Following the Patriots’ loss in Super Bowl LII, the main priority for the franchise is to maximize its chances of winning a sixth ring in the twilight of the waning Brady and Belichick era.
Navigating free agency in the salary cap era is challenging given the fine line that front offices must walk between retaining in-house talent and bringing in new players to improve the team. With the onset of the NFL’s 2018 free agency season on the horizon (March 14th), let’s take an in-depth look at each of the Patriots’ position groups as they pertain to free agency. Of course, some positions, such as quarterback or interior offensive line, are facing little turnover, while others, such as the defensive line, are in for a massive overhaul.
In this series, we will focus on two categories of players within each position group: Patriots free agents and free agents that the Patriots could or should target. First, we’ll turn our focus to Tom Brady’s stable of backfield companions: the running backs.
Patriots Free Agents
Of the five running backs that the Patriots rostered throughout the course of the 2017 season, three are unrestricted free agents. These players include Dion Lewis, Rex Burkhead, and Brandon Bolden.
With over 1,000 total scrimmage yards and 9 touchdowns, Dion Lewis was a key cog in the Patriots’ offensive machine, but his skill set is similar to that of James White, who is still under contract with the team heading into the 2018 season. Though there is a possibility that Lewis leaves for a richer contract, the running back market in general is seldom lucrative for free agents, and it is unlikely that Lewis would have a larger role with any other team than he does with the Patriots in Josh McDaniels’s system. His “jitterbug” stature would keep him from true feature back status on other teams, whereas the Patriots place a high emphasis on the passing back skill set. If Lewis is disillusioned as to his own value, expect him to end up being overpaid by a team with lots of cap space like the Browns or Jets. Otherwise, expect him back in a Pats uniform. Rex Burkhead, though effective with healthy, is likely seen as expendable and will only return on a team-friendly deal. Brandon Bolden is primarily a special teamer, and his price tag his low. Couple that with Belichick's apparent affinity for Bolden, and we can expect him back at a low salary.
Free Agent Targets
Given the affordability of the running back market, we can expect the Patriots to try to add at least one newcomer to the group via free agency in the same way that the team has added players like Legarrette Blount and Mike Gillislee in the past. I’ll pose three possible free agent targets for the Patriots here: Jerick McKinnon, Jeremy Hill, and Thomas Rawls. With Dalvin Cook and Latavius Murray entrenched in Minnesota for 2018, it’s clear that McKinnon wants out. With nearly 1,000 scrimmage yards on only 200 touches (and considering his youth at age 25), McKinnon could easily slot into the Dion Lewis role should Lewis leave in free agency. Hill and Rawls are both larger backs with past success who have found themselves mired in unfavorable situations on two teams that are currently on the downslide. As a power back in 2016, Blount managed 18 touchdowns with the Patriots. With Gillislee underperforming in that role in 2017, the Patriots could look to either Hill or Rawls to try to reach that Blount level of production in 2018. Either could provide a much needed hard-nosed running style for those “goal to go” and “3 yards and a cloud of dust” situations.
(Image Via Patriots.com)
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