Well damn. That was fast!
Even though free-agent deals and offseason trades cannot be officially announced until Wednesday afternoon, teams were allowed to begin “negotiations” with available players as of Monday morning. But, as we are in the age of social media and “I SAID IT FIRST” journalism, we’ll probably know where most of the top guys are going before we all even sit down for dinner on Tuesday night.
Per Adam Schefter, we already know that Brady’s big ole blindside protector from last season is off to Cali:
Former Patriots’ OT Trent Brown intends to sign a four-year, $66 million contract that includes $36.75 million guaranteed with the Oakland Raiders, per source, making him highest paid OL in NFL history.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 11, 2019
Again, it’s no shocker to hear that Trent Brown is heading off to greener pastures. This isn’t to say he’s not deserving. After all, he did serve as the team’s left tackle on what was arguably the league’s best O-line last season.
It’s just that we all knew the Pats weren’t going to pay him, especially at over $16 million per year with more than double that amount guaranteed. (Seriously, though, that is one helluva windfall for a guy who had never been a full-time starting left tackle until 2018. Congrats, big fella!)
Most assume the Pats will simply plug in Isaiah Wynn as Brown’s replacement after spending a first-round pick on the 22-year-old just last season. That very well could happen, but let’s also not forget he lost his entire rookie season due to an Achilles injury he suffered just last August. Those are not easy injuries to come back from, especially for a position which relies so much on quick and stable footwork. I fully expect the Pats to bring in some competition for him, either with a high draft pick or a free-agent signing.
So there you have it: the first domino to fall for the Pats this offseason.