New England Patriots' Offseason Analysis: Wide Receiver

With the 2014 NFL Draft just over a month away, here is a quick review of the Patriots’ offseason, beginning with an analysis of the wide receiver position.

Key Moves:

Re-Signing Julian Edelman

After checking out the free agent market, Julian Edelman ultimately decided to return to New England, where he has spent the first five years of his career. Edelman had a coming-out-party in 2013, leading the Patriots with 105 receptions for 1,056 yards and six touchdowns. The Patriots rewarded his breakout season with a four-year deal with a base salary of $17 million overall and $6 million guaranteed. Edelman got the long-term security he was seeking in free agency from the Patriots, making his decision to stay in New England, rather than defect to his hometown San Francisco 49ers, much easier.

"You know, I got to go home and see the Niners, and I grew up a huge Niners fan,” Edelman said, via ESPNBoston.com. “But being in New England the last five years, that's just home, I mean, that's just home for me right now and just the way the mentality of the team, how everything's done -- the scheme, the players, the locker room, the fans."

A year after Tom Brady saw Wes Welker leave via free agency, the Patriots made sure to keep the QB’s go-to wideout from this past season. Injuries were a concern with Edelman throughout his first four seasons as the wideout played in just 48 of a possible 64 games. But after the versatile slot WR suited up for all 16 regular-season contests and both playoff games in 2013, New England felt safe to lock up Edelman for the next four seasons.

Julian Edelman returns to the Patriots, a season after emerging as the focal point of the offense. (David Silverman/AP)

 

Adding WR Brandon LaFell

The Patriots signed Brandon LaFell, formerly of the Carolina Panthers, to a three-year, $9 million contract in March to add experience to their wide receiver corps. The fifth-year WR started all 16 regular-season games in 2013 and finished with a career-high 49 catches for 627 yards and five touchdowns. LaFell had a particularly strong game versus the Patriots in the “Monday Night Football” clash, registering a season-high seven receptions for 59 yards and a touchdown in the Panthers' 24-20 upset win in Week 11.

LaFell is an inside/outside receiver that has excellent size for the position. His blocking skills were praised by his former coach Ron Rivera, who also gushed about the wideout’s intelligence and versatility. The reviews for LaFell are not all kind, however. According to Dan Bompei of Bleacher Reporter, two-front office executives were highly critical of LaFell and his shortcomings, one asserting LaFell isn't a starting-caliber player, with the other referring to the WR as “stiff” and “mechanical” with inconsistent hands.

Brandon LaFell is the newest member of the Patriots' wide receiver core. (Al Bello/ Getty Images)

There is no telling how productive LaFell will be in New England. The wideout has posted three straight seasons of between 600 and 700 yards. However, his lack of big playmaking ability could make him an afterthought in New England. LaFell will have to prove himself in training camp.

Key Question Marks

How will Second-Year WR’s fare in 2014?

The Patriots will need Aaron Dobson to build on his success from his rookie season. The 59^th overall pick in the 2013 NFL draft, Dobson hauled in 37 passes for 519 yards and four touchdowns last season. Injuries limited Dobson to 12 games, however, and health will be a critical determinant for his role in the offense for the upcoming season. Unfortunately for Dobson, he underwent surgery in March to treat a stress fracture in his left foot and will not be ready to participate in the Patriots’ offseason activities beginning in May.

Undrafted wide receiver Kenbrell Thompkins was a pleasant surprise for the Patriots in 2013, recording 32 receptions for 466 yards and four touchdowns. He was also hampered by nagging injuries, and just like Dobson, appeared in 12 contests last year. Thompkins had some big moments last season, most notably hauling in the game-winning TD versus the New Orleans Saints, but he also was inconsistent catching the ball and looked lost on routes at various points of the year.

Will Aaron Dobson (left) and Kenbrell Thompkins (right) become a formidable WR tandem in 2014? (Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

Fourth-round wideout Josh Boyce was an afterthought in the offense in his rookie season. He struggled to find playing time behind the other receivers on the club. He saw his most action via special-teams as a result. Boyce had nine catches for 121 yards in 2013.

Will Danny Amendola produce more in his second season in New England?

