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By SAM QUINN 17 hours ago (February 14, 2019)
The New
England Patriots may have given Tom Brady his
sixth Super Bowl ring by defeating the Los Angeles Rams in the big game two
weeks ago, but the star of
the show was their incredible defense. They held the explosive Los Angeles Rams to only three
points in that game, and while just about everyone on defense did their
job in the legendary performance, the player that stood out was clearly Trey Flowers. He generated a ton
of pressure on Jared
Goff while also proving
invaluable in run-support to help secure the victory for New England, and on
Thursday, he took to Twitter to remind the world of the monster game he and his
defense played.
This is particularly relevant now, with less than a month to go
before free agency begins. Flowers is going to hit the market if the Patriots
don't use their franchise tag on him, and he is going to be worth a fortune.
His low sack totals don't tell the story of what he brings to a defense. He is perhaps the most
well-rounded 4-3 defensive end in football right now, capable of dominance
against both the run and the pass, and his playoff run should have sent his
value through the roof.
The going
rate for top pass-rushers right now is around $15 million per year. According
to Spotrac, the highest-paid defensive end in the NFL in terms
of average salary is Olivier Vernon at $17 million per
year, and he signed his contract three years ago. With an expanding cap and the
whole NFL able to bid on him, it wouldn't be inconceivable for Flowers to top
that.
The Patriots have been hesitant to give out that kind of money
in the past. They had Chandler Jones on their roster, but rather than pay him
the $16.5 million per year the Arizona Cardinals are paying him, they traded
him. New England prefers to pay several players mid-range salaries rather than
go whole hog for any one star. That strategy has delivered them six
championships, so it would be hard to argue its overall effectiveness.
And perhaps Flowers knows that, and is reminding the Patriots
with this tweet just how valuable he is. It would not be an exaggeration to say
that the Patriots won the Super Bowl on defense alone. The offense produced
only 13 points. That doesn't mean the Patriots are weak on that side of the
ball, but with Brady entering his age-42 season, New England won't be able to
rely on him forever. Their best bet at sustaining this success when he retires
might be defense, and Flowers
is the best player they have on that side of the ball. Paying him now
could save them a lot of headaches later.
