Maybe it’s the taste of losing. Maybe it’s Tom Brady Envy. Maybe it’s Father Time.
Whatever the motivation, Bill Belichick scrapped two decades of conservativeness as coach and general manager of the Patriots and went all-in Monday to accelerate the rebuild. The Patriots agreed to terms with seven free agents on the first day of negotiations and the contracts total more than $200 million, including north of $81 million guaranteed, according to reports.
The haul included a big prize on each side of the ball: Pass-rusher Matthew Judon signed a four-year, $56 million contract ($32 million guaranteed) and tight end Jonnu Smith signed a four-year, $50 million contract ($31 million guaranteed).
They made a late addition with former Jets defensive lineman Henry Anderson, agreeing to a reported two-year deal worth $7 million. Playtime incentives could bring that up to $11 million, per NFL Network.
The Patriots entered free agency with the fourth-most salary cap space ($68.6 million) in a predominantly cap-strapped league, according to NFLPA records. After suffering through his first losing season (7-9) since 2000, the 68-year-old Belichick spent more in one day of free agency than the Patriots had combined throughout any other offseason.
“That says mediocrity is unacceptable for them,” NFL agent Leigh Steinberg, who has secured more than $4 billion for 300-plus clients, told The Post. “They had a large number of players who opted out [because of COVID-19] last year, they didn’t play as well, they saved money, and it’s a strong statement that they intend to be the New England Patriots of yore.”
Perhaps Belichick learned something about the importance of free agency from Brady, who left the Patriots last offseason and won his seventh Super Bowl in his first season with the Buccaneers. With Cam Newton at quarterback, the Patriots finished third in the AFC East and missed the playoffs for the first time since the season Brady was out with a torn ACL in 2008.
The Patriots reached agreements with Davon Godchaux on a two-year, $16 million contract ($9 million guaranteed), cornerback Jalen Mills on a four-year, $24 million contract ($9 million guaranteed), and wide receivers Nelson Agholor on a two-year, $26 million contract and Kendrick Bourne on a three-year, $22.5 million contract. As is the case across the NFL, none of the contracts can be signed or finalized until Wednesday.
“Taking advantage of a buyer’s market,” one NFL executive said.
The Patriots’ free-agent strategy had long been to hard-line their own free agents with a willingness to let them walk away, while shopping for veteran bargains and culture fits on the open market.
Smith’s contract in the first hour of free agency signaled changing times: His average annual salary of $12.5 million is the most the Patriots have ever spent on a non-quarterback offensive skill player, topping the $9 million averages for Rob Gronkowski and Randy Moss.
Judon played on the franchise tag for the Ravens last season, earning nearly $17 million and upping his career sack total to 34.5 in five seasons. After Shaq Barrett re-signed with the Buccaneers, the Patriots had their choice at the top of a deep pass-rushing market and chose Judon over Trey Hendrickson, Carl Lawson and Bud Dupree.
“Free agency is not something the Patriots have been afraid of,” former Patriots executive Scott Pioli said on NFL Network. “In 2001, we built that original team with free agents. We signed 23 unrestricted free agents. The biggest difference being we spent a total of $2.5 million in signing bonuses. The Patriots clearly know that they have some holes on their roster, and they also probably believe that they can’t fill all those needs through free agency.”
The Patriots also got a jump-start on their roster build earlier this month by re-signing Newton, trading for left tackle Trent Brown from the Raiders, and dealing their left tackle Marcus Cannon to the Texans.
“The way the Patriots have won is their schemes are better and they know exactly which player to hand the market to who will perform how they need,” Steinberg said. “They are picking the premier free agents off the market rapidly, and then, after this, I don’t think you will see them spend all that much.”