There was speculation that he would deal Butler to the Saints for speedy receiver Brandin Cooks, a former first-round pick.
Advertisement
“The Patriots made it clear they do not value Butler as a number one cornerback with the Stephon Gilmore signing”.
The Patriots sent their 2017 first-round selection and a third-round pick to New Orleans for Cooks while the Saints will send back a fourth-round pick, said the person who spoke Friday to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the teams have not announced the deal. For this reason, New England is still very much the best team in the AFC by a fairly considerable margin. As a restricted free agent, Butler has been tendered an offer of $3.91 million, but until he signs the tender, he can’t be part of a trade because players aren’t allowed to be traded if they aren’t under contract.
While that seems a bit ridiculous, there’s a scenario in play here that suggests the Saints and Pats could work out a deal that would include New England receiving the 32nd pick back in return. Heck, the big signings for the last two years have been Jabaal Sheard ($11 million in 2015) and Chris Hogan ($12 million in 2016). No question Cooks should be a no-brainer in New England.
Eric Edholm, Yahoo Sports, reported that the Texans were interested in sending a second-round pick from this year to possibly acquire Butler for the upcoming season.
And Hightower saved a lot of embarrassment – New Englanders are embarrassed when the Patriots lose a Super Bowl – with his game-changing sack and forced fumble a little more than five weeks ago.
“To come into the league right away and to play with a Hall of Fame quarterback, that alone is going to boost your career right away”, Cooks said Wednesday in his introductory conference call.
Gilmore signed a $65 million on the first day of free agency, worth approximately $14 million per season. The moves saved the team a ton of money as Jones and Collins were in the final year of their deals and signed for a combined $133.5 million with nearly $80 million guaranteed this offseason. It’s his version of Moneyball, the Michael Lewis book/baseball philosophy that shows how real value is found in places where most people aren’t looking. He’s a risky pick heading into 2017 and it’ll take seeing how the Patriots plan to use him to determine if he’ll be just a fantasy contributor or a fantasy mega-star. However, the Saints asking price from the Eagles was Jenkins and a second-round pick.
“Of course initially (I was) a bit shocked”, Allen said.
There is apparently one stipulation: He’d need to agree to a long-term deal.
Advertisement
That’s the biggest uneasiness in New England, and it’s a matter that doesn’t even get serious for another year.
