Tag: Trent Brown

David Andrews has the funniest reaction to reuniting with Trent Brown

David Andrews was so happy — and a little surprised — when he first saw Trent Brown. Here’s why.

Center David Andrews was a little surprised when he saw tackle Trent Brown at the New England Patriots’ facility. Andrews, of course, knew Brown had returned to the Patriots in an offseason trade with the Las Vegas Raiders. But Andrews couldn’t help but be surprised by Brown’s size at 6-foot-8, 360 pounds.

Andrews has already played with Brown. They know each other well. Still, it didn’t prepare him for their reunion.

“First off, you forget how big Trent is,” center David Andrews told reporters Tuesday. “I kind of got used to it in 2018. It was just Trent. And then I saw him the other day, whatever it was. I just could believe (it). I remember walking in the training room, he was getting some treatment before we worked out, and I just could not believe how big that human is.”

Yup, sounds about right.

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Trent Brown takes pride in playing for Patriots organization

Trent Brown feels pride when playing for the Patriots organization.

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With Trent Brown returning to the New England Patriots, it is safe to say he is excited to call Gillette Stadium home once again.

In speaking to the media on Wednesday, Brown indicated that he feels a certain level of happiness when he wears a Patriots jersey.

After leaving the Patriots in the 2018 offseason, he signed a four-year, $66 million contract with the Oakland Raiders at the time. Brown indicated that he never really found his footing with the Raiders, and didn’t find that same level of personal success that he did with the Patriots.

With that in mind, he elaborated about what it means for him to be able to play for New England.

 “I felt like I wanted to be back somewhere where – I’ve worn a lot of jerseys in my life, but I’ve never been more proud than when I’ve put on a Patriots jersey,” Brown said.

“When I became a Patriot – I’ve always loved football but I think I began to appreciate what it takes, like the actual time and effort and the sacrifices you have to make,” he recalled. “Really, it was fun to me. Some people don’t like it, but I loved it. I just think it’s where I need to be. I’m happy. I was happiest when I was there. I’ve never had more fun playing football in my life.”

With the Patriots making several moves to strengthen their offensive line this offseason, Brown is certainly going to be a big part of that. There is little doubt he is excited and ready to get things going.

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Dante Scarnecchia explains in detail why he likes Trent Brown trade for Patriots

“I like Trent. I think he’s got talent, I think he’s got immense talent.”

If anyone understands the offensive line and how pieces fit for the New England Patriots, it’s legendary coach Dante Scarnecchia.

Scarnecchia spent 34 seasons with the organization and he helped shape Trent Brown’s career during the one year the offensive tackle had with the team. Brown, who was recently traded to the Patriots, left after winning the Super Bowl in Foxborough to sign a massive four-year, $66 million deal with the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Patriots restructured his contract for the 2021 season, giving him $11 million for a one-year deal. Scarnecchia spoke with the Boston Herald’s Karen Guregian recently and gave his opinion on the trade.

“I like Trent. I think he’s got talent, I think he’s got immense talent,” Scarnecchia said. “I really enjoyed our time together. It definitely had some growing pains, but it was a very good time.”

Brown, 27, spent his first three seasons with the San Francisco 49ers and was a bit of a project for the Patriots at first.

“I think what happened early on, you could just see in the way he was moving around to start practice where his mindset was, ‘I’m taking this day off,’ ’’ said Scarnecchia. “If allowed to do that, he would do it. But, we just didn’t allow him to do that. We’d tell him, ‘Hey look, this ain’t going to be the way it’s going to happen.’ It may have been said in a different tone, and not as nice as that, but once he got beyond all that, it was an absolute pleasure to be around him, and to coach him, especially the way he played for us.

“The last two-thirds of the year, and in particular in the playoffs, I think he was really exceptional in the playoffs.”

Going forward, Scarnecchia believes he can be trusted — and trust is exactly what the Patriots need for passing and running purposes this season.

