Should the New England Patriots Re-Sign BenJarvus Green-Ellis?

Trading an answer for a question may work on Jeopardy, but it hardly ever works on the football field. The New England Patriots know this, and according to his agent Joe Segal (via Pro Football Talk), they have begun talking to running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis about a new contract. 

They have rarely ever spent the farm to re-sign a free agent running back. Instead, they resign themselves to a running back by committee, which, like the rest of their team, is like a car with interchangeable parts.

The tread is still pretty thick on the Green-Ellis' wheels, but that may not stop the Patriots from parting ways anyway. And it's ironic, when you think about it. For a team that preaches its players to "do their job," Green-Ellis has done his job every time he's touched the ball.

His job: Don't fumble. 

Some would argue that that is just discipline, but it's a keen ability that's hard to teach. His upper body strength is something else too, where his arms aren't too big but are strong enough to withstand violent hits and retain possession of the ball.

The ultimate decision, though, may have less to do with Green-Ellis and more with rookie running back Stevan Ridley. Although he has shown much more potential as a "big-play" back than Green-Ellis, Ridley's weakness is the Law Firm's strength. In fact, Ridley was benched for the AFC Championship Game because of his fumbles, and also didn't have a carry in the Super Bowl.

But according to a recent post from CBS' Mike Freeman, the Patriots are looking to get more athletic on both sides of the ball after what happened to them in the Super Bowl.

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The Super Bowl was close, but the difference in athleticism wasn't. The Giants' speed and explosiveness was demonstrated at critical moments. Mario Manningham is the Giants' third wide receiver but he's still more explosive than any of the receivers on the Patriots and it showed on one historic play. Exemplary tight ends like the ones on the Patriots are obviously good to have but it's the speed on the outside that makes a difference in a game.

I'm told Belichick knows he's been getting away with all of this and wants to try and change things beginning this offseason by adding a fast wide receiver and more speed across the roster. We'll see if he can.

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Adding speed would imply more players like Ridley and less players like Green-Ellis. 

With all things taken into account, the Patriots would probably love to have Green-Ellis back in 2012, but only on their terms. When it comes to the interchangeable parts of the Patriots offense, it's about finding effective fits both on the field and in the checkbook.

If it comes to that, Green-Ellis' reliability won't be easy to replace, but Ridley is a turbo injection to the Patriots engine in the backfield.

Let's just hope he doesn't blow a gasket.

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