Patriots discussion: 2017 free agents, D.J. Foster

"Kirk von Kreisler – This past weekend, news was released that Malcolm Butler is unhappy with his contract and is looking to negotiate a raise. If he is rewarded the extension, what numbers will we likely be seeing? And is there any reason the Patriots should not look to extend him before the season?"

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Andre Menice – While there is no reason for New England to extend Butler right now, I believe it is in their best interest to do so before this situation sours. Butler doesn’t strike me as the type to hold out, but we, as fans, need to take into account that Butler is on a non-guaranteed deal and if he tears an ACL, achilles, or suffers another major injury, he isn’t protected. If I was Mr. Kraft and Coach Belichick, I would extend Butler as soon as possible, on a Gronkowski type of deal to where there is risk on both sides. This would allow Butler to get his money, providing insurance against injury while allowing the Pats to avoid the steep price of paying a true, number one, shut-down corner, a price that they haven’t been willing to pay for in past years.

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Hal Bent – The Patriots still have all the negotiating strength with Malcolm Butler as he is under contract for 2016 in the final year of his rookie free agent deal at $600k. That price is insanely cost-effective and the Patriots know that he has far exceeded the deal. Both sides need to come together to make the deal happen.

While Butler likely sees himself as the #1 cornerback on a championship-level team and worthy of the money recently given to Josh Norman by Washington, he will have a hard time getting that money from the Patriots. Expect the Patriots to address Dont’a Hightower first (as his extending his contract would free up salary cap space in 2016) then get to unrestricted free agent Jamie Collins. The problem with Butler (and fellow starting cornerback Logan Ryan–another unrestricted free agent this offseason) is that the Patriots also may want to see more from the player before extending him.

Butler can hold out from voluntary workouts and activities, but he is not going anywhere anytime soon. He will be a restricted free agent after 2016 and New England can keep him for a first-round tender for just over $4 million. If Butler tries to leave with another free agent offer, the Patriots have the opportunity to match or get a first-round pick in return.

The Patriots and their cornerbacks have a history of varied values (Ty Law, Asante Samuel, Darrelle Revis) and Butler could simply be the next to leave at the position for greener pastures. However, even if he is willing to take less now for security later (ala Rob Gronkowski who extended his contract early as an injury risk and is now grossly underpaid) the Patriots may not budge and force him to play 2016 at his $600,000 salary and then at the tender rate in 2017.

For the Patriots, I would guess their number is below $9 million per season in average annual salary with less than that number as a signing bonus while Butler looks at a minimum of $12 million per season with something like Norman’s $15 million signing bonus. Obviously, the team and player are not even close numbers-wise and this is just the first shot fired in what will be a long, drawn-out process likely not culminating until 2018 (and who knows what the cornerback market will rise to by then).

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Stay tuned for another Thursday Roundtable next week.