“I think he can be a guy that you can run behind. He can make the tough blocks on the back side, and he’s a really good pass-blocker for multiple reasons,” he said.

“He’s so big, and he’s so long. He’s just a big guy to run around, and he’s really a hard guy to rush through. And, I think he loves challenges. The better the players, the more attention he pays. He really gets into it.”

There’s been opinions flowing around the league since the trade, but this is the one that really matters.

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Trent Brown trade could be the calm before a vengeful Bill Belichick storm

The Trent Brown trade might only be the tip of the iceberg to Bill Belichick’s 2021 revenge tour.

The rain clouds are swirling overhead, and the howling of the winds have come to life in Foxborough. A sliver of lightning streaks across the darkened sky with roars of thunder blaring in the background. Or is that the sound of New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick pounding his chest amid the giant footsteps of former Pro Bowl tackle Trent Brown?

Fee-fi-fo-fum.

We’ve had an entire month to pile on coach Belichick after quarterback Tom Brady took the Jedi Code to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and won a Super Bowl in his first venture outside of New England.

Yes, Belichick made a terrible mistake in rushing Brady out the door. Yes, his roster management blunders are starting to overshadow his elite coaching abilities. And yes, the Patriots have enough holes right now to sink a supertanker in a kiddy pool.

All of that is true, but it didn’t stop Belichick from wheeling and dealing while some of you were sound asleep on Tuesday morning.

Bringing a mammoth-sized tackle like Brown back into the fold makes the Patriots beefier in the trenches. He has the footwork to make pass rushers cry uncle, along with the bruising power to throw around bodies for some good old-fashioned smash-mouth football.

It was an A-plus move for the Patriots.

More importantly, however, it was the sort of move that might have given us a little insight into Belichick’s mindset heading into the new league year. Brown was probably on his way out of Oakland regardless, but Belichick was super aggressive in stepping up and sending a fifth-round draft pick in exchange for Brown and a seventh-rounder. That essentially nixed the possibility of another team sweet-talking the 27-year-old in free agency.

The Patriots are sitting pretty in cap space heading into next season. Could this be the first move in a slew of major trades and free agent acquisitions? Did seeing Brady win elsewhere finally make Belichick snap to the point where he’s willing to push all of the chips on the table?

Pump the brakes.

“When you’re looking at salary cap and player salaries and things like that, you just can’t look at it in a short-term window. At some point, you have to take a longer look at things,” Belichick recently said at a media conference.

“Is there a cost in the future and what is that cost, so forth? Or, what would that gain be if we were to trade a player away? It just depends on whether you’re bringing one in or one’s going out. So, there are some implications that we would work through on the financial side or the people that handle that information and not just again currently, but over the coming years. So, it would really be a conversation that would look at all those aspects of it.”

The market is tightening due to COVID-19, and Belichick clearly isn’t willing to compromise the team’s long-term future to satiate dissatisfied Patriots fans’ need for a short-term splurge. However, it would likewise be preposterous to assume he’ll go into next season with his hands in his pockets, kicking an empty Coke can down a driveway.

Timing is on the Patriots’ side with so many talented players being pushed out on the streets thanks to the constricting salary cap. Guys like Los Angeles Chargers tight end Hunter Henry, New Orleans Saints wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, Miami Dolphins linebacker Kyle Van Noy and so many other impactful veteran players will be dangling like carrots on the open market.

The Patriots have the luxury of being one of the teams not neck-deep in salary cap hell with the new number set at $182.5 million. That’s an eight percent drop from 2020, and it has forced some contenders to turn to purging their roster.

Belichick doesn’t have to be reckless to be an opportunist.

He can continue to ninja his way through press conferences deflecting questions about Brady, but the fact remains the way the 2020 season ended can’t be sitting right with him. Brady lifted the veil of the Patriot Way and showed himself as a fierce and ruthless competitor in Tampa Bay.

You don’t think that alter-ego exists for Belichick as well?

