Cap space outlook in 2023 for the New England Patriots
The 2023 offseason for the New England Patriots could be an exciting one given how much cap space they are projected to have. According to spotrac.com, the team is projected to have about $50 million in cap space for the 2023 offseason.
That is a ton of space and could allow the Patriots to go crazy again. Given how much space they are set to have, I would not anticipate them doing any sort of major contract restructures, unless they are doing so to reward players.
For example, I could see Matthew Judon’s contract being altered to give him a higher payday given his performance in his first two years as a Patriot. I could also see something similar be done to Kendrick Bourne.
Having this much cap space will allow the team to not only re-sign some of their own guys, but also splurge if they wanted to. Part of me thinks the Pats are going to try like heck to acquire a difference maker at wide receiver.
The most logical candidate for that is DeAndre Hopkins or Brandin Cooks, two players I do not think will be with their current teams in 2023. Both seem a bit frustrated at their current situations and are getting up there in age, so they are likely wanting to chase a Super Bowl.
New England would have the cap space to take on their contracts and perhaps re-work them if they chose to do so. The team also needs to keep an eye on their pending free agents. Luckily, there aren’t a ton of major names on this list or a ton of players who may command top dollar.
Guys like Jason McCourty and Matthew Slater aren’t going to play for any other team if they want to continue playing, so they are Patriots in 2023 if they want to be. Isaiah Wynn and Nelson Agholor are free agents, but I don’t think either of them return.
Both Jakobi Meyers and Jabrill Peppers are free agents. Meyers seems like a top priority to me, but again, someone like him won’t command top dollar, but his value to the team is obvious. I also think retaining Jabrill Peppers on a multi-year deal would be smart considering how dynamic of a player he is.
Other than that, I don’t think there are many other project Patriot free agents that are in urgent need of re-signing. I do think given the current situation, the team can go crazy again in free agency if they wanted to.