 Danny Amendola had a rocky start to his Patriot-career. After signing a five-year, $28.5 million contract last offseason, Amendola was only able to muster 54 receptions for just 633 yards and a mere two touchdowns. He disappeared in the AFC Championship loss to the Denver Broncos, capping off an underwhelming first season in New England.

The Patriots explored trade options for Amendola, before eventually deciding to hold onto the sixth-year receiver. Injuries have plagued Amendola, who has yet to record a 1,000 yard season in his career.

Danny Amendola did not live up to expectations in his first season with the Patriots. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)

With Rob Gronkowski likely sidelined for roughly half of the 2014 season, Amendola needs to be a bigger factor in the offense. Edelman shouldered the majority of the load last season, but the Patriots cannot rely solely on him, given his injury history. At the bare minimum, Amendola needs to be a strong locker room presence for the young wide receivers in the Patriots’ offense.

Other Notables

Emmanuel Sanders, who the Patriots signed to a one-year, $2.5 million offer sheet last offseason, before the Pittsburgh Steelers ultimately decided to match the Patriots’ offer and hold onto their restricted WR for one last year, signed with the Broncos in March. The deal is worth $15 million over three years. Sanders, who caught a career-best 67 receptions in 2013, will be used to fill the void in the Broncos’ offense left by Eric Decker, who departed to the New York Jets via free agency.

The Patriots had interest in Steve Smith following his release from the Panthers, but the wideout opted to sign with the rival Baltimore Ravens on a three-year, $11.5 million contract. Before Smith landed a deal with Baltimore, he had a visit set up with the Patriots. 

NFL 2013 Coach of the Year Honors: Carolina's Ron Rivera Stands Above Stacked Crowd of Worthy Candidates

The NFL will celebrate its third annual “NFL Honors” event on the stage of Radio City Music Hall in New York tonight at 8 P.M. on FOX. The Associated Press will present many of the accolades for the 2013 NFL season on the eve of Super Bowl XLVII. Of all the awards that will be handed out tonight, the Coach of the Year Honors offers the most intrigue.

            There are a bevy of coaches that merit praise for their work in the 2013 season. Chip Kelly adapted to the professional game commendably in his inaugural season, leading the Eagles to a 10-6 record and the NFC East title. Kelly inherited a 4-12 club that finished in last-place in the division a season ago. He successfully changed the culture of the team, overseeing a potent offense (2^nd in total yards per game) and a defensive revival as the Eagles won seven of their final eight contests to secure a playoff berth for the first time in three seasons.

            Speaking of head coaches that thrived in their first year at the helm, the work of San Diego’s Mike McCoy cannot go unnoticed. McCoy steered the Chargers to their first playoff appearance since 2009. San Diego finished with a 9-7 mark, earning the second wild-card spot in the AFC playoffs. The Chargers were the hottest team in the NFL down the tail-end of the season, winning four straight to reach the postseason, including a crucial victory over the Broncos at Mile High Stadium on a “Thursday Night Football” contest. The Chargers won their first playoff game in five years, stomping the Bengals in Cincinnati in the AFC Wild Card round. Of the eight new head coaches hired in 2013, McCoy was the only one to lead his team to the Divisional round of the playoffs.

            Two NFC West head coaches must be applauded for their 2013 season. Let’s start with Pete Carroll, who led the Seahawks to a 13-3 record and home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. Not only has Carroll has established the NFL’s top defensive unit, he also has crafted the “Seahawk Way”, which his players endorsed on Super Bowl Media Day. With a victory tomorrow night, Carroll will become just the third coach to win a NCAAF National Championship and a Super Bowl.

Pete Carroll has the Seahawks on the verge of their first Super Bowl victory in franchise history.

            Bruce Arians, another rookie head coach that flourished in his first opportunity at the helm, guided the Arizona Cardinals to a 10-6 record in 2013. The Cardinals featured a five-game improvement from 2012 to 2013 and stayed in the hunt for a playoff spot, despite playing in the ultra-competitive NFC West. The Cardinals recorded impressive blowout victories over the Panthers and Colts and defeated the Seahawks in Seattle, handing Russell Wilson his only career loss at CenturyLink Field. Arians was unable to get his team to the postseason, but he was able to form an elite defense that will likely be a force to be reckoned with for years to come.

