Peter King Loves Pats Moves; OldCleat Does NOT

Peter King, in this week's SI, lovingly describes a New England Patriots offseason as one for the ages. "In New England, the rich don't just get richer. They get smarter," King coos. Well, I disagree. They have signed Adalius Thomas ... and that is their best offseason move so far.

I have no problem giving the Patriots credit when they've done the right thing. And they've done the right thing over and over and over again in their recent history. Most notably, they drafted Tom Brady in the sixth round of the draft in 2000.

This of course made up for the fact that they passed on Brady and instead drafted Adrian Klemm in the second round, J.R. Redmond in the third round, Greg Randall in the fourth round, the incomparable Dave Stachelski and Jeff Marriott in the fifth round, and Antwan Harris in the sixth round before Brady. I guess I'm saying that the Pats lucked into Tom Brady.

They were also lucky that Cleveland drafted the really incomparable SpergonWynn of S.W. Texas State and New Orleans drafted MarcBulger (actually, this was a pretty good pick) in the 2000 sixth round before the Pats tabbed Brady. So I guess I'm saying that Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli are good, very good, but not geniuses.

But this offseason I think has been a not great one for the Pats. The Thomas move was very good, because Belichick will be able to put him in situations to succeed. I will say one thing, however. While the Pats picked up Thomas, they lost Tully Banta-Cain. This may be a little thing. But it all adds up.

I thought the Pats were very smart in being able to get a first-round pick last year for Deion Branch. However, this offseason, they had to trade a second and a seventh for Wes Welker, who is not close to being as good a wide receiver, to replace Branch. They gave up too much for Wes Welker, and that also makes the Branch deal a little less wonderful.

As for their other starter at wideout, they signed Donte' Stallworth with a $12 million signing bonus for a contract worth $30 million over six years (how muchdid Branch want?). Stallworth's best season: 70 catches, 945 yards, 13.5 yards per catch, and 7 TDs. He's been in the league five years. The Saints and Eagles ain't losing sleep over losing him. Good signing?

Last year, King notes, the Pats had to suffer with Jabar Gaffney, Reche Caldwell and Troy Brown as their wideouts. I agree. But they are trying to fix their problem with Stallworth and Kelley Washington, who was a disappointment with the Bengals. Washington's best season was his second, with 31 receptions, 378 yards, 12.2 yards per catch, and 3 TDs. While his signing bonus was only $300,000, he has a $4 million bonus due in 2008. Bet he doesn't collect it. I've seen him play for four years in Cincinnati. He's not as good a player as he thinks he is. Washington sort of reminds me of David Terrell, without all the talent.

King says "2006 first-round pick Laurence Maroney [is] ready to become a 300-carry-a-season running back," though it appeared to me that Maroney was badly faded at the end of his rookie year. I believe the Pats had to cut Corey Dillon, though.

Been there. Dillon became unhappy in New England just like he did in Cincinnati. But King is happy with the Sammy Morris sign as an alternative. He can't be serious. I think Heath Evans is a better player than Sammy Morris. The Pats better keep looking for another back.

The Pats lost Daniel Graham at tight end, which is fine, because he wasn't their best tight end and wasn't worth $6 million a year. But then they signed a badly faded Kyle Brady for almost $3 million a year. Terrible signing. I remember Belichick almost jumping off a roof as Cleveland's head coach a hundred years ago because Kyle Brady was drafted right in front of his pick. He then traded the rights to J.J. Stokes in a huff, which turned out to be a pretty good call, though I thought it was a terrible decision at the time.

And finally, there's the Asante Samuel franchise tag for $7.79 million for one year. That's a tough one for me to decide on, because there are no good corners on the B-list. But a few years ago, the Pats would have let him walk and drafted a guy like, well, Asante Samuel in the fourth round and plugged him in.

King says: "New England's flurry of activity doesn't signify a shift in philosophy." Horsefeathers. I think the Thomas sign doesn't shift their philosophy, because they were willing to go after great, best-in-class, expensive, available players before, such as Dillon or Roosevelt Colvin. But when have they started overspending for guys like Stallworth? Or spending $5 million for the first two years of a mediocrity like Sammy Morris? Kelley Washington?

There is still time in the offseason to stick to what makes the Patriots the Patriots. The Pats haveplenty of time to pick up a couple of good players very cheap very late, a bargain like Edgerton Hartwell or Warrick Holdman, or even a LaVar Arrington at linebacker. They could get a Mike Doss at safety or a Kevan Barlow at running back at dime store prices, and that would be the Patriots I know and respect.

thankyouverymuch,

OldCleat