4 big-name free agents for Patriots to avoid like the plague

Jerod Mayo has taken control of the coaching duties in New England and he will usher in a rebuild of sorts for the Patriots. That's an unfamiliar concept for the team's passionate fan base but it's overdue. That makes free agency this offseason a particularly important period of business for the team's front office.

Long-term thinking must be the priority for the Patriots. It might be tempting for them to use cap space on a player capable of helping them right away but overpaying and older veteran could scupper the team's hopes of building a Super Bowl contender in a few seasons. The Patriots should be looking for young veterans who might be undervalued on the open market rather than splashing cash on big names to win offseason press conferences.

Signing any of these four players would be a critical error in the Patriots' hopes of building a winner in the post-Bill Belichick era. New England fans should exercise extreme skepticism if any of these players heads to Foxborough in the coming weeks.

4. Kyle Dugger isn't worth trouble for the Patriots

It's easy to see why Mayo would like to keep safety Kyle Dugger in the fold rather than allow him to leave in free agency. The simple truth is that the Patriots are not in the right stage of their roster construction to overpay a safety.

It's been easy to see that the entire league is devaluing the safety position by the sheer quantity of high-quality veterans who have been cut over the last couple of weeks. It's possible that flooding of the safety market could force Dugger back to New England on a modest deal. That's the only way he should be donning a Patriots jersey in 2024.

The most likely outcome will be that Dugger gets a decent contract from a team that's ready to be a Super Bowl contender. The Patriots should be willing to accept an imperfect safety on a bargain contract. They can find a replacement for Dugger once they're ready to compete.