New England Patriots

The New England Patriots sign Alge Crumpler

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 15:14:45 +0000

The Patriots have signed 32-year old TE Alge Crumpler. Crumpler played in all 16 games for the Titans last season in which he caught 27 passes for 222 yards (8.2 avg) with 1 TD grab. He has now played in 139 games in his NFL career and he has caught 367 passes for 4,691 yards (12.8 avg) with 37 TD grabs. This was a nice signing for the Patriots as Crumpler should fit right in.

The New England Patriots re-sign Kevin Faulk

admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:36:09 +0000

The Patriots have re-signed 33-year old running back Kevin Faulk to a 1-year deal. This was a smart move as Faulk still has a lot left in his gas tank. Faulk played in 15 games for the Patriots last season and he carried the ball 62 times for 335 yards (5.4 ypc) with 2 TD runs. He also caught 37 passes for 301 yards (8.1 avg) with 1 TD grab last season. His 2009 season didn’t end there however as he returned 5 punts for 31 yards (6.2 avg) and 6 kickoffs for 144 yards (24.0 avg). Faulk has now played in 152 games in his career with the Patriots and he has carried the ball 839 times for 3,505 yards (4.2 ypc) with 16 TD runs. He also has caught 418 passes for the Patriots in his career racking up 3,605 receiving yards (8.6 avg) with 15 TD grabs. Faulk has also returned 99 punts for 932 yards (9.4 avg) and 181 kickoffs for 4,098 yards (22.6 avg) with 2 TD returns. Faulk has made some huge plays in his career for the Patriots and it was smart to keep him on board for 2010.

The New England Patriots sign Marques Murrell

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:46:05 +0000

The Patriots have signed 24-year old linebacker Marques Murrell. Murrell played in 10 games for the Jets last season and he had 12 tackles and he forced 1 fumble. In his two years in the NFL, Murrell has played in 22 games in which he has 21 tackles and 2 forced fumbles. The price was right for the Patriots to take another player off the rival Jets. Murrell will provide depth at linebacker and on special teams for the Patriots in 2010.

The New England Patriots re-sign Leigh Bodden

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:09:53 +0000

The Patriots have re-signed 28-year old cornerback Leigh Bodden to a 5-year, $28.5 million dollar deal. Bodden played in 15 games for the Patriots last season in which he had 55 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 18 passes defensed and 5 interceptions (one returned for a TD). Bodden has now played in 90 games in his NFL career and he has 346 tackles, 9 forced fumbles, 18 interceptions (one returned for a TD) and he has defensed 76 passes. The Patriots were smart to lock up Bodden before other teams drove up the price on him as he is a fine CB.

The New England Patriots release Chris Baker

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 15:20:00 +0000

The Patriots have released 30-year old TE Chris Baker. Baker played in all 16 games for the Patriots last season and he caught 14 passes for 142 yards (10.1 avg) with 2 TD grabs. The Patriots won’t miss Baker much as they expected more from him than what they got last season.

The New England Patriots sign David Patten

admin — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:38:28 +0000

The Patriots have signed 35-year old WR David Patten to a 1-year deal. Patten did not play last season. He has played in 147 games in his NFL career and he has caught 324 passes for 4,715 yards (14.6 avg) with 24 TD grabs. Patten played from 2001-2004 with the Patriots. In those 4 years, Patten played in 54 games in which he caught 165 passes for 2,513 yards (15.2 avg) with 16 TD grabs. Patten appears to be in the twilight of his career but I don’t see any problem in the Patriots giving him another chance.

The New England Patriots franchise Vince Wilfork

admin — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 02:12:37 +0000

The Patriots have slapped the franchise tag on 28-year old nose tackle Vince Wilfork guaranteeing him $7.003 million bucks for 2010. Wilfork played in 13 games for the Patriots last season and he finished up with 43 tackles, 4 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble and 2 passes defensed. He has now played in 90 games in his six years with the Patriots and he has 303 tackles, 7.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble and 10 passes defensed. Wilfork is one of the best interior linemen in the NFL and the Patriots were smart to keep him for 2010.

UPDATE: The Patriots have signed Wilfork to a 5-year, $40 million dollar deal with $25 million bucks of it guaranteed.