He constructed the greatest dynasty in NFL history, and it’s being thrown back in his face with talking heads, fans and even former players saying it was more about Brady. The vengeful coach known for hoarding bulletin board material isn’t going to suddenly turn a blind eye when it’s aimed directly at him.

He’ll come out swinging with the hopes of burying that narrative. Pulling the trigger on the Brown trade was the first real jab to get people talking. The move that follows could be the massive right hand that has the rest of the league staring up at the lights and wondering what happened.

Trent Brown trade could be the calm before a vengeful Bill Belichick storm

The Trent Brown trade might only be the tip of the iceberg to Bill Belichick’s 2021 revenge tour.

The rain clouds are swirling overhead, and the howling of the winds have come to life in Foxborough. A sliver of lightning streaks across the darkened sky with roars of thunder blaring in the background. Or is that the sound of New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick pounding his chest amid the giant footsteps of former Pro Bowl tackle Trent Brown?

Fee-fi-fo-fum.

We’ve had an entire month to pile on coach Belichick after quarterback Tom Brady took the Jedi Code to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and won a Super Bowl in his first venture outside of New England.

Yes, Belichick made a terrible mistake in rushing Brady out the door. Yes, his roster management blunders are starting to overshadow his elite coaching abilities. And yes, the Patriots have enough holes right now to sink a supertanker in a kiddy pool.

All of that is true, but it didn’t stop Belichick from wheeling and dealing while some of you were sound asleep on Tuesday morning.

Bringing a mammoth-sized tackle like Brown back into the fold makes the Patriots beefier in the trenches. He has the footwork to make pass rushers cry uncle, along with the bruising power to throw around bodies for some good old-fashioned smash-mouth football.

It was an A-plus move for the Patriots.

More importantly, however, it was the sort of move that might have given us a little insight into Belichick’s mindset heading into the new league year. Brown was probably on his way out of Oakland regardless, but Belichick was super aggressive in stepping up and sending a fifth-round draft pick in exchange for Brown and a seventh-rounder. That essentially nixed the possibility of another team sweet-talking the 27-year-old in free agency.

The Patriots are sitting pretty in cap space heading into next season. Could this be the first move in a slew of major trades and free agent acquisitions? Did seeing Brady win elsewhere finally make Belichick snap to the point where he’s willing to push all of the chips on the table?

Pump the brakes.

“When you’re looking at salary cap and player salaries and things like that, you just can’t look at it in a short-term window. At some point, you have to take a longer look at things,” Belichick recently said at a media conference.

“Is there a cost in the future and what is that cost, so forth? Or, what would that gain be if we were to trade a player away? It just depends on whether you’re bringing one in or one’s going out. So, there are some implications that we would work through on the financial side or the people that handle that information and not just again currently, but over the coming years. So, it would really be a conversation that would look at all those aspects of it.”

The market is tightening due to COVID-19, and Belichick clearly isn’t willing to compromise the team’s long-term future to satiate dissatisfied Patriots fans’ need for a short-term splurge. However, it would likewise be preposterous to assume he’ll go into next season with his hands in his pockets, kicking an empty Coke can down a driveway.

Timing is on the Patriots’ side with so many talented players being pushed out on the streets thanks to the constricting salary cap. Guys like Los Angeles Chargers tight end Hunter Henry, New Orleans Saints wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, Miami Dolphins linebacker Kyle Van Noy and so many other impactful veteran players will be dangling like carrots on the open market.

The Patriots have the luxury of being one of the teams not neck-deep in salary cap hell with the new number set at $182.5 million. That’s an eight percent drop from 2020, and it has forced some contenders to turn to purging their roster.

Belichick doesn’t have to be reckless to be an opportunist.

He can continue to ninja his way through press conferences deflecting questions about Brady, but the fact remains the way the 2020 season ended can’t be sitting right with him. Brady lifted the veil of the Patriot Way and showed himself as a fierce and ruthless competitor in Tampa Bay.

You don’t think that alter-ego exists for Belichick as well?