            Kelly, McCoy, Carroll and Arians have all earned consideration for the nod as the NFL’s best coach of 2013. However, in my opinion it is a three-man race for this year’s NFL Coach of the Year Award.

3. Andy Reid, Kansas City Chiefs

            Andy Reid transformed the Chiefs into a winner in his first season in Kansas City, leading the team to 11 wins and a postseason appearance, a year after the team finished with the worst record in the NFL. Reid took over a Chiefs club that desperately needed a fresh start after winning just two games in 2012. Under the wing of Reid, the Chiefs stormed out of the gates to a 9-0 start. Kansas City came down to earth in the following weeks, losing three in a row en route to a 2-5 finish to the season. Even so, Reid directed a 9-win improvement from last year, helping the Chiefs make their first postseason since 2010.

 Reid revitalized a Chiefs’ offense that had not taken advantage of its immense talent. Jamaal Charles, who is up for the Offensive Player of the Year Award, had a career year in Reid’s offensive system. Charles rushed for a NFL-best 12 touchdowns in 2013, racking up 1,286 rushing yards in the process. Alex Smith also had his finest season as a QB, tossing 27 touchdowns passes versus just 13 interceptions.

The knock on Reid will be that the Chiefs posted a 10-0 record against non-playoff teams this season, but a 1-5 mark against teams that qualified for the postseason. Nonetheless, Reid engineered a major turnaround for the Chiefs in 2013 and now the future looks suddenly very bright for the franchise.

2. Bill Belichick, New England Patriots

Bill Belichick had the burden of dealing with the Aaron Hernandez debacle this offseason. Distractions were at all-time high in New England after Hernandez was charged with murder. Belichick, however, refused to let the team get buried by off-the-field diversions. Belichick mandated that his players not discuss the Hernandez investigation with reporters, instead demanding they focus on just football and the task at hand.

No team in the NFL lost more impact players to season-ending injuries than New England. Vince Wilfork, Jerod Mayo and Tommy Kelly were all placed on injured reserve, testing the depth of the maligned Patriots’ defense. The Patriots also lost Sebastian Vollmer and Rob Gronkowski to season-ending injuries on the offensive side of the ball. Yet, the Patriots were able win 12 games and capture another AFC East title in 2013, seizing a first-round bye for the fourth straight season.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft believes this might be Belichick’s best coaching job in New England. Think about the magnitude of that statement. Belichick led the Patriots to a Super Bowl victory in 2001 with then-backup quarterback Tom Brady. He guided the Patriots to a perfect 16-0 season in 2007. A season later, he led the Patriots to 11 wins, even with Brady sidelined for the entire season after tearing his ACL in Week 1. Kraft gave Belichick the ultimate praise by stating that this may be his best season yet, given the track record of his Hall-of-Fame head coach.

1. Ron Rivera, Carolina Panthers

No coach is more meritorious of the Coach of the Year Honors than Ron Rivera

Ron Rivera deserves the nod for Coach of the Year for turning around a Panthers’ squad that had experienced immense losing in the past half-decade. After the Panthers started the season off with two ugly losses, many were calling for the dismissal of Rivera. A report surfaced that the Panthers had begun looking for potential replacements to supersede Rivera. The league-wide perception was that Rivera would be fired if his club were to lose to the lowly Giants in Week 3. The Panthers, though, played an inspired game against the Giants that day, pummeling the visitors 38-0 as they handed Tom Coughlin his most lopsided loss since taking over the head coaching duties in New York.

The Panthers were unable to sustain their success after their bye-week and got crushed on the road in Arizona. Rivera’s job again appeared on the line as the club fell to 1-3 on the year. That is when Rivera acknowledged he needed to take more risks, including keeping the offense on the field in fourth-and-short scenarios. He stayed true to his word in the first game following these remarks, going for it twice on the same drive on fourth-and-1 situations, rather than kick a field goal. The Panthers converted both plays, with the second resulting in a touchdown in the team’s 35-10 victory over the Vikings. This was the first victory for the Panthers in a stretch of 11 wins in their final 12 contests. Rivera consequently received the nickname "Riverboat Ron" after showing a recurrent willingness for gambles. Rivera’s risks paid off for the Panthers, who reached the postseason for the first time since 2008 as they won the NFC South and seized a first-round bye in the playoffs.

