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It seems pretty plain. Allen Robinson isn’t going to be back with the Chicago Bears. Robinson was franchise tagged ahead of the 2021 season, and Robinson has struggled to get on the same page with the Bears’ franchise quarterback Justin Fields.
After watching the Bears manhandled on Monday Night Football against the Green Bay Packers (45-30), it becomes increasingly obvious Robinson will play professional football elsewhere in 2022.
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Are the Patriots an Option for Allen Robinson?
Where will Robinson land? The New England Patriots have been mentioned multiple times as a possibility. Pro Football Network’s Ben Rolfe lists the Patriots as the first potential landing spot for Robinson.
Rolfe wrote:
The Patriots were extremely active in the WR market last offseason. However, they arguably never actually got themselves a true No. 1 type receiver. Nelson Agholor has caught fewer than 60% of his targets, and N’Keal Harry continues to struggle. They have had bright spots in Kendrick Bourne and Jakobi Meyers. Still, neither of them is the true WR1 type that Robinson can offer. This would be an intriguing potential landing spot for the current Bears WR, despite having only $27 million in projected cap space. With other areas to address and plenty of high-cost weapons on offense, would New England be willing to invest in the position further?
The Patriots’ offense is already growing on a weekly basis, though it is powered by a nasty rushing attack, but adding Robinson would make a team that is beginning to look like a Super Bowl contender even tougher in 2022.
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Is Allen Robinson Going to Be Too Expensive for the Patriots?
After seeing the money the Patriots spent on free agents this past offseason, only a fool would refer to the franchise as cheap. That said, Bill Belichick has been notoriously frugal on certain positions.
Robinson figures to be one of the most highly regarded free-agent wide receivers during the offseason. The Green Bay Packers’ Davante Adams is the No. 1 guy. Spotrac projects him to command a 5-year, $119.6 million contract with an annual salary of $23.9 million.
Robinson cannot and will not command a salary on Adams’ level, but he still might warrant more than the Patriots are willing to pay a wide out. According to Spotrac, Robinson’s market value is for 4 years, $66.2 million and an average annual salary of $16.5 million.
That projection is based on production, which has been impacted by the poor play of his quarterbacks. Because NFL general managers will put the factors into perspective, it is not crazy to think Robinson may get more than $66 million.
Even if his asking price remains in that ballpark, it might still be too rich for the Patriots. This past offseason, New England paid Nelson Agholor (2-year $22 million) and Kendrick Bourne (3-year $15 million).
When you also consider the Patriots have invested $87.5 million into Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith over the next five years, it makes it less likely the team will spend the money necessary to sing Robinson.
However, no one expected Belichick and Co. to go on the epic spending spree they launched this past offseason, so we’ll see what happens during the spring of 2022.
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