NFL Lockout: 6 Players the New England Patriots Must Sign Following the Lockout

Can you believe it? Both sides of the NFL lockout are nearing an agreement and could make it official this upcoming Thursday, according to multiple sources. 

Once the lockout is lifted, it's assumed that free agency will begin and it's going to be a frenzy—and that's an understand.

Teams will scramble to re-sign the players they want as they look out for possible additions from the open market.

Here are six players that the Patriots must sign once the lockout is finally over. 

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Matt Light

Believe it or not, I firmly believe that the New England Patriots need to re-sign Matt Light—rookie Nate Solder will not be able to be the starting left tackle right away, considering such a shortened off-season. 

Light will be looking for a long-term contract as he recently turned 33 years old, but many teams may not be willing to go the extra mile, including the Patriots.

New England needs to re-sign Light so he could simply be a safety-net for Solder and could even be the team's starter in 2011, depending on how well Solder develops and performs during preseason. 

Kevin Faulk

If you take a look at New England's back-field, you may think it's quite crowded, but there's certainly more than enough room for veteran Kevin Faulk.

Faulk is the longest tenured Patriot and is a great locker-room guy and simply needs to remain a Patriot, considering how young New England really is.

The Patriots selected two running backs in this year's draft, Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley, and both players would definitely benefit from the presence of Faulk as he'd offer many words of wisdom. 

Faulk's role with the Patriots in 2011 would be minimal, as Danny Woodhead took on Faulk's previous role, but the 35-year-old running back would serve more as a player-coach. 

Matt Roth

Matt Roth is the best option for the New England's pass rushing woes as he'll likely come job along with his experience in the 3-4 defense.

Roth spent two seasons as a Cleveland Brown playing in Eric Mangini's 3-4 defensive system, a defense that is extremely similar to New England's—considering that Mangini was New England's former defensive coordinator.

Last season for the Browns, Roth racked up four sacks and could excel in a pass-rushing role in New England's defense.

Roth may not be an every-down outside linebacker, but he'll offer much better production than guys like Tully Banta-Cain and Rob Ninkovich. 

Logan Mankins

Logan Mankins may have been tagged as New England's franchise player, but both sides need to work out a long-term deal.

Mankins is one of the league's top offensive guards and the Patriots need to lock him up long-term, and that will involving spending a little bit of dough—but it will certainly be worth it.

Shalise Manza Young of the Boston Globe recently stated that she believes that New England will attempt to sign Mankins to a long-term deal, so I guess all we can do is just sit back and watch while knowing that keeping Mankins should be a top priority. 

BenJarvus Green-Ellis

Prior to the lockout, New England placed a second-round tender on restricted free-agent BenJarvus Green-Ellis. 

Many believe that Green-Ellis will be back in 2011, including Mike Reiss of ESPN Boston. 

Green-Ellis became New England's first 1,000 yard rusher since 2004 when Corey Dillon. The Law Firm ran for a grand total of 1,008 yards as he averaged 4.4 yards per-carry and scored an incredible 12 touchdowns on the ground.

Green-Ellis is a perfect compliment for quarterback Tom Brady as he's a hard-runner that always runs north and south and has yet to fumble in his entire professional career. 

I firmly believe that it's almost a lock that Green-Ellis will be a Patriot in 2011. 

Sidney Rice

In my opinion, the addition of Sidney Rice would simply put New England's offensive over-the-top and could quite possibly became unstoppable. 

However, the only way that Bill Belichick and the Patriots are going to reel in Rice is by spending some major cash—which is against the norm for the Pats. 

The major concern regarding Rice is his ability to stay on the field, as he's only played one full season out of his four years in the NFL. However, in that complete season Rice put up incredible numbers as he snagged 83 balls for 1,312 receiving yards while scoring eight touchdowns—that was with Brett Favre, now imagine how well he'd do with Tom Brady.

Rice would be the perfect addition to New England's already strong receiving corps as he's a major threat to break open a big play while still remaining physical and has the ability to force his way open with his body. 

Adding Rice into the mix with Wes Welker, Deion Branch, Rob Gronkowski, Aaron Hernandez, Danny Woodhead and Brandon Tate—Brady may be an easy choice for 2011 Most Valuable Player.