The New England Patriots really need a healthy Wes Welker in 2010

admin — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 21:35:59 +0000

28-year old WR Wes Welker is Tom Brady’s safety net. Welker tore his ACL and MCL in his left knee in the regular season finale against the Texans. Brady looked lost without him in the playoff game against the Ravens. Welker played in 14 games for the Patriots last season and he caught 123 passes for 1,348 yards (11.0 avg) with 4 TD grabs. He also carried the ball 5 times for 36 yards (7.2 avg) last year. Welker also helped out on special teams for the Patriots last season as he returned 27 punts for 338 yards (12.5 avg) and 2 kickoffs for 45 yards (22.5 avg). Welker has been on fire since he came to the Patriots three years ago. He has played in 46 games for the Patriots in his career and he has caught 346 passes for 3,688 yards (10.7 avg) with 15 TD grabs. Welker also has carried the ball 12 times for 96 yards (8.0 ypc) for the Patriots. Welker has returned 76 punts for 824 yards (10.8 avg) and he has also returned 10 kickoffs for 247 yards (24.7 avg) in his time in New England. Welker is basically the one player the Patriots can not afford to be without so they hope he is healthy and ready to go for the 2010 season.

The New England Patriots found some keepers last April

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:24:46 +0000

The Patriots came into last April’s Draft looking for help on the offensive line, defense and special teams and they found players who contributed in all of those roles. The first pick for the Patriots last April was safety Patrick Chung (2nd round, #34 overall) out of Oregon. He played in all 16 games for the Patriots last season and he finished up with 37 tackles, 1 pass defensed, 2 sacks and 1 interception. Chung could develop into a starter down the road for the Patriots. NT Ron Brace was also taken in the 2nd round (#40 overall) by the Patriots last April out of Boston College. He played in 9 games making only 8 tackles for the Patriots. CB Darius Butler (2nd round, #41 overall) out of Connecticut was a nice find for the Patriots last season. He played in 14 games making 35 tackles, defensing 8 passes and he had 3 interceptions (91 yards of returns ) with a TD. Butler also returned 5 kickoffs for 104 yards (20.8 avg) last season. OT Sebastian Vollmer (2nd round, #58 overall) out of Houston was considered a reach by most for the Patriots but he looked solid last season playing in 14 games (8 starts). He 6′8″, 315 pound Vollmer could still add more weight to his very tall frame. WR/KR Brandon Tate (3rd round, #83 overall) out of North Carolina slipped in the draft because of off the field concerns. He played in 2 games and he carried the ball 1 time for 11 yards. He also returned 4 kickoffs for 106 yards (26.5 avg) last season. He missed most of his rookie season due to injury but he has a nice upside if he can just remain healthy. Linebacker Tyrone McKenzie (3rd round, #97) out of South Florida got hurt before the year started and spent his rookie year on I.R. Guard Rich Ohrnberger (4th round, #123 overall) out of Penn State didn’t show much as a rookie playing in 3 games (0 starts). OT George Bussey (5th round, #170 overall) out of Louisville spend his rookie season on I.R. Long snapper Jake Ingram (6th round, #198 overall) out of Hawaii played in ever game for the Patriots last season and he did a solid job. DT Myron Pryor (6th round, #207 overall) out of Kentucky was pretty solid for the Patriots. He played in 13 games in which he made 20 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss and he forced 1 fumble. WR/KR/PR Julian Edelman (7th round, #232 overall) was a QB at Kent State. He was like a poor man’s Wes Welker as a rookie last season. He played in 11 games for the Patriots and he caught 37 passes for 359 yards (9.7 avg) with 1 TD grab. He also returned 11 kickoffs for 241 yards (21.9 avg) and 6 punts for 63 yards (10.5 avg). He has a nice upside as he is tough as nails. DT Darryl Richard didn’t make the team. He was a 7th round pick (#234 overall) out of Georgia Tech.

GRADE FOR 2009: C

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE: B

Baltimore Ravens 33, New England Patriots 14

admin — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 00:19:12 +0000

The Patriots must have forgot when the game started yesterday as the Ravens thumped them 24-0 in the first quarter and that was way too big of a hole for even Tom Brady to bring them back from. Tom Brady had probably his worst playoff game of his career as he completed 23 of 42 passes for 154 yards with 2 TD passes and 3 INTs. Kevin Faulk was busy yesterday as he carried the ball 14 times for 52 yards (3.7 ypc) and he also caught 6 passes for 37 yards (6.2 avg). Randy Moss led the Patriots in receiving yards yesterday with 48 on 5 grabs (9.6 avg). But, Julian Edelman was the star of the offense for the Patriots yesterday with 6 catches for 44 yards (7.3 avg) with 2 TD grabs. The Patriots finished up with only 196 total yards on offense (64 rushing, 132 passing) in this game.

The Patriots got pushed around pretty good by the Ravens’ O-Line yesterday and it really hurt them. NT Vince Wilfork led the way for the Patriots on D with 13 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss. OLB Tully Banta-Cain pitched in with 8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception. The Ravens finished up with 268 total yards on offense (234 rushing, 34 passing) in this game. What a thud the Patriots’ season ended with at home yesterday as the Ravens punished them in their own house.