were frantically trying to sign players? It's because he's a "genius," they said, a puppet master who works the strings of free agency, compensation picks and the draft to put everyone else to shame. Losing Trey Flowers in free agency? Pah, he meant to do that to get the third-round compensation! Well, can't argue with six Super Bowls, but the media is so infatuated with Belichick, Brady and the Pats that they reflexively interpret anything they do as a stroke of genius, sometimes missing the bigger picture. What's the bigger picture? It's that the Pats cap situation is a mess. The team has been robbing Peter to pay Paul for years to keep its salaries in line and, compounded by the fact that they haven't been drafting well (shock!), their strategy is hitting a wall. Belichick wasn't bathing in the Caribbean during free agency because he's got everything under control; he was bathing because he didn't have anything else to do. His team is out of cap space! Where Did All The Patriots' salary cap space go? Bill Belichick (pictured on the phone at Georgia’s Pro Day this week) and the Patriots had $6.55 million in salary cap space as of Thursday.JOHN AMIS/AP By Ben VolinGLOBE STAFF MARCH 21, 2019 The first wave of free agency is complete, and Patriots still have a few glaring needs: starting-caliber receivers and tight ends, and depth on both lines. But filling those needs may require some creative accounting. The Patriots enter this weekend as one of the most cap-strapped teams in the NFL. As of Thursday morning, NFL Players Association records showed the Patriots with just $6.55 million in salary cap space, fourth-lowest among the 32 teams. This number doesn’t include the two most recent signings, Phillip Dorsett and Ryan Allen, who should account for $2 million-$3 million more. With their lack of funds, the Patriots already lost out on two free agents — receiver Adam Humphries to the Titans and receiver Cole Beasley to the Bills. The Patriots will have to create salary cap space at some point soon, via a veteran release or contract restructure, just so they can continue to fill out the roster. Yet it’s not as though the Patriots have been throwing big money around this offseason. They let their two prime free agents, Trey Flowers and Trent Brown, sign mega-deals with other teams. Their big addition was a trade for Michael Bennett, which really was a cost-saving move. They re-signed a few key depth players (Jason McCourty, John Simon, Dorsett), added three special teamers (Brandon Bolden, Terrence Brooks, and Allen), and signed a few veteran backups, some of whom may not make the team (Mike Pennel, Matt LaCosse, Maurice Harris, Bruce Ellington). So where did all the money go? How did the Patriots, who are never known as big spenders, get themselves in a perilous salary cap situation? To answer this, we analyzed their salary cap spending by player and by position, and compared the numbers with the rest of the league. All numbers are via the NFLPA and OverTheCap.com. Here are some findings: 1. Tom Brady is expensive. From a cash perspective, Brady is a bargain — just $14 million in salary for 2019, plus $1 million in per-game bonuses. But Brady has a $27 million salary cap hit this year, the fourth-highest in the NFL behind Matthew Stafford ($29.5 million), Kirk Cousins ($29 million), and Andrew Luck ($27.525 million). The $12 million difference between Brady’s salary and his cap number is the largest of any player in the NFL, and is owed to Brady renegotiating his contract twice in the last four years. He restructured his deal in 2016, when he was suspended four games following Deflategate, taking a $28 million signing bonus and $1 million in salary that pushed a lot of cap money into the future but minimized the financial impact of his suspension. He renegotiated again last August to add incentives in his contract, which also included a conversion of $10 million in salary into a signing bonus, which pushed $5 million of cap dollars into 2019. Brady is such an obvious candidate for a contract extension and/or restructure that it’s a little baffling why it hasn’t happened already. The Patriots can easily create $7 million-$10 million in cap space by giving Brady a new multiyear deal with a big signing bonus — and that’s money that could have helped them in the first wave of free agency. Instead, they have held off. But common sense dictates that Brady’s extension is coming soon. There’s no reason to have him as the fourth-highest cap hit in the NFL. Top 51A look at the Patriots' top 51 players in cash and cap spending* Position Player Cash Cap QB Tom Brady $15,000,000 $27,000,000 CB Stephon Gilmore $10,000,000 $14,837,500 S Devin McCourty $9,500,000 $13,435,000 TE Rob Gronkowski $10,000,000 $11,859,375 LB Donta Hightower $7,875,000 $10,945,313 OL Marcus Cannon $6,150,000 $7,456,250 OL Shaq Mason $5,000,000 $7,275,000 DL Michael Bennett $7,200,000 $7,200,000 LB Kyle Van Noy $4,750,000 $6,291,668 WR Julian Edelman $3,000,000 $5,410,949 S Duron Harmon $3,250,000 $4,750,000 RB James White $3,250,000 $4,625,000 DL Lawrence Guy $3,500,000 $4,466,666 CB Jason McCourty $6,000,000 $4,250,000 S Patrick Chung $2,400,000 $4,175,000 OL David Andrews $2,400,000 $3,500,000 CB Jonathan Jones $3,095,000 $3,095,000 QB Brian Hoyer $3,000,000 $3,000,000 RB Rex Burkhead $2,250,000 $3,000,000 ST Matt Slater $2,400,000 $2,900,000 ST Nate Ebner $2,200,000 $2,787,500 OL Isaiah Wynn $1,000,087 $2,600,434 OL Joe Thuney $2,025,000 $2,218,357 RB Sony Michel $917,577 $2,187,885 DL Mike Pennel $2,400,000 $2,150,000 LB Elandon Roberts $2,025,000 $2,050,089 WR Josh Gordon $2,025,000 $2,025,000 LB John Simon $2,150,000 $1,775,000 ST Brandon Bolden $2,200,000 $1,700,000 RB James Develin $1,400,000 $1,600,000 ST Terrence Brooks $1,700,000 $1,450,000 ST Brandon King $1,175,000 $1,359,375 TE Matt Lacosse $1,400,000 $1,225,000 CB Duke Dawson $695,676 $1,078,381 WR Maurice Harris $1,000,000 $962,500 ST Joe Cardona $825,000 $955,000 DL Derek Rivers $680,000 $880,724 