Projected market value for Patriots’ top pending free agents

The Patriots have multiple in-house free agents they might want to re-sign. Here’s what it could cost them.

Big decisions loom on the horizon for the New England Patriots heading into free agency.

They’re sitting pretty right now with roughly over $100 million in available salary cap space, but they are also a team bogged down with various holes and upgrade needs on their roster.

Free agency isn’t just about paying big money to load up on outside talent. It’s also about keeping the talent you already have to ensure some continuity. Not everything was bad with the 4-13 Patriots, and this isn’t a situation where the organization is looking to throw the entire team away.

There were pieces that stood out as potential parts of an eventual solution in New England. and it now falls on Patriots executive Eliot Wolf and the front office to figure out ways to keep those pieces intact.

Today, we’re taking a closer look at the Patriots’ top free agents and their projected market values, according to PFF.com and Spotrac.com.

25 best free agent targets for the Patriots in 2024

Here are the 25 best free agent options for the Patriots

The New England Patriots are expected to be aggressive in free agency this offseason in an effort to fill multiple holes on their roster.

It’s no secret that the onus for the 4-13 finish in 2023 falls predominantly on the offensive struggles. There’s a need to fill at every offensive position for New England, most notably at quarterback, wide receiver and offensive tackle.

However, don’t think for one second that the defense will go ignored. That unit was one of the best in the NFL last season, and it kept the team in games that would have otherwise turned into blowouts.

If the Patriots hope to remain competitive in 2024, they’ll need to continue adding defensive playmakers to keep games close. In no particular order, here are the 25 best potential free agent targets for the Patriots:

Stock up, stock down for 12 Patriots players heading into Week 8

Who’s stock is up, and who’s stock is down in New England?

The 2023 season hasn’t gone as expected for the New England Patriots.

Those that expected the team to be competitive in the AFC East are likely surprised to see them sitting at 2-5 with little hope of competing for a playoff spot.

But even the team’s biggest skeptics didn’t expect to see them sink to the bottom of the division with talks of them being in line for a top-five pick in the 2024 NFL draft. There’s obviously the possibility of things changing with the Patriots coming off a huge upset win over the Buffalo Bills.

If they can somehow beat the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, the schedule will lighten significantly, and they’ll have a real chance to start racking up wins. It’s a long-shot chance that’s heavily dependent on the players’ ability to elevate their game down the stretch.

Let’s take a look at the stock report for 12 Patriots players ahead of their Week 8 clash with the Dolphins. Who’s up and who’s down in New England?

Studs and duds in Patriots’ surprising comeback win over Bills

Who were the Patriots’ studs and duds in Sunday’s win over the Bills?

Somehow, someway, the New England Patriots managed to do the unthinkable by knocking off the Buffalo Bills at Gillette Stadium.

Not only did the Patriots upset the odds, but they delivered a crucial blow to a division rival that has big-brothered them for the last two seasons. The win on Sunday put an end to the Patriots’ four-game losing streak to the Bills, while also breathing new life in their season overall.

It was a complete team effort with the defense creating opportunities, the offense putting points on the board and special teams consistently making big plays to put the Patriots in position to pull off the upset.

You won’t find many duds on this list, despite it being far from a perfect game for the Patriots. The defense had some tackling issues, and Kendrick Bourne coughed up a bad fumble. But the team was still able to come away with a big win in the end.

Let’s take a look at the studs and duds of the game:

Patriots’ top 10 defensive players in Week 5, per PFF grades

These were the Patriots’ top-10 defensive players in Week 5, per PFF grades

Defense is about the only hope the New England Patriots have left this season, and that couldn’t have been more evident than Sunday’s 34-0 blowout loss to the New Orleans Saints.

It was another afternoon of horrific turnovers for the offense with one being a pick-six after a poor throwing decision from quarterback Mac Jones. The Saints dominated the battle of field position and time of possession by a 39:34-20:26 margin.

The defense didn’t really have much of a chance in the game.

Keep in mind, it’s also a defense that lost two of its best players, cornerback Christian Gonzalez and linebacker Matthew Judon, to injuries in the previous week. The good news is the unit continued to fight valiantly, even when clearly facing an uphill battle.

There was still tremendous effort on display for a team that currently looks like one of the worst in the NFL. Unfortunately for the Patriots, defensive effort alone doesn’t win football games. At some point, the offense has to find ways to execute and put points on the board.

Let’s take a look at the top-10 defensive players from Sunday’s game, per Pro Football Focus grades.

Patriots’ top 10 defensive players in Week 3, per PFF grades

Here are PFF’s highest-graded defensive players for the Patriots in Week 3.

