T
he New England Patriots suffered a big blow at cornerback and a Patriots insider believes that a recently released cornerback would make sense in New England.
The New York Giants released cornerback James Bradberry after they were unable to find a trade partner according to Dan Duggan of The Athletic. For New York, the move creates over $10 million in cap space but also it will have to deal with $11.7 million in dead money.
The Giants are releasing CB James Bradberry after failing to find a trade partner, per source. The move will create $10.1M in cap savings while leaving $11.7M in dead money.
(Savings will be $11.5M with $10.4M dead this year and $1.4M dead in 2023 if they make it a June 1 cut)
Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston believes that New England “would make sense” as a potential landing spot for the free-agent corner.
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“The Patriots may not be a top-three man-to-man defense in 2022, as they’ve been in recent years,” Perry tweeted. “But they definitely still value corners who can play man. That’s their type. Bradberry would make a lot of sense in Foxboro, but he should have plenty of interest on the open market.”
Patriots Need Replacements
New England needs some help at cornerback. The Patriots suffered a crucial loss as their top corner, J.C. Jackson, signed with the Los Angeles Chargers as a free agent. Jackson signed a massive five-year $82.5 million deal with the Chargers in the offseason.
New England signed Malcolm Butler out of retirement to help fill the hole left by Jackson. Butler last played for the Tennessee Titans in 2020 when he played 16 games and racked up four interceptions and 100 tackles.
While Butler may be refreshed after having a season off from the brutality that is the NFL regular season, he is 32 years old. Expecting him to cover the top talent in the league is quite the ask of the veteran.
New England did give the secondary some help at the 2022 NFL Draft. The Patriots drafted Marcus and Jack Jones in the third and fourth rounds respectively.
As Perry indicated, the Patriots are expected to deploy zone coverage more often this season after the loss of Jackson. Still, bringing Bradberry to Foxboro could sure up New England’s pass defense ahead of the regular season.
A Solid Addition
Bradberry has had quite the start to his career. He spent four seasons with the Carolina Panthers before ending up with the Giants.
The cornerback is coming off one of the best seasons of his career in 2021. He played in all 17 games and racked up a career-high four interceptions and two fumble recoveries. Bradberry also had 17 passes defended. The year prior, he was named to the Pro Bowl.
Standing at six-foot-one and weighing 212 pounds, the former second-round pick isn’t a pushover. Both of New England’s draft picks at cornerback are under six feet tall.
Combined with his impressive season in 2021 and the fact that Bradberry is only 28 years old, shows that he still has some gas left in the tank. Pairing him with Butler would help improve the Patriots pass defense as they look to improve after going 10-7 in 2021 and getting knocked out of the playoffs in the Wildcard Round courtesy of the Buffalo Bills.
So Patriots fans should keep an eye on Bradberry. There’s a chance that he ends up in New England before the start of the 2022 season.
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Pro Bowl Free Agent ‘Would Make Sense’ in New England