Expect the New England Patriots to ask about Andre Johnson
Up until the NFL Draft the New England Patriots and Houston Texans have been connected to each other, with the Texans attempting to pry backup quarterback Ryan Mallett from the Patriots. Now the tables may have turned as Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald tweets that the Patriots will surely inquire on disgruntled receiver Andre Johnson:
On Andre Johnson, I don't know if a Pats trade is possible, but I'd absolutely expect them to kick the tires because they discuss everyone.
— Jeff Howe (@jeffphowe) May 14, 2014
Considering it’s the Patriots who are doing the inquiring, the main issue here is salary as Johnson is owed $10 million this season and going forward. During the Belichick-Brady era, the Patriots haven’t been a team to splurge on talent and big names. Brady’s been paid along with other cornerstone players such as Vince Wilfork, Matt Light and Rob Gronkowski, but majority of the others are approached with caution from a salary standpoint. If a trade is happened, Howe notes that a restructuring would be inevitable
Pats could easily restructure remainder of Johnson's contract: $10M base/$1M roster bonus in 14, $10.5M base/$1M RB in 15, $11M+$1M in 16.
— Jeff Howe (@jeffphowe) May 14, 2014
Going into the 2014 season, the one thing the Patriots don’t lack at the wide receiver position is depth. Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola are the marquee players at the position while rookies Kenbrall Thompkins and Aaron Dobson hope to improve after a rocky rookie season. Brandon Lafell, signed during free agency, will also be a key player, but after him the rest won’t see the field unless an injury occurs. And despite the talent in the above group, none of the players are a guaranteed stud like Johnson who has been one of the five best receivers in the NFL for the last few years.
In fact, since the 2010 season, only Calvin Johnson, Brandon Marshall and Roddy White have accumulated more receiving yards than Andre Johnson over the time span. He ranks low in touchdowns, 19 in total, in the given time frame, but the numbers show his dominance.
And that dominance would take the Patriots offense to the next level. We remember how lethal it was during the Randy Moss-Wes Welker days. Add a possibly healthy Rob Gronkowski to the equation as Johnson would play the role of Moss and Amendola the role of Welker and that’s an offense that’d be pretty tough to stop.
Right now everything is preliminary, but with Tom Brady’s career winding down, Bill Belichick will need to make a high-risk, high-reward move if he wants to win another Super Bowl. Trading for Andre Johnson could be that move.