He constructed the greatest dynasty in NFL history, and it’s being thrown back in his face with talking heads, fans and even former players saying it was more about Brady. The vengeful coach known for hoarding bulletin board material isn’t going to suddenly turn a blind eye when it’s aimed directly at him.

He’ll come out swinging with the hopes of burying that narrative. Pulling the trigger on the Brown trade was the first real jab to get people talking. The move that follows could be the massive right hand that has the rest of the league staring up at the lights and wondering what happened.

With this tweet, Trent Brown continues to profess his love for Boston area

Trent Brown really, really loved his time in Boston.

Trent Brown has made it very clear — he loves New England.

The 6-foot-8, 380 pound offensive tackle spent one season with the Patriots before signing a massive four year, $66 million deal with the Las Vegas Raiders. Brown spent two years with the Raiders, but was traded to the Patriots this week, while also restructuring his contract to play on a one-year, $11 million deal.

Brown was very vocal about his unhappiness with the Raiders and he had some very positive words to say about the New England area. He immediately went to social media and multiple posts to show how much he loved his prior time with the Patriots.

He even confirmed a hilarious story on Twitter that says it all.

Brown’s arrival shows the Patriots are looking to build up the offensive line and this will be an attractive piece to help lure in free agents — especially when other players see how much he loves in Foxborough.

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What the Trent Brown trade tells us about Bill Belichick’s thinking

The New England Patriots traded for offensive tackle Trent Brown. Is this a window into their thinking at quarterback?

During Bill Belichick’s time as the head coach and de facto general manager of the New England Patriots, a number of players have enjoyed second stints playing under him in Foxborough. The latest to join that list is offensive tackle Trent Brown, who after signing with the Las Vegas Raiders in free agency two years ago returns to New England as part of a reported trade. In exchange for a fifth-round selection, the Patriots acquired Brown and a seventh-round pick.

What, if anything, does the Trent Brown trade tell us about Bill Belichick’s thinking about the future of the Patriots offense?

Generally speaking, trying to get into Belichick’s mind is a dangerous proposition and one that leads to failure. Believe me, I have tried many times before, such as last off-season when I argued that Jarrett Stidham was going to be New England’s plan at quarterback just weeks before the team signed Cam Newton. Although to be fair, I did say that Newton would be a better option if team and player could agree on a contract…

But back to Brown.

The massive offensive tackle — and owner of one of the league’s more colorful tattoos — returns to New England, where he won a Super Bowl ring as part of the 2018-2019 Patriots. That season Brown was given the task of protecting Tom Brady’s blindside, a task that he performed at a high level. That season Brown allowed just three sacks while playing a career-high 1,090 offensive snaps. Now part of that is likely due to the structure of New England’s offense that season, which placed a premium on getting the ball out quickly as it did during Brady’s entire New England career, but Brown was a focal point of their pass protection plan.

He was also pretty dominant in the run game, even when the play was not entirely successful:

More on the run game and perhaps a little return of “bully ball” in a moment.

However, ask any Patriots fan and they do not care about the past. They want to know about the future, and who will be under center next season for New England. Is there anything they can gleam from this acquisition?

There are some who believe so. For example Matt Chatham, who won three rings of his own in New England, believes that the Brown trade is a signal as to what kind of offense — and by extension quarterback — the Patriots could be targeting right now:

With the rest of the league looking at mobility and athleticism at quarterback, could New England be looking for more of the throwback pocket passer? Is the trade for Brown a window into this thinking?

Perhaps.

Say what you want about Belichick but he often is ahead of the game when it comes to football’s cyclical schematic nature. Belichick’s offenses moved to more of the “spread you out approach” years ago with Brady, and additionally they were at the forefront of the more dual tight end approach we have seen from other teams in recent years, using the tight end position to create mismatches all over the offense. Certainly it helps when you have Rob Gronkowski as that kind of player.