DL Deatrich Wise $645,000 $790,140 DL David Parry $760,000 $743,750 WR Bruce Ellington $895,000 $735,000 OL James Ferentz $720,000 $720,000 OL Ted Karras $720,000 $720,000 S Obi Melifonwu $825,000 $693,438 OL Brian Schwenke $895,000 $686,250 DL Ufomba Kamalu $745,000 $657,500 TE Stephen Anderson $650,000 $655,000 TE Jacob Hollister $645,000 $648,334 DL Adam Butler $645,000 $646,668 LB Ja'Whaun Bentley $570,000 $645,988 OL Cole Croston $645,000 $645,000 CB Keion Crossen $570,000 $588,598 SOURCE: NFLPA, OverTheCap.com; *as of Thursday, March 21 2. They have other high-priced players. The Patriots have five players with a salary cap hit of at least $10 million, tied for sixth-most in the NFL. Rob Gronkowski has the third-highest cap hit among tight ends ($11.86 million). Devin McCourty is third-highest among safeties ($13.44 million). Stephon Gilmore is fourth at cornerback ($14.84 million). Dont’a Hightower is eighth among traditional linebackers ($10.95 million). Cap numbers for Gilmore and McCourty are high because of previous contract tinkering. The Patriots in recent years converted some of their base salary into signing bonuses to create cap space in the current year, but it pushed extra cap money into this year (nearly $4 million for McCourty, and $4.8 million for Gilmore). Position-wise, the Patriots have the second-highest-paid secondary in the NFL (more than $52 million in cap dollars), trailing only the Ravens. They’re also spending the fifth-most on running backs ($11.1 million). 3. Their rookies haven’t hit. Players on their rookie contracts are the backbone of many successful teams because they are cheap and locked in for four or five years. Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield, last year’s No. 1 pick, has a cap number of $7.4 million this year. Ja’whaun Bentley, a promising young linebacker who could have a big role for the Patriots this year, has a cap number of $646,000. But the Patriots don’t have enough Bentleys on the team, through some questionable drafting and a concerted effort to eschew rookies for veterans. When looking at top 51 spending around the league (in the offseason, only a team’s top 51 contracts count toward the salary cap), the Patriots are tied with the Browns for the fewest players accounting for less than $1 million, with 18 out of the 51. League average is 24.2 players out of 51 at less than $1 million. The Patriots have 12 draft picks this year, and need several of them to hit because the team needs a youth infusion and more cheap players. 4. They spend a lot on the middle class. I looked at all 32 rosters, and sorted players into groups by salary cap number: $10 million and up, $7 million-$10 million, $5 million-$7 million, $3 million-$5 million, $1 million-$3 million, and less than $1 million. The Patriots are pretty much right at league average for the three highest groups, with 10 players carrying a cap number of at least $5 million. But they are loaded with players in the $1 million-$5 million range — 23 such players, second in the NFL behind Buffalo (24). League average is 16.6 players per team. Included in this list are key contributors such as Patrick Chung, David Andrews, James White, Sony Michel, and Joe Thuney. The Patriots’ philosophy in recent years has been to focus more on veterans than rookies. It is hard to argue with the results, but it is a costlier way to do business. 5. They don’t carry over much unused cap space. This is related to the previous item. The collective bargaining agreement allows teams to carry over any unused cap space into the next year, and teams such as the Browns ($56 million carryover), Colts ($49 million), and 49ers ($35 million) have more cap space than they know what to do with. League average this year was $10.6 million per team. But the Patriots had only $3.1 million to carry over, the ninth-lowest figure in the league. They have carried over significantly less than the league average in each of the last four years. 6. They spend a lot on special teams. This is hard to compare, but the Patriots sure seem to lead the league in players who play only special teams and don’t contribute on offense or defense. The Patriots have five such players, not including long snapper Joe Cardona and punter Ryan Allen. And they all have cap numbers between $1.36 million and $2.9 million: Matthew Slater, Nate Ebner, Brandon Bolden, Terrence Brooks, and Brandon King. The Patriots are currently spending more top 51 cap space on their special teams ($11.15 million) than they are on wide receivers ($9.13 million). It’s about the same amount they spend on running backs ($11.4 million). And that special teams figure doesn’t include Allen, who will likely take an additional $1 million of cap space, and kicker Stephen Gostkowski, who is a free agent and could take $3 million-$5 million in cap space if he re-signs. Coach Bill Belichick invests heavily in his special teams, and his teams always excel in this phase of the game. But there’s no question that investing so many cap dollars and roster spots on special teams-only players detracts from the rest of the roster. Ben Volin can be reached at ben.volin@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @BenVolin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt39 Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 It's ripe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
