5 Bargain-Basement Free Agents the Patriots Should Sign
It's hard to get to the top of the mountain, but it's even harder to stay there.
The New England Patriots are no strangers to the difficulties of trying to repeat as Super Bowl champions, but in order to do so in 2015, they will have to familiarize themselves with their salary-cap situation. At the moment, it does not look good.
Unless the Patriots fail to pick up the $12.5 million roster bonus on the contract of cornerback Darrelle Revis, they will be in the hole for $25 million for Revis in 2015 and roughly $4.5 million over the salary cap, according to sports contracts website Spotrac.
That would force the Patriots to ask a few key players to take some major pay cuts, including the likes of nose tackle Vince Wilfork and linebacker Jerod Mayo. It would also force the team to address some of its needs by shopping in the bargain bin for free agents.
Here are a few unheralded players who could fill some needs for the Patriots at a lower cost than some high-profile counterparts.
Derrick Shelby, DE, Miami Dolphins
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For years, the Patriots have been lacking depth at defensive end behind Chandler Jones and Rob Ninkovich. In 2015, there will be a few opportunities to address those concerns.
Enter Derrick Shelby, who can help add another layer of depth to the Patriots rotation off the edge. He has not earned a lot of playing time for the Miami Dolphins, thanks to the dominant play of Cameron Wake and Olivier Vernon. That being said, he has found himself in the mix for snaps on a consistent basis and is capable as both a run defender and pass-rusher.
He will not provide the consistent pressure of Wake or Vernon, but he will at least give the Patriots an option when it comes to giving Jones and Ninkovich a breather from time to time. Shelby has been making an average of $483,333 over the past three seasons, and he should not command more than $1 million per year as a free agent.
In addition to his fit on the field, the Patriots would also have to make sure they are comfortable with Shelby's fit in the locker room, after Miami suspended him for conduct detrimental to the team following an incident at a Florida nightclub in October.
Darius Butler, CB, Indianapolis Colts
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Never rule out a reunion.
Sure, things didn't work out quite like the Patriots or Darius Butler had hoped during their first stint together from 2009 to 2011, but both the team and player have changed a lot since then.
In 2010, Butler's last year with the team, he allowed completions on 61.2 percent of the throws in his direction and yielded a catch on one in every 9.6 snaps in coverage (57th out of 103 cornerbacks), per Pro Football Focus.
In 2014, Butler allowed completions on only 56.5 percent of the throws into his coverage and allowed a reception on one in every 12 snaps he played in coverage, which was the 12th-lowest rate in the league.
All that being said, Butler is not likely to command a big-ticket contract on the open market. While he is talented, he is not the kind of shutdown cornerback who will typically garner a high-paying contract as a free agent. The Indianapolis Colts signed him for $2 million per year in 2013, and the going rate should not be too much higher in 2015.
Daryn Colledge, G, Miami Dolphins
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The Patriots offensive line began the season as one of the team's biggest weaknesses, but by the end of the season, it had solidified into a stable unit. The season began much like the preseason, with the Patriots using different combinations of linemen in search of the best one. They eventually found it in Week 5, but in the process, they exposed a lack of depth in the middle.
Guard Daryn Colledge has started for seven years in the NFL at left guard and right guard for the Green Bay Packers and Miami Dolphins. The Dolphins signed him to a one-year, $2 million deal last offseason, and it is not likely that he will command much more than that on the open market this year.
Dan Connolly is soon to be a free agent and could possibly sign with a different team next season. If that's the case, the Patriots will need to find a replacement option, and Colledge's experience at multiple positions makes him a good fit for the Patriots offensive line.
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Brandon Graham, OLB, Philadelphia Eagles
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Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Brandon Graham may not want to be included in a list of bargain-basement free agents—no one does—but he may not have a choice.
Graham has already gone on record as saying he wants a deal in the neighborhood of four years and $30 million with $20 million guaranteed, according to Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com. He wouldn't be the first part-time player to cash in on a big deal as a free agent; the Minnesota Vikings signed defensive end Everson Griffen to a five-year, $42.5 million contract last offseason.
But after signing that deal, Griffen became a full-time player on the Vikings defense. Unless a team sees Graham as a full-time player, it may not want to shell out top dollar.
Graham has logged 14 sacks in the past three seasons: 5.5 in 2012 and 2014, and three in 2013. He hasn't shown the potential to be an every-down force in the NFL just yet, but he has proved to be a nice scheme-versatile rotational pass-rushing presence. The Patriots could use him to help give Jones and Ninkovich a rest every now and then.
Kenny Britt, WR, St. Louis Rams
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St. Louis is probably the best place for Kenny Britt to be. Jeff Fisher is still the Rams head coach and is also the one responsible for Britt being a first-round pick in 2009. He thrived in St. Louis, comparatively speaking, hauling in a career-high 48 catches for 748 yards and three touchdowns last season.
The Patriots showed interest in Britt last offseason but chose not to sign him. Now, without Kenbrell Thompkins and with the injury of Aaron Dobson, the Patriots could be in the market for another big-bodied receiver.
At 6'3" and 223 pounds, Britt has the size to win matchups one-on-one on the outside. He may not be the deep threat who will test a defense vertically, but he can win on the perimeter and cause a defense to stretch horizontally to defend the width of the field.
Britt signed a one-year, $1.4 million contract with the Rams last year and is not likely to command a much bigger contract on the open market.
Unless otherwise noted, all advanced stats obtained via ProFootballFocus.com; all salary cap and contract information obtained via Spotrac.com.
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