NFL Notebook: Now that parade is done, Patriots downshift with an eye toward offseason

In this week’s edition of the NFL Notebook, we take a spin around the rest of the AFC East, look at how backup offensive lineman James Ferentz (?) has become a key to Super Bowl success, catch up with Otis ("O-T-I-S") Smith to get his thoughts on Ty Law making the Hall, and see what some of the rest of the AFC elite has when it comes to cap room this offseason. But first, with the parade done, we dig into a few looming priorities for the Super Bowl champions.

1. The day after Super Bowl LI, Bill Belichick remarked that while winning it all was great, “in all honesty, we’re five weeks behind on the 2017 season compared to most teams in the league.” There was no such public lament this year, but the fact remains that with several personnel decisions to make and a handful of coaching vacancies to deal with, the Patriots will quickly downshift into the initial stage of the offseason.


We addressed what New England could do when it came to some of its coaching vacancies here. When it comes to personnel, at least a portion of what they might end up focusing on will depend on the future of three guys — Rob Gronkowski, Devin McCourty and Trey Flowers. Gronkowski and McCourty have hinted at retirement, while — among their own players — Flowers projects to be their No. 1 priority when it comes to bringing them back.

While the potential farewells of Gronkowski and McCourty present their own challenges, for purposes of this exercise, let's take a look at some concrete decisions we know have to be addressed by the Patriots sooner rather than later, specifically Flowers and left tackle Trent Brown. Both were among the best in the league at their position in 2018, but an initial look at the market suggests there could be a glut of front seven talent out there this spring, which could make things a little more advantageous when it comes to the possibility of re-signing Flowers. As for Brown, the combination of Isaiah Wynn waiting in the wings and the fact that the offensive tackle market will have more quality options than last year (both in the draft and free agency) could theoretically set things up nicely for the Patriots.

(Here's a full rundown of New England's free agents, and if you were to get started on cross-referencing where they stand in relation to some of the possible free agents league-wide, I'd direct you toward the fine work of Evan Silva and the gang at Rotoworld, who do an excellent job with their free-agent tracker here.)

In a conversation with us, former NFL scout Dan Hatman had two other points worth noting: Even if Brown leaves and Wynn takes over at left tackle, he wouldn’t be shocked to see them spend a pick in the first two days on an offensive tackle. And two, he says there are a number of possible veteran fits at wide receiver, including Golden Tate.

While the market will remain fluid — the franchise tag window of Feb. 19-March 5 should bring things into sharper focus for everyone around the league — for the Patriots, the focus has already shifted to 2019.

“They’re a tough, smart team that understands what a lot of teams don’t — it all starts in the trenches,” Hatman said of the Patriots. “They also understand they’re not building for Week One. They want to make sure they have depth when they have an injury in October, and have guys capable of playing their best ball come January. They want to have options throughout the year.

“They also do a great job of not being reactionary when it comes to the market,” he added. “I’d look for them to proceed the same way this time around.”

2. In the wake of the Super Bowl win, we wanted to write something about the synergistic relationship between punter Ryan Allen and gunner Matthew Slater. The two combined for a dynamite Super Bowl -- Allen punted five times, and had three of them downed inside the Rams’ 20-yard line, including one by Slater at the 2-yard line. In a tight game of that magnitude, every play mattered, especially when it came to the chemistry between Allen and Slater.

“Ryan and I spend a lot of time together. We spend a lot of time on the practice field working at our craft. Sometimes, we wonder ourselves why we are doing this? Is it going to pay off?” asked Slater. “He punted his tail off. In a game like this, 14 total punts, field position was a battle, for me, it’s just such an honor to play with a guy like Ryan, who really brings a unique perspective to our locker room. He’s such a joy to be around. He always keeps us laughing. That kid has mastered his craft, and when we needed him the most, he came up big.”

“What Matt does for this team on and off the field is unbelievable,” Allen said. “I have so much trust in that guy and not only give it his all, but show that awareness and savvy of going down there and playing the ball or the returner. … The guy is a stud. There’s been many times where he’s bailed me out on a bad punt, and that’s what teamwork is all about.”

