Patriots: Rodney Harrison pushing Pats to trade for Pro Bowl QB
By Adam Weinrib
Patriots legend Rodney Harrison wants Matthew Stafford in New England.
Imagine saving Matthew Stafford from a Bill Belichick knockoff in Matt Patricia, then immediately giving him a chance to work with the genuine article as the New England Patriots’ next QB?
The stuff dreams are made of, man.
At least, Rodney Harrison’s dreams have certainly taken on that hue.
The Ex-Pat and future Hall of Famer chimed in on the future of the most important position in New England this week, and while some analysts are certainly hoping the franchise undergoes a full rebuild, Harrison would much rather see them add a veteran this offseason to try to maximize their 20-year contention window while Belichick is still calling the shots.
Rodney Harrison believes Patriots should trade for Matthew Stafford https://t.co/HjeyN3IAFl
— Ryan Hannable (@RyanHannable) December 18, 2020
As Harrison insisted on NBC this week, he’d like to see the Patriots pursue a big-time and semi-forgotten asset like Stafford, who he thinks will take a slight pay cut to join the Pats.
"“I’ll just say this, if I’m the Patriots, I’m looking to make a trade,” he said on NBC Sports’ Safety Blitz. “I’m looking to make a trade because think about Matthew Stafford on the Patriots if [Bill] Belichick adds a couple weapons, with his coaching, that young defense, I just think they have a better chance.”“A guy like Matthew Stafford who’s made tons of money, he’s financially secure, maybe he can go to the Pats and say, instead of asking for $30 million a year, ‘Pay me $20 million, pay me $18 million. I’ll take less money to come to a winner, to be able to play on national TV, to be able to have Coach Belichick as my coach,’” Harrison said. “Most players that come to New England are taking pay cuts. I took a pay cut to come to New England, but it was all good.”"
Despite being hamstrung by subpar…well, everything in Detroit outside of the Jim Caldwell years, Stafford would likely be adequately appreciated by the NFL media at large if he mind-melded with Bill Belichick instead.
Steve young on Matthew Stafford. I been tryin to tell you haters but noooo all you look at is wins. You can’t win without a team pic.twitter.com/AAJxdN0gzH
— scubasteve (@stevesin07) December 12, 2020
This rocket-armed king of the fourth quarter comeback deserves better than overcoming myriad deficiencies to battle for third place in the NFC North.
Get Stafford to Belichick and get him a top wideout (Jaylen Waddle? Allen Robinson?) and it’s a wrap.
