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Making sense of the Patriots' shocking Jamie Collins trade
Bill Belichick does it again, folks. The New England Patriots remain the most free-wheeling team in the NFL as stars continue to get shipped out of Foxborough ahead of their contracts expiring in the offseason.
Their latest move came on Monday as the Patriots reportedly sent Pro Bowl linebacker Jamie Collins to the Cleveland Browns for a compensatory third-round pick. Collins was arguably the Patriots’ best defender, starring as a do-it-all player with unworldly talent as a coverage linebacker, pass rusher and run stuffer.
He’s the type of athlete who can play about seven different positions on defense, and the Patriots used his versatility to extrapolate the most talent they could from the stud linebacker.
So what gives? Why would the Patriots — in the middle of what is starting to look like another Super Bowl season — trade one of their best players for a third-round pick? And it’s a compensatory pick — the first trade ever to involve one — which means it will be at the end of the third round. Let’s try to make some sense of this absolutely shocking trade.
First, consider the fact that Collins was going to be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason. Currently making just over $940,000 per year on his rookie contract, Collins is looking to get paid in the offseason. He’s arguably a top-five linebacker in the NFL, and he’ll be paid like it. Collins reportedly turned down $11 million per year from the Patriots this season, which means he’s seeking much more than that.
After all, why would he go to Cleveland for the same amount of money the Patriots were offering him? New England is a perennial playoff team, and the Browns will be lucky to win one game this season. The Browns will either franchise tag Collins (about $15 million in 2017) or sign him to a lucrative extension, and they can do so with their abundance of cap space.
The Patriots obviously didn’t have the money to sign Collins to a long-term deal that met his financial desires, especially when taking into account the number of free agents they’d like to re-sign in the offseason. Jabaal Sheard, Dont'a Hightower, Martellus Bennett, Marcus Cannon and Sebastian Vollmer are all set to have their contracts expire at the end of the year. Alan Branch, Barkevious Mingo, LeGarrette Blount and Logan Ryan are all in the same boat, too.
There’s absolutely no way the Patriots could have signed even five of those players in addition to Collins, who would have been their No. 1 priority. And according to ESPN, Collins was looking for a deal that was “Von Miller money,” or $19 million per year.
But why give him away for just a compensatory third-round pick? Well, it’s unlikely any team would have been willing to give up anything more without knowing for sure that they could sign him to a long-term deal. No team — not even the Browns — would have surrendered a first-rounder for a half-year rental.
Some would argue that the Patriots would have gotten a third-round compensatory pick if they let Collins walk in free agency anyway. This is true, however, that selection would have come in the 2018 draft, not 2017. For a team that loves its draft picks, that probably made a big difference. It doesn’t completely explain the trade, but it gives some context as to why they traded him rather than waiting for the same compensation.
One of the biggest reasons for the deal (probably) is the talent the Patriots have at linebacker even without Collins. The Patriots traded for Kyle Van Noy last week, who’s a former second-round pick of the Lions. He, too, can rush the passer, drop back in coverage and roam the middle of the field.
Add in Hightower’s consistent play and Pro Bowl-caliber ability and the Patriots have the players to overcome the loss of Collins. Not to mention, Collins' snaps were limited Sunday, playing just 48 of 70 defensive plays. That was shocking to see at the time, but it makes some sense now.
Collins was reportedly freelancing on defense this season, which would understandably frustrate a guy like Belichick or coordinator Matt Patricia.
On the surface, this trade is mind-blowing. Even after digging into it, it’s baffling. However, after looking at the signs and remembering that Belichick is a football genius, it's fair to conclude that the Patriots knew what they were doing. And if not, the Browns just fleeced them by getting a Pro Bowler for a third-round pick and a hefty contract.
