.png)
The
Patriots best edge defender is set to become a free agent, and could command
quite the contract.
By
Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images
As free agency opens
in little over a month, the Patriots will have some decisions
to make, starting with defensive end Trey Flowers.
Since selecting the
6-foot-2, 265 pound end in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft, Flowers has become one of the
best edge defenders in the entire league. After playing only one game
his rookie year, Flowers has started 37 games for New England over the last
three seasons, piling up 21 career sacks and clearly becoming a vital piece for
their defense.
But when looking at
Flowers, one must view more than just his sack total. Flowers has become one of the best run defenders
in the entire NFL and has piled up 136 disruptions (17 sacks, 57 QB hits, 62
pressures) over the past two seasons, which is nearly twice as many as the next
closest Patriot (Kyle Van Noy with 69).
Then in the playoffs, he seems to come up big time and
time again. Like in Super Bowl LI, when a fourth quarter sack
bumped Matt Ryan and the Falcons out of field
goal position, allowing Tom Brady to get the ball back down
seven. You know what happened next.
And Flowers seems to just keep getting better. According
to Pro Football Focus, Flowers’ 2018 season grade of 89.7 ended as the sixth
best edge defender in the league.
Now its decision time for the Patriots, who have been shy
to give out big chunks of money to dominant pass rushers in the past like Richard
Seymour and Chandler Jones, opting to deal them away.
Granted Seymour and Jones didn't make quite the contribution in the run game
like Flowers, something Belichick adores.
New England
currently sits just under $20 million in cap room before making cuts, which
would make franchising Flowers at $17.143 million difficult. If New England is
lucky, the two sides will work a deal out before he reaches the open market,
where he would be a hot commodity as pass rushers like DeMarcus Lawrence, Jadeveon
Clowney, Frank Clark, etc. are expected to see the franchise
tag.
If Flowers does
reach free agency, he could earn up to the five year, $85 million deal Olivier
Vernon signed with the New York Giants back in
2016. Over the Cap and Pro Football Focu srecently
projected Flowers to earn slightly below that contract, inking a five year, $80
million deal, with $50 million in guarantees.
Assuming that New
England and Flowers can reach a deal, New England likely would lose out on free
agent tackle Trent Brown. Brown is expected to fetch a deal near $10 million
annually after a successful first year with the Patriots.
But if Flowers does
depart New England, perhaps joining former defensive play callers Brian Flores
in Miami or Matt Patricia in Detroit, the Patriots would be left with a gaping
hole in the defensive line. Currently with 12 picks in this year’s draft,
perhaps New England selects multiple ends or moves up to replace Flowers, or
they bank on the improvement of young roster players such as Keionta
Davis or Derek Rivers.
The Patriots could
also try to lure a top defensive lineman in free agency to Foxboro as a
replacement, or sign a veteran who fits their scheme to a smaller contract like
they did last offseason with Adrian Clayborn (two year, $10
million deal).
The NFL free agency
period officially opens on March 13th at 4:00 p.m. EST, while the franchise tag
must be designated prior to the 4:00 p.m. EST March 5th deadline.
