The Patriots needed to create a little more cap space, and returned to a familiar well to do it.
Patrick Chung received a two-year contract extension, according to Field Yates. It’s basically an accounting move that clears $925,000 off this year’s cap, according to Mike Reiss. The Patriots gave Chung a $3 million bonus and then the cap hit is spread over four years.
The Patriots entered Wednesday with just $698,953 in cap space, according to NFLPA records.
Chung has become the new Jerod Mayo, the trusted veteran Bill Belichick goes to in order to free up space. This was an annual procedure done with the linebacker as well.
At the end of the day, this is much ado about nothing. But there are some mild concerns about the Patriots continuing to kick the can down the road with Chung.
A few of the issues/questions it brings up, which relates to Joe Thuney and, possibly, Stephon Gilmore:
- The biggest is, with each passing season, it seems harder and harder for Chung to finish physically. There’s little doubt he’s a warrior, a leader and still a good player when healthy, but it’s generally not a good idea to invest — and this isn’t heavily since $3 million is reasonable for Chung — in a player who is obviously deteriorating. That’s not a surprise or a knock on Chung, it’s a contact position and he’s played a lot of football. But with each passing year, his chances of playing a full season get less and less. Why sink more cap expenditures into a player like that, even if it's minimal?
- If the Patriots are clearing cap space, likely with the idea of inking Kyle Dugger as the final signing of this draft class, that tells me the team is not expecting to reach an extension with Joe Thuney or Stephon Gilmore anytime soon. I know there’s been no discussions with Thuney or Shaq Mason on an extension, and Thuney talks are not expected to heat up until the middle of July — if they do at all. Thuney’s $14.781 million franchise tag is hanging over this team and the key to them doing anything of substance as far as post-June 1 signings or, say, Cam Newton.
- The story is also likely the same with Stephon Gilmore. He has a team-high $18.67 million cap hit in 2020, and it increases to $19.67 million in 2021, the final year of his deal. The easiest way, outside of Thuney, for the Patriots to create cap space is to hand Gilmore a new contract. That the Patriots resorted to doing Chung’s contract again tells me that a Gilmore extension is not expected anytime soon as well. Again, sometime around training camp is the normal timing for things like that.
- But there’s a decent chance Gilmore won’t sign an extension unless the Patriots make him the league’s highest-paid cornerback. Right now, Gilmore ranks 10th. He is due to become a free agent after 2021 at age 32. That will be his final chance to be paid among the top players in the game. To pass up that last chance at a payday right now, which might be smart on Gilmore’s part since there’s no guarantee anyone will pay a 32-year-old at the top of the market (CB seems to be an exception however), Gilmore would want to ink his final great contract right now.
- The Patriots were unlikely to get rid of Chung as a surprise cut this year in any event since the team wouldn’t receive much cap relief due to the dead money on his deal, but this further calls into question making Dugger the Patriots’ top pick this year. Chung is now going to be on the roster for at least two more seasons, as will Devin McCourty and Adrian Phillips. I’m sure Chung would take a backup role if asked, especially if he cedes his spot due to injury, but it definitely clouds the picture to when Dugger would get an opportunity to start. As we’ve previously written, if Belichick knew Chung was going to retire this summer, Dugger’s pick would certainly be warranted. Well, that’s definitely not happening now. It further points to Dugger being a matchup player this year/insurance for Chung’s health. That’s not terrible for a rookie, but you’d expect the team’s top pick to have a clearer path to playing time for the upcoming season, let alone his second season.
- UPDATE: Actually, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler is reporting that Chung indeed considered retirement this offseason but was talked out of it by the Patriots and was instead given an extension. Now this Chung/Dugger dynamic really doesn't make any sense. It could have simply been a cap move by the Patriots. Yes, Chung retiring would have cleared $3.525 million in cap space if he was retired or released. But he also would have had a dead cap hit of $2.533 million in '20 and $1.33 million in '21. So a Chung retirement would have only cleared about $1 million in cap space — about the same as his extension — without a veteran player.
- But I still don't understand not pushing Chung that way — once a player starts to consider retirement, it's usually over for them — and just going with Dugger, Phillips and Terrence Brooks at box safety. Then the Dugger pick would have made perfect sense.