Julian Edelman has Welker type season for Pats

[amfootball]

Here are Julian Edelman's final regular stats:

105 receptions

1056 yards

6TDs

 

He led the NFL in receptions as well.

 

For all the talk about the Pats missing Welker no one saw this season coming from Edelman as his first year as a starting receiver. Unbelievable job by him and of course Brady who pretty much makes every slot guy the best in the league.

 

[JerodMayo51]

Here are Julian Edelman's final regular stats:

105 receptions

1056 yards

6TDs

 

He led the NFL in receptions as well.

 

For all the talk about the Pats missing Welker no one saw this season coming from Edelman as his first year as a starting receiver. Unbelievable job by him and of course Brady who pretty much makes every slot guy the best in the league.

 

 

I called this big time before the season ever began.  I said that you can get Edelman for about 1-1.5 million a year and only have about a 10% or so drop off in production compared to the $6 million a year you would pay to Welker for basically 5-10 more receptions, 100-200 more yards and maybe 2-3 more TDs.

 

Edelman did not get a lot of love in the offseason.  I believe only the Giants and Patriots were interested in his services, so he signed a 1 year deal with the Patriots and I think hes going to cash in big for that now.  

 

Aqib Talib is in the same boat.  He gambled on himself and took the 1 year $5.5 million dollar deal and it looks like hes going to probably make another $3-4 mill or so a year for that.  Granted, im sure there is going to be some language in his contract for his nagging hip flexor injury, as well as personal conduct seeings how he already had a 4 game suspension and his next violation is for an entire year.

 

Thats 2 guys that seriously cashed in this year on their 1 year deals that the Patriots will have to figure out a way to pay.  Its going to be an interesting offseason, you know someone is going to overpay Edelman!

[-JJ-]

My only fear was could he stay healthy all year. He did.

No question- outstanding year and just when we needed someone who could actually catch the ball ;)

[Dustin]

Sucks he's going somewhere else next season.

[dgambill]

I called this big time before the season ever began.  I said that you can get Edelman for about 1-1.5 million a year and only have about a 10% or so drop off in production compared to the $6 million a year you would pay to Welker for basically 5-10 more receptions, 100-200 more yards and maybe 2-3 more TDs.

 

Edelman did not get a lot of love in the offseason.  I believe only the Giants and Patriots were interested in his services, so he signed a 1 year deal with the Patriots and I think hes going to cash in big for that now.  

 

Aqib Talib is in the same boat.  He gambled on himself and took the 1 year $5.5 million dollar deal and it looks like hes going to probably make another $3-4 mill or so a year for that.  Granted, im sure there is going to be some language in his contract for his nagging hip flexor injury, as well as personal conduct seeings how he already had a 4 game suspension and his next violation is for an entire year.

 

Thats 2 guys that seriously cashed in this year on their 1 year deals that the Patriots will have to figure out a way to pay.  Its going to be an interesting offseason, you know someone is going to overpay Edelman!

Or simply pay him for what he is worth. I had no doubt he was going to step in and play more than adequate in that offense. I would say Amendola hasn't lived up to his contract but perhaps now that he is healthy he will be there when it counts. I think the Patriots resign him...he clearly is worth more to them than he would be to another team.

[GoPats]

There was so much talk about "replacing Welker's production" last offseason, and my initial thought was that Edelman and Amendola would combine for roughly the same number of catches/yards/TDs. 

 

He may have gotten himself a big pay day somewhere else, but I sincerely hope he stays in New England. 

[Superman]

There was so much talk about "replacing Welker's production" last offseason, and my initial thought was that Edelman and Amendola would combine for roughly the same number of catches/yards/TDs. 

 

He may have gotten himself a big pay day somewhere else, but I sincerely hope he stays in New England. 

 

You still missed the production of Branch, Lloyd, Hernandez and Gronkowski. Especially early in the season. You scored 113 fewer points, 500 fewer passing yards, 5 fewer passing touchdowns. Scoring differential was more than cut in half, from 14 points down to 6. All told, only one fewer win, and who knows what happens in the playoffs. I always expected the Pats to turn out okay because of Brady and Belichick, but this was a rough transition for them. The run game really helped as well.

 

Now you have to find a way to keep the team intact. I know some are high on Thompkins and Dobson, who weren't all that productive but showed promise. And hopefully Gronkowski comes back, though at a certain point you have to start wondering about his ability to stay healthy. Amendola can do more, but he struggles to stay healthy as well.

[GoPats]

You still missed the production of Branch, Lloyd, Hernandez and Gronkowski. Especially early in the season. You scored 113 fewer points, 500 fewer passing yards, 5 fewer passing touchdowns. Scoring differential was more than cut in half, from 14 points down to 6. All told, only one fewer win, and who knows what happens in the playoffs. I always expected the Pats to turn out okay because of Brady and Belichick, but this was a rough transition for them. The run game really helped as well.