3. With the offseason upon us, we thought we’d take a spin around the AFC East with three other writers. In their own words, here’s how the rest of the division looks:

Jets - Manish Mehta, New York Daily News: CEO Christopher Johnson and general manager Mike Maccagnan officially closed the book on the Todd Bowles era by firing him after three consecutive losing seasons that produced a grand total of 14 wins.

Enter Adam Gase, who stays in the AFC East after getting axed by Miami. The Jets believe that Gase will help cultivate Sam Darnold’s talents after the 21-year-old quarterback showed promise in his rookie season.

Gase will team with fiery defensive coordinator Gregg Williams for what should be an entertaining duo. The next step for Maccagnan, who doesn’t exactly have a great track record in four seasons, will be to arm Gase and Williams with better pieces. It’ll start with the more than $100 million in salary cap space at the Jets disposal.

Will they land game-changing running back Le’Veon Bell, the biggest prize in free agency? Know this: The Jets like Bell, but my understanding is that they won’t break the bank for him.

The Jets already cut last year’s starting center Spencer Long. An offensive line overhaul awaits. They also will be in the market for an edge pass rusher and cornerback help. Look for them to explore trading down in the draft too to collect more draft assets. (Remember: They gave up this year’s second-round pick to move up to ultimately draft Darnold last year).

In other words, this is just the start of a busy offseason.

Dolphins - Adam Beasley, Miami Herald: The Dolphins have a new coach, a new head of football operations and a new M.O. Out? Trying to win nine games every year. In? Trying to win three games this year. Yes, it’s #tankszn, and the Dolphins are all-in on Tua. So it’s a redshirt year for Chris Grier and Brian Flores, who have built a decidedly Patriots staff in Miami. The real question: Does Stephen Ross has the stomach for a true, long-term rebuild?

Bills - Mike Rodak, ESPN: The Bills have been one of the quietest NFL teams since the regular season ended, not having made the playoffs but also not having made any major organizational changes. Even though Buffalo finished 6-10 after making the playoffs in 2017, the season was billed as rebuilding year and there was zero question that coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane would be given more time to see things through. The same holds true for offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who was retained without much of a question despite leading the 30th-ranked offense in 2018. McDermott did make some smaller tweaks to his staff, hiring Heath Farwell (special teams), Ken Dorsey (quarterbacks), Chad Hall (wide receivers) and Bobby Johnson (offensive line) in an effort address some problem areas. Veteran linebacker Lorenzo Alexander, the most prominent of a lean group of Bills free agents, re-signed for what will be his final NFL season. Expect the Bills to look for pass-catching and offensive line help in free agency.

4. We can talk a lot about how the Patriots have had an impressive run with three Super Bowls in the last five years, but James Ferentz can do one better: The backup offensive lineman, who was with the 2015 Broncos, has now taken home three rings in the last four years. He won with Denver in 2015, and has rings the past two years with the Patriots. He’s also part of some exclusive company — he’s one of three players who has won a ring with both Brady and Peyton Manning. Adam Vinatieri and Dan Klecko are the other two.

5. Going to be watching some AAF games this weekend? Make sure you keep an eye peeled for some former Patriots who are looking to make a name in the new league. We told you about former New England receiver Brian Tyms and his efforts to get back to the NFL — his Orlando teammates include former Patriots offensive lineman Tre Jackson. Here’s a look at where some other ex-New England players will be lining up this weekend. (For more information on the AAF, including games and broadcast information, click here.)

Arizona: LB Steve Beauharnais, CB Sterling Moore
Atlanta: OL Chase Ferris
Birmingham: LB Xzavier Dickson
Memphis: WR Devin Lucien, LB Quentin Gause
Salt Lake: DT Sealver Siliga
San Antonio: RB Kenneth Farrow