32EBoozer Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 Cheats have 12 picks in the draft this year. They will fill a lot of holes cheaply. Seattle with only 4 picks.... ouch!!! 2019 NFL Draft pick reset: Which teams have most selections post-free-agency? originally appeared on nbcsportsboston.com The frenzy that is NFL free agency has died down quite a bit since the market officially opened last Wednesday with the start of the new league year. In addition to hundreds of millions of dollars being spent to sign the top free agents, several blockbuster trades were completed as well. In fact, two of the league's best wide receivers, Antonio Brown and Odell Beckham Jr., were dealt for multiple trade assets. A lot of draft picks were exchanged as a result of these trades. The New England Patriotsowned the most picks in the 2019 NFL Draft entering free agency, but after the New York Giants traded OBJ and defensive end Olivier Vernon to the Cleveland Browns, they also have 12 picks in next month's draft. Here's a look at how many 2019 draft picks each of the 32 teams own as of Tuesday (h/t to ESPN's Field Yates). 12: New England Patriots, New York Giants 11: Cincinnati Bengals 10: Buffalo Bills, Arizona Cardinals, Green Bay Packers, Pittsburgh Steelers 9: Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons, Detroit Lions, Indianapolis Colts 8: Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, Oakland Raiders, Kansas City Chiefs, Denver Broncos, Minnesota Vikings 7: Jacksonville Jaguars, Houston Texans, Philadelphia Eagles, Carolina Panthers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Los Angeles Rams, Miami Dolphins, Los Angeles Chargers 6: New York Jets, New Orleans Saints, Tennessee Titans, Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers 5: Chicago Bears 4: Seattle Seahawks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chirorob Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 They are in a bad spot for cap space because they pushed salaries back to load up and go to 3 straight Super Bowls. The Jets go to 3 straight Super Bowls, I don't care if they never sign another FA again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCP63 Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 They have tons of draft picks, and Belicheck could make Trent Richardson look like AP. Non issue for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbatesman Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 They just won their sixth Super Bowl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
32EBoozer Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 10 minutes ago, chirorob said: They are in a bad spot for cap space because they pushed salaries back to load up and go to 3 straight Super Bowls. The Jets go to 3 straight Super Bowls, I don't care if they never sign another FA again. We need to have at least 1 Title for me to approve the ban on FA. Going and Getting are two different things (See Bills WIKI page) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
More Cowbell Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 One thing not mentioned in the article is Brady not only has not been restructured, he is in the last year of his current deal. With cap space being needed and Brady due for a new contract, it's really curious why they have not done it already if that is there intention. Could they be thinking it might be time to part ways? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerfish Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 a hof qb and smart coach can cover up and endless amount of other problems in a team. The pats have made plenty of organizational errors over the years they just don;t stick out as much because of brady and belly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetFreak89 Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 21 minutes ago, dbatesman said: They just won their sixth Super Bowl. Yeah but OTHER than that..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpartanJet Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 11 minutes ago, More Cowbell said: One thing not mentioned in the article is Brady not only has not been restructured, he is in the last year of his current deal. With cap space being needed and Brady due for a new contract, it's really curious why they have not done it already if that is there intention. Could they be thinking it might be time to part ways? Time for the Cheatriots to give the TB12 snake oil company more money so Brady signs another "team friendly" contract. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
choon328 Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 None of this matters until Brady retires. He makes every JAG better and his surrounding cast won't matter until multiple teams in this division put on their big boy pants and get aggressive to beat them. Until that happens their cap situation means dick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themeangreenkillingmachine Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 Some of you guys are deranged when it comes to the patriots. Yes, theyre cheaters. Tom Brady gets special treatment (wife's salary/health coaches/biased Officiating). But you look like fools when trying to criticize their management when they have won 6 SBs (and most recently) If hating something brings satisfaction, then you need to step back and rethink things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustInFudge Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 40 minutes ago, dbatesman said: They just won their sixth Super Bowl. And are going to win their 7th... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetPotato Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 Wow, and that's not even counting the money they pay Brady to sell them "supplements" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Harper Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 What really burns me about the Pats' cap is that they have been paying Brady under the table through his dopey vitamin company for years. If it was all above-board they would be way over the cap. So when anyone tells you that he is sacrificing salary on behalf of the team don't buy it for a minute. The league should go after them for this but they are gun-shy after the PR fail of going after one of their best players in deflate-gate (although the punishment was richly deserved).. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