 

Now you have to find a way to keep the team intact. I know some are high on Thompkins and Dobson, who weren't all that productive but showed promise. And hopefully Gronkowski comes back, though at a certain point you have to start wondering about his ability to stay healthy. Amendola can do more, but he struggles to stay healthy as well.

 

Oh of course... Edelman's contributions aside, they obviously took more than a few hits personnel-wise. And I don't think he would have had 100+ catches with a healthy Gronk around.

 

The absence that probably hurt them the most on the field was Hernandez. That was the only one they didn't plan for.

 

They have to keep the team intact, yes, but they also have to add to it, and will be pretty tight against the cap. But they need depth at TE. I like Dobson better than Thompkins long-term. I also like Josh Boyce... much more of a shifty, slot-type guy they've had a lot of success with. 

[Superman]

Oh of course... Edelman's contributions aside, they obviously took more than a few hits personnel-wise. And I don't think he would have had 100+ catches with a healthy Gronk around.

 

The absence that probably hurt them the most on the field was Hernandez. That was the only one they didn't plan for.

 

They have to keep the team intact, yes, but they also have to add to it, and will be pretty tight against the cap. But they need depth at TE. I like Dobson better than Thompkins long-term. I also like Josh Boyce... much more of a shifty, slot-type guy they've had a lot of success with. 

 

Do you see any veteran cuts looming? I expect them to release Adrian Wilson, Isaac Sopoaga and Tommy Kelly. That's about $4.4m in savings right there. Anyone else?

[GoPats]

Do you see any veteran cuts looming? I expect them to release Adrian Wilson, Isaac Sopoaga and Tommy Kelly. That's about $4.4m in savings right there. Anyone else?

 

Honestly I haven't given it much thought...

 

You're probably right about Wilson, don't know about Sopoaga and Kelly. Looking quickly at the projected salaries and cap hits for 2014, I see a lot of guys who would be eligible for restructures. 

 

You know your cap stuff... didn't the Patriots end up taking more of a hit by releasing Hernandez when they did? 

[Superman]

Honestly I haven't given it much thought...

 

You're probably right about Wilson, don't know about Sopoaga and Kelly. Looking quickly at the projected salaries and cap hits for 2014, I see a lot of guys who would be eligible for restructures. 

 

You know your cap stuff... didn't the Patriots end up taking more of a hit by releasing Hernandez when they did? 

 

Yeah on Hernandez, but there's not much they could have done about that. His cap hit for 2013 was reduced from just over $4m to $2.55m, but because of the time of the release, the rest of the cap penalty hits in 2014, and it's a hefty $7.5m. They could have kept on the roster in 2013, then released him early in the 2014 league year and spread that hit out a little more, but the same money issues exist. (Also, I think the Pats are trying to recoup some of the bonus under a breach clause, which might reduce that $7.5m hit in 2014, but I'm not sure how that will go.)

 

As for restructures, there are technically possibilities there with Wilfork, Mankins, etc. I'm just not sure that's a good idea for a team that needs to transition away from some of those older, highly paid vets. Can't keep pushing the cap pain out year after year.

 

As of right now, the Pats have about $6.5m to rollover into 2014. So with no adjustments, they have about $8.5m in cap space, based on the projected cap. It's not as tight as I previously thought it would be. But that's not really enough for them to do the things they want/need to do. 

[amfootball]

Do you see any veteran cuts looming? I expect them to release Adrian Wilson, Isaac Sopoaga and Tommy Kelly. That's about $4.4m in savings right there. Anyone else?

I think they keep Kelly given Vince's injury and the need for depth at DT.

[amfootball]

You still missed the production of Branch, Lloyd, Hernandez and Gronkowski. Especially early in the season. You scored 113 fewer points, 500 fewer passing yards, 5 fewer passing touchdowns. Scoring differential was more than cut in half, from 14 points down to 6. All told, only one fewer win, and who knows what happens in the playoffs. I always expected the Pats to turn out okay because of Brady and Belichick, but this was a rough transition for them. The run game really helped as well.

 

Now you have to find a way to keep the team intact. I know some are high on Thompkins and Dobson, who weren't all that productive but showed promise. And hopefully Gronkowski comes back, though at a certain point you have to start wondering about his ability to stay healthy. Amendola can do more, but he struggles to stay healthy as well.

Honestly, just looking at those numbers don't know how the Pats got to 12 wins. They were saying on the radio today how fans and the media typically take the Pats stellar regular seasons for granted but not this season. This team overcame so much to get that bye which is critical IMO for them to make a run to the SB. They need the one less game and the home game and hopefully some luck to get the AFCCG at home.