New England Patriots Have A Chance to Sign A Big FA

This offseason for the New England Patriots has been disappointing due to the lack of cap space. However, they have a big opportunity at RT Orlando Brown!

This offseason for the New England Patriots has been fairly disappointing due to the lack of cap space. However, the amount of cap space the Patriots had and still managed to accomplish can be considered impressive. Losing some key pieces this offseason in the secondary and offensive line has opened more cap space and has left room for speculation. NFL Insider Ian Rapport reports that the Kansas City Chiefs and RT Orlando Brown couldn’t come to an agreement during negotiations, and he’s expected to play on the franchise tag this season.

"“The #Chiefs made a strong effort to get the deal done, offering Orlando Brown more based on average per year than Trent Williams. But security and structure were the issues. Good tries all around. But he’ll play on the tag.”"

What Does This Mean for the New England Patriots?

While understanding this isn’t immediate due to the tag by the Chiefs, there’s a potential chance Patriots HC Bill Belichick nose dives at the opportunity to sign Brown next offseason. Brown’s proven to be versatile on the line of scrimmage. He’s considered among the elite tackles in the NFL, being graded 75.4 overall, according to Pro Football Focus.

The development of the Pats franchise QB Mac Jones will only further in the right direction. Jones’ development is crucial if the Patriots are looking to make another run at the Super Bowl anytime soon. Brown will give the opportunity to open up the run game even further, as well as provide even more protection for the young QB. In 2021, Jones was sacked just 28 times, which ranked No. 4 compared to the rest of the NFL. One would agree that this is impressive, however, the Pats lost two of their five starting OL this offseason (Shaq Mason & Ted Karras). While this is concerning, the Patriots are in a unique situation where the bench and starters are respectable talents.

Will Cap Space be an Issue for a potential Orlando Brown signing?

In 2020, there’s no secret that the Patriots went crazy in FA. This ended up costing them big-time acquisitions following FA and forced their hand on releasing key pieces to their success this offseason. However, releasing these players will only potentially lead to a huge draft or more game-changing acquisitions like TE Hunter Henry and LE Matthew Judon have proven to be.