Pats Set to Release OLB Colvin
And so the saga at linebacker continues. It's an interesting move for the Patriots to cut the Purdue grad; it shores up $7.6 million in cap space (Rosey's base salary was $5.5 million), but the downside is that it also makes an already thin LB corps that much more thin. Maybe Bill's planning on switching to a 4-3 defense with Seymour, Wilfork, Green and Warren on the line, hence making Colvin expendable. Who knows? The upcoming 2008 season was to be the last year of the deal Rosey signed in 2002, so this could simply mean the Pats are looking to offer him a restructured deal for less money per year and over a couple more seasons.
Colvin's season was cut short after he injured his foot against the Eagles on November 25, 2007, and he's currently rehabbing the foot after undergoing surgery to correct the problem. In spite of his age (30), Colvin is widely considered one of the better pass-rushing linebackers in the league, so it would be idiotic at best for the Pats to simply let him walk without attempting to re-sign him. With the release, the Pats have only two full-time, established starters at the linebacker position in Mike Vrabel and Adalius Thomas, along with a bunch of part-timers, backups and special-teamers in Larry Izzo, Eric Alexander, and Pierre Woods (with Oscar Lua also being cut). Of course, the Pats may just be planning on keeping Adalius Thomas on the outside (where he moved after Colvin went down with the foot injury), meaning that both he and Vrabel would be occupying the edges with the inside positions presumably being filled via free agency and drafting.
My prediction: Maybe it's the fan in me, but I hope they bring Rosey back. He's big, explosive, quick off the edge, and a great tackler. Colvin received a Scouts Inc. rating of 79 (out of 100, with steroid-injecting Shawn Merriman ranked the highest of any LB at 93), placing him at the top of the second tier of LBs alongside stars like Ray Lewis, Jonathon Vilma (who, if you've seen the recent news, is allowed to seek a trade to any team except the New England Patriots - bite me, Mangini), AJ Hawk, and Akin Ayodele. If that's not good enough for $12 to $15 million spread out over three years, I don't know what is. I doubt Colvin would take that much of a hometown discount, though, as he bolted from "hometown" Chicago after the 2002 season because the Pats were offering the big money.
Free agent OLB Lance Briggs is ranked 84; I like the move of cutting Colvin if they're going to use his money to make a big push for Briggs. He's not quite as good of a pass rusher as Rosey, but his coverage skills are second-to-none in the league. How awesome would it be to have an LB corps that includes both Adalius Thomas AND Lance Briggs? The Pats may also be looking to address their LB needs in the draft, as they could grab one of the top DE's (no use going after one of the LBs that high with Laurinaitis staying in school) with the 7 pick and convert him to OLB. OSU's Vernon Gholston would fit in well with the Pats' front seven, don't you think?
Other Pats news:
DB Eugene Wilson will most likely not be returning to the Patriots. In spite of sub-par play and a plethora of injuries, the free agent safety still has some name value as a well-respected 2003 draft pick and will look to parlay that into a nice payday from teams like the Dolphins, Jets, Browns, and Saints.
Free agent CB Asante Samuel is looking for a deal in the neighborhood of $100 million over ten seasons and the leader for his services appears to be the New Orleans Saints. A deal of this proportion would easily make him the highest paid defensive player in the history of the NFL. Apparently the trade market for DeAngelo Hall is driving up Samuel's price tag, giving football purists yet another reason to dislike DeAngelo Hall. Other teams known to have shown particular interest are the Buccaneers and Eagles. We Patriots fans who know Asante isn't worth anywhere near that amount of money can sit back and laugh.
The Pats apparently aren't close to a new deal with Randy Moss, but they believe he will give them the chance to match any offers he may receive during the free agency period. Well, they better hope that's the case, or else they'll have made the worst mistake in the organization's history by not placing the franchise tag on him last week. Come to think of it, there's a great chance the Pats will use the money they're saving by releasing Rosey toward a multiyear deal with Moss. It's a good move in that regard, but they'll still need to address the LB corps regardless of who they sign or re-sign on the offense.
Colvin's season was cut short after he injured his foot against the Eagles on November 25, 2007, and he's currently rehabbing the foot after undergoing surgery to correct the problem. In spite of his age (30), Colvin is widely considered one of the better pass-rushing linebackers in the league, so it would be idiotic at best for the Pats to simply let him walk without attempting to re-sign him. With the release, the Pats have only two full-time, established starters at the linebacker position in Mike Vrabel and Adalius Thomas, along with a bunch of part-timers, backups and special-teamers in Larry Izzo, Eric Alexander, and Pierre Woods (with Oscar Lua also being cut). Of course, the Pats may just be planning on keeping Adalius Thomas on the outside (where he moved after Colvin went down with the foot injury), meaning that both he and Vrabel would be occupying the edges with the inside positions presumably being filled via free agency and drafting.
My prediction: Maybe it's the fan in me, but I hope they bring Rosey back. He's big, explosive, quick off the edge, and a great tackler. Colvin received a Scouts Inc. rating of 79 (out of 100, with steroid-injecting Shawn Merriman ranked the highest of any LB at 93), placing him at the top of the second tier of LBs alongside stars like Ray Lewis, Jonathon Vilma (who, if you've seen the recent news, is allowed to seek a trade to any team except the New England Patriots - bite me, Mangini), AJ Hawk, and Akin Ayodele. If that's not good enough for $12 to $15 million spread out over three years, I don't know what is. I doubt Colvin would take that much of a hometown discount, though, as he bolted from "hometown" Chicago after the 2002 season because the Pats were offering the big money.
Free agent OLB Lance Briggs is ranked 84; I like the move of cutting Colvin if they're going to use his money to make a big push for Briggs. He's not quite as good of a pass rusher as Rosey, but his coverage skills are second-to-none in the league. How awesome would it be to have an LB corps that includes both Adalius Thomas AND Lance Briggs? The Pats may also be looking to address their LB needs in the draft, as they could grab one of the top DE's (no use going after one of the LBs that high with Laurinaitis staying in school) with the 7 pick and convert him to OLB. OSU's Vernon Gholston would fit in well with the Pats' front seven, don't you think?
Other Pats news:
DB Eugene Wilson will most likely not be returning to the Patriots. In spite of sub-par play and a plethora of injuries, the free agent safety still has some name value as a well-respected 2003 draft pick and will look to parlay that into a nice payday from teams like the Dolphins, Jets, Browns, and Saints.
Free agent CB Asante Samuel is looking for a deal in the neighborhood of $100 million over ten seasons and the leader for his services appears to be the New Orleans Saints. A deal of this proportion would easily make him the highest paid defensive player in the history of the NFL. Apparently the trade market for DeAngelo Hall is driving up Samuel's price tag, giving football purists yet another reason to dislike DeAngelo Hall. Other teams known to have shown particular interest are the Buccaneers and Eagles. We Patriots fans who know Asante isn't worth anywhere near that amount of money can sit back and laugh.
The Pats apparently aren't close to a new deal with Randy Moss, but they believe he will give them the chance to match any offers he may receive during the free agency period. Well, they better hope that's the case, or else they'll have made the worst mistake in the organization's history by not placing the franchise tag on him last week. Come to think of it, there's a great chance the Pats will use the money they're saving by releasing Rosey toward a multiyear deal with Moss. It's a good move in that regard, but they'll still need to address the LB corps regardless of who they sign or re-sign on the offense.
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