Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Foxboro Finance Friday: Pats Cap talks Patriots’ Roster and Salaries - 7/17/2020

Episode Date: July 17, 2020

The New England Patriots are suddenly comfortable, from a financial standpoint. With just under $7.8 million in available salary cap space, fans and media alike are wondering how the Pats might invest their monetary windfall. Joining host Mike D’Abate is Miguel ‘Pats Cap’ Benzan to discuss New England’s surprising settlements of the Antonio Brown and Aaron Hernandez grievances, Joe Thuney’s franchise tag salary, and whether the Patriots are in the market for TE David Njoku or DE Jadeveon Clowney. Finally, Miguel sets the record straight on the prevailing Patriots “cap myths.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patriots fans, you are now locked in to the Locked On Patriots Podcast. I'm going to show you how to make a beautiful and beautiful flower. I'm going to use a small flower pot. I'm going to use a small pot Hello to all of you Foxborough faithful. It's Financial Friday here on the Lockdown Patriots podcast, your daily home for news notes and analysis infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions,

the New England Patriots. Thank football. It's Friday, Patriots Nation. My name is Mike DeBate, your host of the Locked On Patriots podcast, which of course is a proud part of the Locked On podcast network, your team every day. And folks, because it's your team every day, that means your questions, comments, and feedback,

always welcomed and strongly encouraged. Feel free to share that feedback anytime by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at M-D-A-B-A-T-E-F-P-C. And while you're out there making that Twitterverse an offer it can't refuse, please be sure to follow the Locked On Patriots account as well at L-O underscore Patriots. Patriots Nation, it is Financial Friday with a Foxborough flair here on the Locked On Patriots podcast. How's that for alliteration, folks?

And what a better way to close out the week here on Locked On Patriots than to discuss a little Patriots team financials, especially when your guest is the leading subject matter expert in that area. Tell you what, we'll get to that in just a moment. But as you know, for the past four days this week, myself and my esteemed colleagues here at the Locked On Podcast Network that host the AFC East shows, Joe Marino of Locked On Bills, Kyle Krabs of Locked On Dolphins, and John Butchko of Locked On Jets, have provided you with a cross-section of divisional wisdom and counsel here on the Ultimate AFC East

Crossovers, which have aired throughout the entire Locked On NFL Network. Folks, I for one cannot thank John, Joe, and Kyle enough for their insight, their candor, and their analysis of where each individual team in the AFC East stands. Yes, I've heard from a lot of you that technically I believe the Bills are in the driver's seat in the AFC East. Well, I will be the first to admit that I hope I'm dead wrong on that. And also, that I'm not saying it's impossible for the Patriots to win the AFC East. Quite the opposite. My opinion on this matter could indeed change. And it starts on the 28th, when hopefully we will see the start of Patriots training camp. And that'll be our first opportunity

to take a look at this team on the field and see what the Patriots truly have. And I think what they have is pretty good, folks. I'm excited. You're excited. We're all excited to see our Patriots back on the field. But as the roster is currently situated today, be the product that takes the field, again folks, hopefully takes the field, on July 28th. We've heard a lot of rumors about roster cuts in advance of training camp, but that's not the only way the roster might be altered. After all, if we're being honest, as we sit here currently, the Patriots are in a much better financial situation right now than they were just one week ago at this time. When you go from approximately $500,000 available in cap space to nearly $8 million, everyone's

expectations are heightened and the excitement levels are raised a bit. But how will the Patriots invest that money? Well, over the last couple of weeks, we've seen the Patriots restructure Rex Burkhead's contract, we've seen Cam Newton's deal become official, and we've also seen the deadline to sign offensive lineman Joe Tooney to a long-term deal come and go. All three of those salaries have already been factored into the Patriots' salary cap. And again, because of favorable settlements in the grievances of both former Patriot Antonio Brown and the estate of the late Aaron Hernandez, the Patriots do have just under $8 million of cap space to work with. Does that mean that the

Patriots are eyeing a potential deal for a veteran, one with a resume and football acumen that could come in and put the Patriots' chances of contending for a division title over the top? Well, that's just one of the questions that we're going to be addressing today, because joining me in the hot seat here on this Financials Friday with a Foxborough Flair episode of the pod is the best of the best. The salary cap top gun. The Pats cap himself, Miguel Benzon.

And Miguel will help us close out the week in style here on Locked On Patriots as we discuss the recent financial windfall from the Patriots winning those grievances. What it meant for the Joe Tooney deal. Does this mean that the Patriots might now pursue a deal for David Nujoku or even Jadeveon Clowney? And last but not least, in a segment that is unique to Locked On Patriots might now pursue a deal for David Nujoku or even Jadeveon Clowney. And last but not least, in a segment that is unique to Locked On Patriots, Miguel gets the opportunity to set the record straight on all those salary cap myths that are swimming around out there. And based on the fact that most of the big Patriots news lately has surrounded financials, we all know that Miguel's got some things to get off his chest.