Another defensive masterclass for the New England Patriots earned the team their first 2023 regular season win on Sunday. They pummeled the New York Jets offense (as is usually the case) in a 15-10 road victory.

Three games into the season and it’s already clear that the Patriots have one of the best defenses in the league. Keep in mind, this has been a team playing with only one of their starting cornerbacks. Jonathan Jones, Jack Jones and Marcus Jones have all been out with injuries.

That has left the bulk of the work to rookie first-round draft pick Christian Gonzalez, Myles Bryant and Shaun Wade. Gonzalez’s sudden emergence into one of the league’s top corners has obviously been a huge help, along with the pressure the Patriots have been able to get up front.

It was like a full-on WWE session in the Jets’ offensive backfield with quarterback Zach Wilson getting body-slammed and rag-dolled by Patriots defenders through four quarters.

Today, we’re ranking the top-10 Patriots defenders in Week 3 by their Pro Football Focus grades. It’s important to note that we haven’t taken snap count into consideration for this particular list.

So while a player like linebacker Matthew Judon was the obvious MVP of this game, he wasn’t given a top-10 PFF grade.

Patriots Week 2 inactives: Jonathan Jones OUT, Mike Onwenu IN vs Dolphins

Jonathan Jones, Trent Brown and five others have been ruled out for Sunday’s game.

There was a mixture of good and bad news with the New England Patriots inactives list ahead of Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins.

Let’s start with the good news.

The Patriots will have their two starting guards, Mike Onwenu and Cole Strange, available for the first time in the season. Wide receiver DeVante Parker will also be active in the game.

However, New England will be without top cornerback Jonathan Jones and rookie wide receiver Kayshon Boutte. That will leave rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez and second-year defensive back Marcus Jones as the top players tasked with defending Dolphins wideouts Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.

Left tackle Trent Brown being out is also a big problem for the Patriots. Along with rookie offensive lineman Sidy Sow, Brown has been listed with a concussion throughout the practice week. So there were doubts he’d suit up and play.

The Patriots already have Calvin Anderson manning the right tackle position. So it’ll be interesting to see how they cover up the huge vacancy in the protection role for quarterback Mac Jones’ blindside.

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Winners and losers from Patriots’ 23-7 loss at Tennessee

Who are the winners and losers from New England’s final preseason game?

On Friday night, the New England Patriots visited the Music City to take on the Tennessee Titans in their final 2023 preseason game. While the Patriots’ meager 57 team passing yards and 55 team rushing yards drove the way for a less-than-satisfying offensive performance, they still had some standout stars in the 23-7 defeat.

But what Friday’s game did best was give those players on the fringe of making New England’s final 53-man roster one last shot to prove themselves and give the team a reason to keep them around for at least the start of the season.

Here are some winners and losers from the game.

Studs and duds from Patriots’ preseason finale loss to Titans

Who were the studs and duds for the Patriots on Friday night?

The preseason didn’t end the way the New England Patriots hoped in Friday’s road trip meeting with the Tennessee Titans in Nashville. There were issues on offense, defense and special teams that culminated in a 23-7 loss for New England.

The Patriots opted not to play their starters in this game, while the Titans trotted starters on the field for several plays. Even starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill got in on the action briefly.

It wasn’t the most exciting game given the constant struggles along the offensive front. Bailey Zappe, who received the starting nod, looked helpless against the Titans’ defensive front. On defense, the Patriots did show some promise, but they also struggled keeping scrambling Titans quarterback Malik Willis in check.

Let’s take a look at the studs and duds from the game.

Leftover notes from heated Day 2 of Patriots-Packers joint practices

The Patriots had a statement performance against the Packers on Day 2.

After an up-and-down scrimmage with the Green Bay Packers on Wednesday, the New England Patriots came out roaring and looking to make a statement on the practice field in Thursday’s joint session.

And that’s exactly what they did.

The offense looked better than it has all training camp, and the defense was back to its disruptive ways. It was an intense practice with verbal—and sometimes physical—jabs being hurled back and forth between the two teams. There was enough drama and competition to captivate an audience like it was football in September.

The noted absences for the Patriots at the practice are as follows:

G Mike Onwenu

CB Jonathan Jones

TE Mike Gesicki

RB Ty Montgomery

RB Pierre Strong Jr.

C Kody Russey

DE Trey Flowers

ST Cody Davis

OT Calvin Anderson

LB Ronnie Perkins

OT Conor McDermott

Let’s delve into some leftover notes from what ended up being a very heated practice between the Patriots and Packers.