Patriots fans will love ESPN’s predictions for NFL free agency

Patriots fans: buckle down for one hell of an offseason.

Now that the NFL franchise tag window is closed and the 2021 salary cap has been set, teams around the league are starting to prepare for free agency — which is set to get underway next week — by releasing expendable players with bloated salaries.

Luckily for the New England Patriots, they can focus all of their attention on free agency, as their cap situation didn’t force their hand in cutting any noteworthy contributors.

For context, they’re projected to be equipped with the second-most cap space ($70.1 million) of any team.

That should be more than enough to make at least two blockbuster signings while using the rest of the money on smaller deals to properly round out the roster.

However, ESPN seems to think that the Patriots will splash on three big-ticket free agents.

With the start of the legal tampering period fast approaching, a panel of ESPN reporters conducted a free agency simulator and Mike Reiss (who covers the Patriots) predicted that they will sign wideout Kenny Golladay, edge rusher Yannick Ngakoue and tight end Jonnu Smith.

ESPN predicts that the Patriots will be huge spenders in free agency — including for Kenny Golladay.

Here’s a breakdown of ESPN’s contracts for each player:

• Golladay: five years for $105 million (50 mil guaranteed)
• Ngakoue: four years, $60 million ($30M guaranteed)
• Smith: four years, $42.5 million ($25M guaranteed)

Forget Patriots franchise history, pulling off these three signings would be in contention for one of the greatest offseasons of any team in recent memory. After all, Golladay is arguably the top receiver on the market after the likes of Chris Godwin and Allen Robinson were franchise tagged by their current teams, thus taking them off the market.

And we thought he was likely headed to Miami? Wild, if untrue.

Though a hip injury derailed his contract year in 2020, Golladay was one of the most prolific pass catchers in the league the season prior, recording 65 catches for 1,190 yards and 11 touchdowns, which led all receivers.

It’ll be interesting to see if Matt Patricia, who coached him in Detroit for over two seasons, rejoining the Patriots has an impact in Golladay’s decision-making process, but Reiss seems to think it won’t and he’s as well-informed as anybody who covers New England.

As for Ngakoue, it’ll be surprising if he ends up making just $15 million per year, but you won’t find us complaining if the Patriots land him at that price. The former second-round pick has been the definition of consistent over his career, averaging 9.1 sacks and 19.2 QB hits over five seasons.

Finally, we have Smith, who enjoyed a breakout year in 2020 and would go a long way towards changing the complexion of the offense, which has had zero production from tight ends in recent years. Giving up $42.5 million for a TE might seem stiff, but the Patriots’ simply cannot afford to settle at the position any longer. This seems like the likeliest fit at the outset.

Though it would be nice to know who will be quarterbacking New England next season, suffice to say that these three signings would catapult them back into the playoff conversation.

Who knows? If they were to land a star QB, they might just be poised for a deep run in the tournament.

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