New England Patriots: NFL Expert Predicts Contract for Dont’a Hightower

The New England Patriots have a few key free agents this offseason. Recently John Clayton of ESPN made his prediction for what kind of contract Dont’a Hightower will receive.

For the New England Patriots this offseason, no player might be more important for them to re-sign than Dont’a Hightower.

Since joining the Patriots, Hightower has been a playmaker on the defense. When the Patriots have needed a big play in a big moment, Hightower usually delivers.

In the Super Bowl win against the Seattle Seahawks, it was Hightower who stopped Marshawn Lynch from scoring on a run. That was followed by the Malcolm Butler interception, and the Patriots’ fourth Super Bowl.

Against the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI, Hightower once again made a huge play. Due to a poor first half by the Patriots, they were in desperate need to force a turnover in order to have a chance to make a comeback. Hightower was able to give them that spark with a strip sack of Matt Ryan.

While he has been banged up a bit over the course of his career, Hightower has been a great linebacker for the Patriots. This offseason, he is one of the top free agents available, and he will be paid like it. John Clayton of ESPN recently predicted that Hightower will get a four-year, $48 million contract. Here’s what he had to say about the possible deal.

"Former Patriots linebacker Jamie Collins took the 4-3 outside linebacker market to $12.5 million a year with his deal with the Cleveland Browns. Franchise-tagging Hightower would cost the Patriots $14.6 million, which might be tough because they have several free agents to sign. The challenge is fitting the right Hightower deal into the Patriots’ cap."

Clayton’s prediction of a possible contract for Hightower is pretty solid. As shown by the Patriots not trading him like they have done with Chandler Jones and Jamie Collins, they value Hightower.

Next: Ranking Internal Free Agents for Patriots

Not using the franchise tag on Hightower will also be very important. Due to the Patriots having multiple free agents that they would like to keep on the defensive side of the ball, they will need all of the money they can get. Using the tag on Hightower would likely eat up more of the cap space than the Patriots would like. Hightower will certainly cost New England a pretty penny. However, they have shown a willingness to pay big money for key players.