The New England Patriots Should Not Sign RB LeGarrette Blount
By Cyrus Geller
Yesterday the Pittsburgh Steelers released former Patriots running back LeGarrette Blount, shortly after he left their week 11 game before the contest had officially been completed. This ends a pretty bad marriage between Blount and the Steelers, one that started with a drug charge against the running back, and obviously ended with him leaving the field early.
So, should the Patriots go out and give this another shot? Absolutely not, and here’s why:
1. Don’t Ruin A Good Thing
The Pats are rolling.
Tom Brady‘s offense has scored an average of 40.5 points per game over their six-game winning streak, and they are coming off a game where they amassed a whopping 246 rushing yards in Indianapolis. Shane Vereen is one of the most dynamic passing backs in football, and the emergence of the power running of Jonas Gray will be extremely important down the road. There is no need to bring in Blount with how well this offense is currently playing.
2. Tough Year For Blount
This 2014 season has been a rough year for Blount. Aside from a week three explosion against the Panthers (10 carries, 118 yards, 1 touchdown), Blount has been largely ineffective for Pittsburgh. In fact, over the other 10 games, Blount has averaged 5.5 carries, 14.8 yards, and 0.1 touchdowns a game. That is just awful, and I don’t see why the Pats should go out and sign a player that has been this awful in 2014.
3. Chemistry
Now, chemistry among the running backs and the offensive line isn’t nearly as important as it is for the receivers and quarterback, but it is still essential to building a solid team. This goes along with my first point, but the Pats are rolling right now, and that includes the rapport between the offensive lineman and running backs. Signing Blount might throw that chemistry into limbo.
4. Waiver Wire
Even if the Patriots wanted Blount, they are so far down on the waiver wire, the likelihood of the big back falling to them would be very low. There are a lot of running back-needy teams that have worse records than New England, including the Colts and Broncos, two teams the Pats have already demolished.