FOXBOROUGH — Practice No. 15 is in the books; let's run down all you need to know, including stats, 1-on-1s, lineup adjustments and observations:
FOUR THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
Witherspoon gets extension to set stage for Gonzalez: In case you just woke up from a coma, you know that Christian Gonzalez's contract extension with the Patriots was being held up by Devon Witherspoon and the Seahawks because both corners are represented by the same agent. Well, Witherspoon got his four-year extension on Saturday, and it's a whopper. Mike Florio from PFT has all the details. The headlines: $101.255 million guaranteed for injury. The four new years average $33 million per year. Average from signing (6 years): $26.38 million.
It wasn't so much the new money after Witherspoon's fourth and fifth year that I was worried about — you have to pay the freight, and it will look like a bargain down the line as the cap goes up.
The key from the Patriots' perspective was how much of a raise Witherspoon was going to get in the fourth and fifth years of his existing contract. As opposed to Sauce Gardner or Patrick Surtain, Witherspoon got the Derek Stingley Jr. framework that pays him big now. Witherspoon, the 5th overall pick in 2023, was scheduled to make $26 million in 2026 and '27. He's now getting $59.255 million.
The Patriots have not traditionally done their extensions like that. I figured they would want to do something similar to Surtain for Gonzalez, who was the 17th overall pick in the '23 draft. Gonzalez was scheduled to make $21 million over the next two years. Are the Patriots going to give him a raise to $60 million to top Witherspoon? This is the key question. The cash for the next two seasons has been a primary focus in the negotiations.
Another: Should Gonzalez be paid more than Witherspoon? They both have one 2nd-team All-Pro nod, but Witherspoon has been voted to two more Pro Bowls, and is a Super Bowl champion. If Gonzalez is fine coming in under Witherspoon, the deal should be wrapped up quickly. If Gonzalez is determined to top the Witherspoon deal — and, additionally, by a lot — then this could take a while.
The initial indication I got from the Patriots was