So as defenses around the league gear up to focus on stopping the pass, playing lighter in the box, playing more two-high safety looks, and placing a premium on athleticism at the second level of the defense, maybe there is a pathway towards focusing on a more power-based approach. An offense looking to rely on the run game and a pocket passer could have success.

This was something I argued recently and perhaps Belichick is looking to tap into that. He is known for a willingness to exploit market inefficiencies, as we have seen with how he works the compensatory pick market…as he did two seasons ago when Brown first left in free agency. This could be the next evolution in that process. The league gets smaller and faster on defense, so Belichick swings in the opposite direction, exploits the inefficiencies created when players fitting those roles are passed over in the draft and free agency, and the offense then has success against defenses that are not built to stop such a scheme.

Therefore, if you really look into the tea leaves hard enough, that might lead you to perhaps another return, of say Jimmy Garoppolo, to the Patriots. Or maybe even a Mac Jones via the draft, a player often linked to New England this off-season.

Perhaps.

That, coupled with a power running game, might be the approach. After all, think of the two most important touchdowns from New England during that run to Super Bowl LIII, when Brown was still with the team. First, the overtime game-winner against the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rW5PzD3Qvko

Then the only touchdown of Super Bowl LIII:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFYxrsb_i9Q

Both plays run out of a heavy personnel package right behind Brown.

So there you have it, the 2021 Patriots (and perhaps beyond) will be marked on offense by a return to the gap/power designs and bully ball nature that were the hallmark of their run to Super Bowl LIII. Next season’s offense will not look anything like the spread-based systems of the earlier Brady years, and certainly not like last year’s version. Under center, play-action plays and a heavy dose of 21 personnel are going to be the focal points.

This might indeed be the plan, but if I have learned anything from covering Belichick’s Patriots over the years nothing is ever as it seems, he manages to zig when you think he is zagging, and “X” almost never marks the spot. So while he might be building this kind of offense, exploiting the market inefficiencies created by the schematic changes we are seeing on the defensive side of the football…he might not.

After all, he could be indeed be exploiting a market inefficiency, but one more financial-based. Brown was due just over $19 million on the last two years of his deal with the Raiders, and given that Las Vegas was facing a bit of a cap crunch, Belichick was able to swoop in and provide Las Vegas with a bit of relief. In exchange, of course, for Brown’s services. For the Raiders, they do get out of paying him $13.7 million in base salary in 2021 and $15 million in 2022.

And Belichick now has a new piece up front. This could spell the end of Joe Thuney’s time with the Patriots, but New England has pieces to play with along the offensive line. Perhaps Brown slides right into the left tackle spot and Isaiah Wynn replaces Thuney. Or maybe Brown is their new right tackle, and second-year player Michael Onwenu is the Thuney replacement.

Belichick has options now, and perhaps in terms of both an offensive line combination, and an offense to run. After all, the thinking here might simply be that Belichick is adding a piece to help them on offense, and this means nothing about what the Patriots are going to look like offensively…and who will be running that offense.

Maybe this move is telling us everything about Belichick’s thinking in terms of offensive philosophy. Or maybe it is telling us nothing at all.

 

 

Trent Brown shares epic reaction to Patriots-Raiders trade news

Trent Brown celebrated his return to New England.

Trent Brown seems extremely happy to be returning to the New England Patriots. The Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders agreed to terms on a trade that sends the offensive tackle to New England. As a part of the deal, Brown will take a pay cut.

That doesn’t seem to matter to him. He took to social media to share his excitement about the deal. He wrote that the money didn’t matter and expressed his contentment with a return to New England. He also posted a photo of retired offensive line coach Dante Scarrnechia, a favorite coach of Brown’s.

Here’s a look at what he wrote on Twitter and Instagram.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CMMtTpYh6R9/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CMMuPGgha_L/

Brown is clearly happy to be back in New England — and, perhaps, he’s also happy to leave Las Vegas.

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Trent Brown sounds REALLY happy about getting traded back to the Patriots

He is excited.

