Last season, the New England Patriots and Bill Belichick acted like they did not like the composition of their roster. They spent big money — at an unprecedented clip — to build a new team around a crop of expensive free agents. Their success was mixed, as it goes with free agents.
This year, the Patriots have taken a quiet approach to free agency. Belichick has not added a single free agent, instead electing to re-sign his important veterans. Safety Devin McCourty, running back James White, receiver Matthew Slater, quarterback Brian Hoyer and kicker Nick Folk are headed back to New England — with each of them making relatively small sums except for, perhaps, McCourty, who will have a $5.75 million cap charge. For a starting safety (and one who is arguably one of the best in the league), that’s an incredibly reasonable price. The only splash Belichick has made was a trade for linebacker Mack Wilson (sending away OLB Chase Winovich).
It has been quiet — not unlike the days of old when Belichick assembled his roster around Tom Brady with castoffs and players in need of career rejuvenation. And the Patriots are actually over the salary cap with their deals as they’re constructed right now.
But let’s be clear: New England isn’t spending more money because it doesn’t have more money. The Patriots can clear plenty of cap space to continue filtering in new bodies and out old ones. But Belichick hasn’t taken the obvious opportunities to free up space. He hasn’t converted Matt Judon’s or Hunter Henry’s salaries into signing bonus. No, the Patriots aren’t leveraging future spending dollars to continue their roster overhaul.
This offseason is about maintaining. This offseason is about developing the young talent and holding onto the established talent. This offseason is, frankly, about quarterback Mac Jones.
The Patriots need to take a massive jump forward next season and, in the coming days, New England is likely to lose more talented players than it gains. Now that they’ve spent themselves broke (in salary cap figures), the Patriots will likely watch most of their remaining pending free agents sign else. Cornerback J.C. Jackson and guard Ted Karras are gone. Tackle Trent Brown and many others might be on the way out, too.
So how can the Patriots combat an eventual decline? It has to be through the development of Jones. Quarterbacks can help cure the ails of a mediocre roster. Quarterbacks can make the difference in wins. Jones couldn’t do that in 2021. But he’ll need to do that in 2022.
Belichick clearly feels comfortable with the talent he’s given Jones — otherwise, the Patriots coach would have probably been more aggressive in adding more. And there’s time to add more in free agency and the draft. But the early indication is that the patriots are good with what they’ve got.
That means Jones is the most important asset they’ve got. The Patriots will need to ensure that in his second season, he takes a leap forward from game manager to game-winner.
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