Week 3 Roundup: Panthers Obliterate Reeling Giants; Maligned Browns Temporarily Silence Critics Behind Brian Hoyer

Carolina Panthers 38, New York Giants  0

The Carolina Panthers have suffered some excruciating losses in the Ron Rivera era. Since Rivera took over the coaching duties in 2011, the club has posted a dismal 2-14 mark in games decided by 7 points or less. The Panthers (1-2) shredded some of their frustration from their recent gut-wrenching losses by compiling arguably their most satisfying win in Rivera's tenure on Sunday, demolishing the hapless New York Giants (0-3) 38-0 in front of their home crowd in Charlotte.

The front-seven of the Panthers continues to look like one of the best in football after another notable effort on Sunday. The Panthers made Eli Manning’s life a living hell, sacking the two-time Super Bowl champion seven times (6 of which came in the first half) as the Giants offense looked pitiful all afternoon.

Cam Newton flashed his dynamic skills at quarterback, tossing three touchdowns passes and rushing a TD score in the Panthers most lopsided victory in franchise history. Newton amassed 223 passing yards and threw two touchdown passes to Brandon LaFell and one to Ted Ginn Jr. Playing out of the read option on some designated run plays, Newton rushed for 45 yards on seven carries, including a TD run that witnessed him drag defenders into the end zone with him before he let out a ferocious yell.

Cam Newton fired up the Panthers home crowd in their 38-0 thrashing of the sinking Giants. ( Mike McCarn- AP)

The Panthers' blowout victory should temporarily halt questions related to Ron Rivera’s job security. Rivera and the Panthers head into their bye week 1-2, but their defense is playing at a championship level. If the Panthers can consistently play this caliber of defense, then they have a realistic shot at making their first playoff appearance since 2008.

The Giants, meanwhile, have been an utter disaster through the first three games of the 2013 season.  The G-Men have been outscored 115-54 (an average of 38.3 to 18 per game). They have a recorded a mere 133 rushing yards through their first 3 games, the fifth fewest yards to start a season in the Super-Bowl Era, according to Elias Sports Bureau. The club is in complete disarray after totaling just 18 first-half yards and three turnovers in the contest, bringing their season total of giveaways to a whopping 13.

The 38-0 loss was the worst defeat for the Giants in the Tom Coughlin era. 

Cleveland Browns 31, Minnesota Vikings 27

The Cleveland Browns were ridiculed the entire week after trading running back Trent Richardson to the Indianapolis Colts for a 2014 first-round pick. The deal was perceived as the waving of the white flag by the Browns. Richardson, the third overall pick in the 2012 draft, was viewed as a cornerstone piece of the Browns’ future by former team president Mike Holmgren. Holmgren blasted the shocking trade made by the new regime spearheaded by GM Mike Lombardi.  Other critics asserted the club had quit on the 2013 season and had entered full-NBA-tank-mode before the calendar had even flipped to October.

Determined to silence their detractors, the Browns coaching staff and players mustered an impressive 31-27 road win over the Minnesota Vikings behind third-string QB Brian Hoyer, who threw for 321 yards in the victory. The Browns (1-2) gave the nod to Hoyer over backup Jason Campbell with purported starter Brandon Weeden sidelined with a thumb injury. Hoyer may have snatched Weeden’s job after engineering a game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter to propel the Browns to their first victory of the season. Hoyer did throw three interceptions, but he also fired three touchdown passes, a feat Weeden has yet to accomplish in 17 career starts.

Jordan Cameron is suddenly emerging as one of the league’s most intriguing young tight ends after his three score game against the Vikings (0-3) on Sunday. Cameron totaled 66 yards on his 6 receptions (3 for TD’s), including the go-ahead grab in the back of end zone with 51 seconds left.

Josh Gordon, fresh off a two-game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy, hauled in 10 receptions for 146 yards and one touchdown.

The Browns were able to send a clear message to their fans, the critics and to to the rest of the NFL today that they have no intentions of quitting on the season and will not roll over against any opponent.