Trent Brown spent the 2018 season with the New England Patriots and ended up winning a ring with them before signing a very large contract with the Raiders that has ended up not exactly working out for Las Vegas.

And now he’s a Patriot once more, with Bill Belichick trading for the tackle.

How does Brown feel about it? On Tuesday morning, as news of the trade broke, Brown’s social media posts appeared to make it pretty obvious that he’s THE MOST EXCITED about this move.

Let’s begin with Twitter, where he sent these tweets (plus one from NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport that he retweeted), followed by a couple of Instagram posts:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CMMtTpYh6R9/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CMMuPGgha_L/

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The Patriots reportedly traded for Trent Brown, which could speak to their free agency plan

Are the Patriots expecting turnover on the offensive line?

The New England Patriots put a deal in place to trade for Las Vegas Raiders tackles Trent Brown, per multiple reports. And the acquisition speaks to New England’s offensive line uncertainty in 2021 and 2022. The unit was consistent and excellent in 2020 — but the plan looks particularly hazy for the coming year.

I recognize fans don’t have huge in the offensive line. But the Patriots are on the hunt for a quarterback. And you can bet that galvanizing the offensive line will make New England a hotter destination to play. This move impacts the Patriots’ offensive line — and the quarterback position.

New England, which started Brown at left tackle in 2018, will get the player and a 2022 seventh round pick in exchange for a 2022 fifth round pick. The Patriots also agreed to a restructured deal with Brown, who will play on a one-year deal worth up to $11 million in 2021 (rather than the remaining two years worth $30 million on the previous deal with the Raiders).

Even with the pay cut, Brown could be the highest-paid tackle on the Patriots. As we learn more about the contract, we’ll see what sort of incentives are in place and whether he’s likely to earn them. Brown will join left tackle Isaiah Wynn, right tackle Marcus Cannon and versatile lineman Michael Onwenu, who started at tackle for much of 2020.

Let’s take a look at what’s likely to transpire on the offensive line in the coming weeks.

First, let’s look at right tackle. The most obvious impact falls on Cannon, who is set to earn $9 million in 2021 after opting out in 2020. Cutting or trading Cannon would free up roughly $7 million in cap space. Perhaps after acquiring Brown, the Patriots will look to part ways with Cannon at any point between now and the trade deadline at midseason.

Left tackle Wynn is entering the final year of his rookie contract, which means New England has to decide whether to enact his fifth-year option, which adds one year and $10.1 million in 2022 to Wynn’s deal. Considering he’s missed 30 games in his first three seasons, that’s a tough decision for New England. But if Brown is signed to a one-year deal, it’s possible his deal has little bearing over Wynn’s future. If Brown’s deal extended beyond 2021, then perhaps we could make a stronger connection between the Brown trade and Wynn’s future in New England.

It’s important to state, however, that with Cannon aging and Wynn struggling to stay on the field, the Patriots may be interested in keeping all three tackles, if only because they recognize all three will serve as starters at some point in 2021.

In the interior, it’s also very complicated. Onwenu isn’t going anywhere, except, likely, to guard. Though he was a standout at tackle, there seems to be a logjam now at the position. Meanwhile, New England may anticipate Joe Thuney leaving in free agency after the team placed the franchise tag on him in 2020. Onwenu could slot seamlessly in for Thuney. And then there’s starting center David Andrews, another pending free agent. Perhaps he’s a player the Patriots think they can extend.

With all that in mind, here’s what I would expect the offensive line to look like in 2021.

Wynn – Onwenu – Andrews – Mason – Brown.

The Patriots are likely to try to trade Cannon — or stash him as a backup and insurance policy in case Wynn gets injured. New England will also likely to let Thuney depart in free agency, largely because Onwenu can replace Thuney. Andrews, however, is another story. The Patriots will want to keep him — he’s one of the smartest and most consistent players on the team. There’s a small chance Brown and Wynn switch places (from right to left and vice versa), but the Patriots probably want to give Wynn another season at the position they drafted him at 23rd overall to play.

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