Words with Frenz: AFC East Mailbag, 2/28 Edition

Peyton Manning's impending free agency grew legs long ago, and now it's grown an extra head and six more eyeballs. The Miami Dolphins and their fans just can't stop looking at the media monster that ManningWatch has become.

Also, if Patriots fans could stop and smell the roses on receivers other than free agent-to-be Brandon Lloyd, who would those guys be? Maybe Saints receiver Marques Colston?

Finally, should the Jets be looking to upgrade over Shonn Greene?

All this and more inside the "Words With Frenz" AFC East mailbag.

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@ErikFrenz do you believe the Dolphins are the front runners for Peyton Manning?

— Alex Hoegler (@AlexH2795) Feb. 28, 2012"

With new reports coming out every day, it's hard to say for sure right now, especially since ESPN's Adam Schefter reported via Twitter that teams that weren't even interested before are interested now.

Originally, the three biggest contenders in the sweepstakes were the Dolphins, Cardinals and Redskins. Add the Chiefs to that list after head coach Romeo Crennel's comments to the media. A Monday staff report from Sporting News adds the Jets and the Seahawks to the list.

I personally believe Manning will end up with the Dolphins, but it's anyone's guess at this stage. Of those teams, though, it's hard to argue that the Dolphins give Manning his best chance to win now.

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@ErikFrenz #WordsWithFrenz Hey Erik, great show Saturday. Is there any chance....ANY, that BB drafts an athletic edge rusher for a change?

— Steve Balestrieri (@SteveB7SFG) Feb. 27, 2012"

Always an outside chance, Steve. Whether the Patriots take the plunge remains to be seen.

The Patriots have been in search of their next outside linebacker since Willie McGinest left in the 2007 offseason. We don't have to go all Plankton and try to steal the secret formula from Mr. Krabs; it's pretty well-known at this point:

• 6'4" tall, 260 pounds
• 4.6-second 40-yard dash
• "long" build—arms, legs
• can set the edge against the run
• can rush the passer
• can drop into coverage

The problem, of course, is putting together the perfect Krabby Patty. Those constraints have caused the Patriots to miss out on some good pass rushers, but the Patriots remain unwavering in their refusal to try and fit a square peg into a round hole.

There are a lot of pass rushers in this crop that don't quite fit the bill for one reason or the other, and a good deal of the top prospects this year are far from "perfect fits," as it were.

The question that remains unanswered is whether the Patriots will stick with the 4-3 next year or go back to their conventional 3-4 alignment.

If they're going with a 4-3 moving forward, that opens them up to take some of the athletic edge rushers that may not fit their prototype. If they are going back to the 3-4, they're far less likely to take someone. 

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@ErikFrenz Marques Colston is asking for 7 mil a year, which would mean the #Patriots could sign him and still have $ for others. Thoughts?

— Brendan Greeley (@Brendan89) Feb. 28, 2012"

Glad you asked. So much time has been spent beating the Brandon Lloyd drum, we haven't really stopped to smell the roses on the other free-agent wide receivers.

The New Orleans Saints have $20 million-$25 million in cap space according to Bryan McIntyre of Football Outsiders, but they have spend a lot of money to keep Drew Brees and Carl Nicks, who are both set to become free agents. Nicks is expected to get the tag, which means they'll likely sign Drew Brees to a long-term deal. 

Colston's services may come on the cheap, but is he the type of receiver the Patriots are looking for? They need someone who can force defenses to stretch horizontally, not necessarily vertically.

Colston has proven he can win one-on-one matchups on the outside, but I need to know he's not just a one-trick pony.

I honestly haven't watched him much, but he has size that the Patriots lack, and his numbers indicate he's an effective receiver (over 70/1000/7 every year he's played 12 or more games).

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@ErikFrenz How do you see the Jets handling their run game in 2012? Shonn Greene relatively on his own isn't enough, right? #WordsWithFrenz

— Andrea Hangst (@FBALL_Andrea) Feb. 28, 2012"

I'm not sure on that, Andrea. It's hard to judge based on last season because the Jets offensive line was so bad all around according to Pro Football Focus via ESPN. Vlad Ducasse is a turnstile; Matt Slauson was injured, but hasn't really stood out otherwise.

But last year, several players had worse-than-expected seasons, including Brandon Moore and D'Brickashaw Ferguson. Those two need to get back on their feet to get back to the ground-and-pound.

Even if the offensive line is at full health, though, is Shonn Greene the guy? He's not a big-play back; he averaged just 4.1 yards per carry last year, which is nothing to speak of considering the league average was 4.3. His longest career carry is 33 yards.

Not only is Greene not a big-play back, but he's not a goal-line back, either; he has 10 career touchdowns, and he scored just six touchdowns in 2011. Mark Sanchez had as many as Greene last year. Bad play-calling, sure, but that should tell you how they feel about Greene on the goal line.

The Jets should consider investing at the position in the draft; that being said, they've spent four of their 13 picks since 2009 on running backs.

The Jets are already average at best and inconsistent at worst at quarterback, so if they're going to put any more chips into the running-back pot, they need to make sure they're going all-in for a guy that can be consistently above average.

If Trent Richardson falls that far, it will be a miracle, but if that miracle occurs, will the Jets be the team to bite? If they are able to solve their woes on the offensive line in other ways, this is a smart move. If not, Richardson could be subject to the same abuse that Sanchez and the Jets running backs suffered last year.

Alright guys, that's all I've got for this week. Thanks for your questions! Sorry if I didn't get to yours, but you can tweet at me anytime at the link below, and I'll be sure to respond.

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