14 in Green Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 31 minutes ago, Beerfish said: a hof qb and smart coach can cover up and endless amount of other problems in a team. The pats have made plenty of organizational errors over the years they just don;t stick out as much because of brady and belly If only we could have their problems... and Super Bowls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYs Stepchild Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 1 hour ago, PCP63 said: They have tons of draft picks, and Belicheck could make Trent Richardson look like AP. Non issue for them. The Patriots need to pool 7.8 million to sign their draft picks. Draft picks are not always cheap, especially when they don't work out and you still have to pay them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peebag Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 It doesn't matter, they'll just cheat. It's what they do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
playtowinthegame Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 43 minutes ago, JiF said: And are going to win their 7th... Love is blind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy2020 Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 yeah, those idiots. They'll never win a Superbowl now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetsplayer21 Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 1 hour ago, chirorob said: They are in a bad spot for cap space because they pushed salaries back to load up and go to 3 straight Super Bowls. The Jets go to 3 straight Super Bowls, I don't care if they never sign another FA again. Yep. They gambled and paid off. I hope this is the yr Brady finally shows his age. Eli is like 6 years younger, yet plays like he is a 49 yr old qb already Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadaSteve Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 So, this means they only have three Super Bowl trips left? SWEET!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRy56 Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 Garbage. Unbelievable how they run that trash organization - perennial bottom dwellers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustInFudge Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 30 minutes ago, playtowinthegame said: Love is blind. You confuse truth with love and it’s weird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joenamathwouldn'tcry Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 2 hours ago, BroadwayRay said: Remember when free agency started and all the sports media ran photos of Bill Belichick and his girlfriend frolicking in the waters of Barbados without a care in the world The man's got to take a bath sometime. From the looks of him, he was long overdue. Sorry Ray, I hate the Patriocheats so much, I didn't have the energy or desire to read the article. I'm in fact, numb to them. Their time is coming soon, that's all that matters. Those who don't see the decline in Brady are not paying attention. They won't win the Super Bowl this upcoming season. That's not sour grapes. It's an observation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
32EBoozer Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 1 hour ago, JiF said: And are going to win their 7th... Now that the Chiefs are bleeding wife beater talent, Pitt w/o AB & Bell, their path to the SB has become much easier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndianaJet Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 2 hours ago, chirorob said: They are in a bad spot for cap space because they pushed salaries back to load up and go to 3 straight Super Bowls. The Jets go to 3 straight Super Bowls, I don't care if they never sign another FA again. If there was a "post of the year" rep....I would have used that one instead of post of the week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RutgersJetFan Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 This board is a far better place since TX got laced, but this is one of those instances where his trolling skills shined. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EM31 Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 So the demise of the Patriots is just around the corner? Good to know. Let me hold my breath on that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themeangreenkillingmachine Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 9 minutes ago, EM31 said: So the demise of the Patriots is just around the corner? Good to know. Let me hold my breath on that one. It's been said since the jets beat them in that div playoff game in 2010.I remember pats fans saying Brady was getting old. Jets fans saying the table has turned. Almost 10 years later... I'll believe their run is done when Brady says so Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creepy Lurker Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 17 minutes ago, RutgersJetFan said: This board is a far better place since TX got laced, but this is one of those instances where his trolling skills shined. I found this and it seems accurate: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slimjasi Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 I’d probably be in Barbados permanently after my 2nd or third Super Bowl victory. BB just got his sixth. The pats can do whatever the f*ck they want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larz Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 They pay a safety and a linebacker in the top 5 of their cap? The horror Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southparkcpa Posted March 22, 2019 Share Posted March 22, 2019 4 hours ago, chirorob said: They are in a bad spot for cap space because they pushed salaries back to load up and go to 3 straight Super Bowls. The Jets go to 3 straight Super Bowls, I don't care if they never sign another FA again. Agreed. Stupidest fukkin article ever. Possibly the greatest franchise in 50 years in sports and someone wants to nit pick? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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