Patriots reportedly considering stealing weapon from Tom Brady

As the buzzer sounded on free agency, the New England Patriots have officially declared their intentions to chase the Lombardi after a down year.

By “declared their intentions,” we mean the Pats have splashed cash on a seemingly endless number of free agents, whose relevance ranges from “perfect fit” to “who cares, we’re rich!”.

When the sun rose on Tuesday, it seemed New England had pivoted to luxury fits.

With more money left over, the Patriots rumor mill churned on to the running back position, where they’re reportedly making a push for one of Tom Brady’s foremost postseason breakout stars.

After all, the Buccaneers can’t possibly keep everyone … can they?

Running back Leonard Fournette is weighing an offer and a fervent recruiting attempt from Brady, and could ultimately find himself back in Tampa Bay with the rest of the gang. But the Seahawks are pressing the issue, while Bill Belichick also lurks nearby. And after the winter he’s had thus far, who’d want to bet against him?

The Patriots are lurking behind Tom Brady in the Leonard Fournette rumors.

This isn’t the first time New England has been connected to Fournette in the past 365 days; after the running back was let loose by the Jaguars this past summer, we endorsed the Patriots’ pursuit and called him a “classic Bill Belichick project.”

Ultimately, that never materialized, and the two parties got the best of both worlds in 2020.

New England learned more about their running back depth, and realized Damien Harris had the capability to be a No.1 back in this league. Fournette? After a middling regular season, he posted one of the historically great postseason running back streaks of all time, piling up a touchdown in all four contests — three of which came on the road, prior to the “home” Super Bowl.

That Brady, man. He gets all the luck.

Of course, plundering is a two-way street; whether the Patriots get Fournette or not, the Bucs are eyeing a former Brady acolyte from New England to fill a roster spot of theirs.

Currently, this appears to be a three-way race between a return to the place that rehabilitated his career, a move to Seattle (an excellent scheme fit), and something Brady would likely consider a betrayal at this point.

Tampa Bay has some “decisions to make,” theoretically, though it seems they’re amenable to bringing everyone back, with Gronk the latest piece to re-up.

New England? Their budget seems endless, too. Name your price. We’d pay up for Playoff Lenny, but not Regular Season Lenny.

3 free agent running backs Patriots should take a peek at

It is far from the biggest need for the Patriots offense, but there are some intriguing free agent names at the running back position.