6. Wrote this story the night of the Super Bowl where I asked some of the members of the first stages of the Patriots’ dynasty — players from the 2001-2004 teams — whether or not this current group (which has won three in five years) deserves to stand with the players who won three in four seasons. Ted Johnson, Kevin Faulk and Antowain Smith all weighed in. This week, I caught up with legendary cornerback Otis (“O-T-I-S”) Smith, and asked him the same question, leading off with the fact Johnson said this group deserves a spot next to the previous dynasty because they can’t sneak up on anyone. “Ted is right in that aspect — they can’t creep up on guys,” said Smith, who was with New England from 2000 through 2002. “But really, it’s two totally different teams and totally different eras. There are a ton of rules changes since we played the game. Back then, they were more lenient with the rules — they’ve tightened things up. Although, this year in the playoffs, they let the receivers and defensive backs get a little more physical with each other. But I don’t know if I could really stack the two eras against each other. It’s just so different.”

7. Also asked Smith about his fellow cornerback Ty Law landing in the Hall of Fame. I initially asked him if he had a favorite Law story, like the fact he didn’t always see the need to come back to the huddle on every play. “Just tell me if it’s man or cover 2,” he’d ask a teammate. (“Hey, I did that all the time,” Smith said with a laugh.) “He was a better player, but the biggest thing that he did was he just worked hard, and did all of the little things the cameras don’t show,” said Smith. “He would put the miles — when guys were just getting in to work, he’d already be out on the highway running. There was extra work in the weight room, and extra time in the film room, always making sure he was mentally ready. He was always picking up the little things the rest of us would ignore — Ty could pick that stuff up, and make plays time and again.”

8. Three numbers that jumped out to me this week:

a. .867 - The winning percentage for the Patriots (13-2) when Jim Nantz and Tony Romo are in the broadcast booth. It’s the best winning percentage of any TV broadcast duo that’s done at least five New England games since the start of the 2017 season. In that same stretch, here’s a look at the Patriots’ won-loss record with some other combinations in the booth in that same stretch:

Eagle/Fouts: 6-3
Michaels/Collinsworth: 4-3
Harlan/Gannon: 1-0
Tessitore/Witten/Booger: 1-0
Buck/Aikman: 2-1
Gumbel/Green/Arians: 1-0
McDonough/Gruden: 0-1

b. 10 - As much as we fretted about the Patriots inability to get consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks during the regular season, they nearly set a franchise record for most postseason sacks as a team. The Patriots had 10 postseason sacks this year — only the 2003 team (12) and 2017 and 2011 teams (11) had more in their respective playoff runs.

c. 1,371 - The number of consecutive snaps left guard Joe Thuney played this past season, including the playoffs. Thuney was the only player on either side of the ball to play 100 percent of the snaps this year. In all, he’s now played every offensive snaps for 26 straight games, dating back to a December 2017 game against the Dolphins.

9. One bookkeeping note when it comes to the Pats: according to our guy Miguel, they currently have $18.1 million in cap space, and could get to $43 million if there was a Gronkowski retirement, a McCourty retirement, and an Allen release. Even without those moves, when stacked against the rest of the AFC elite, they’re in a pretty good spot: After accounting for foreseeable moves like retirements, releases, trades, RFA tenders and franchise tags the Steelers are expected to have $20 million, the Texans should have $40 million, the Ravens $23.5 million, the Chiefs at $30 million, and the Chargers at $20 million. No one looks better than the Colts, though, at an anticipated $105 million.

10. We’ll wrap up this week with what has become a tradition: My father was a minister for a long time, having retired in 2009 after more than 40 years in the church. (I’ve written this before, but in this context, it bears repeating: I was always a little struck as to how similar our jobs were/are. We both have non-traditional vocations that don’t fit into the 9-to-5 stereotype. We both work weekends, and the week always built to the big payoff. Every so often, we would have to try and soothe people in occasional times of travail. And we both engaged with people of deep faith and spoke to those who would look forward to salvation every Sunday.) He always referred to the Sundays after Christmas and Easter as “low Sundays,” because of the emotional and spiritual comedown after the two biggest dates on the church calendar. With that in mind, I’d like to refer to the Sunday after the Super Bowl as the official “low Sunday” of the NFL, a chance to take a breath after the crazy buildup through the postseason and into the Super Bowl. It’s time to rest, re-charge and be ready for when the whole carousel gets cranked up again.