Now I don't want to speak for all of you out there, but I for one cannot wait to share the microphone with my good friend as we talk anything and everything related to the Patriots salary cap. So settle in, folks, and let the wisdom and counsel of my good friend Miguel Benzon take you into the weekend right here on the Locked On Patriots podcast when we continue. Patriots fans, the Patriots bottom line has been first in line when it comes to team news lately. And even though it's crossover week, it's time to talk business. New England Patriots business. And when we need the definitive word on anything and everything related to the Patriots

salary cap, we seek the wisdom and counsel of the best there is. And my guest today is the most knowledgeable source when it comes to anything and everything that relates to the Patriots' salary cap. He is among the best follows on Twitter that you can find anywhere. You know him as the Pats cap. I call him the Top Gun. He is my good friend, Miguel Benzon, and it's my honor to bring his wisdom and counsel back to the podcast today.

Miguel, thank you for joining me today. Welcome back to the Locked On Patriots podcast. It's always a pleasure, Mike. It's always a pleasure. Like we said before the show started, you guys have been on the Locked On Network. I love the crossover episodes. I hope Murph doesn't listen to this one,

but those are my favorites. No offense to Steve either, because those are familiar. I love those guys. When you guys do the crossover episodes, because you're learning, I'm learning stuff from people I wouldn't normally listen to. So I just love that perspective. Bottom line, my friend, Steve Stephen Murph are definitely family, as are you, without question.

But the crossovers are special opportunities at Locked On because we get a chance to really give a cross-section of wisdom and counsel from the subject matter experts and all of the Locked On hosts. And joining my guys on the AFC East was a blast this week. I really, really had fun breaking all that down. But it's time to talk Patriots business today, my friend, and that means financials. And what better way to close out the week here than to kick it off with you, my friend? Like I said, I never, ever exaggerate when I say that you are the best in the business to describe what you do. When I have a question on the salary cap,

you're the first source. You're the only source, the only one anybody needs. So without further ado, my friend, let's kick this off. According to your calculations, Miguel, they're the most trusted in the business, folks. And again, that's why we have him on here repeatedly on Lockdown Patriots. The Patriots currently have $7,794,739 in available cap space. Now, of course, $6.55 million of that came from settlements in the outstanding compensation grievances from the camps of expatriate Antonio Brown and the estate of the late Aaron Hernandez. Yesterday, the deadline for the team and offensive lineman Joe Tooney to reach a

long-term deal came and went. And Joe is now officially on the books for 2020 at one year, $14.78 million, which is already factored into Miguel's number, folks. Considering where the Patriots were cap wise last week, the pads are in much better shape now. And we will address that in just a moment. But Miguel, I was hoping that you could lend some insight to our listeners on whether you believe that the grievance settlements made by the Patriots made them a little bit more complacent in accepting that a long-term

deal with Joe was unlikely as the 2020 season approaches. No. I think Joe told them, this is what I want for money. The Patriots said, we're not going to pay it. We'll see. We'll go on. I don't think that affected Joe at all. Because I think Joe's said that we're not going to pay it. We'll see it. We'll go on. I don't think that

affected Joe at all. Because I think Joe's agent was Kirk Cousins' agent. He is more than comfortable with playing on the tag unless he gets the money he wants. So I don't think the

grievances, the settlements, had anything to do with Joe's thing. I think Joe has a number. I think it's higher than I thought it was. I don't think the grievances, the settlements had anything to do with Joe's thing. I think Joe has a number. I think it's higher than I thought it was. You know, I didn't – like I said before, before March, I said I didn't think – as soon as you mentioned Joe Tooney, like Pavlov said gone because I didn't think the Patriots was going to tag him because I thought for sure he was going to do what he did, sign that tag as soon as possible to guarantee himself that money.

I don't think it's more – oh, man, that settlement, I just want to just talk about that. I didn't see – folks, let's talk about the Aaron Hernandez one. I didn't see that coming at all, at all. I had – if you've been following me for a while, you know I've been tracking the incentives for the Patriots each and every year. All right? So I always take a guess of what their adjustments were for the incentives. And I knew, and I said, all this time I said,

if my numbers are over $3 million off, I know they won the grievance for the signing bonus, because they had withheld $3.25 million of Aaron for the signing bonus because they'd withheld 3.25 million dollars of aaron hernandez um signing bonus so if i knew i was ever three million dollars off that's what it would be i was three million off three million dollars off earlier this year the only oxford razor the only logical explanation for me being three million dollars off is they got a credit for Aaron Hernandez. So I'm thinking, well, because he's got sued left and right by the estate, he's got all those lawyer fees. There's no more money for him.

So I was not expecting that. And I'll just say this, folks. And like I said, I always try to drop just podcast-only nuggets. And this is it. The money they got, that $2.55 million they got back for Aaron Hernandez, that was his signing bonus proration for the 2013 year. And you're going to say, well, Miguel, he got a 12-point, he got a big bonus. Why is it that it's the 2.55? Because he had, when he was drafted, he got a $ bonus. Why is it that 2.55? Because he had

when he was drafted he had got a $200,000 bonus divided by four years is $50,000. So the Patriots got that $50,000 bonus back as a credit and $2.5 million back. The $2.5 million

that was prorated for that 2013. And I don't know where this money come from i don't know folks i don't know how they say could have paid paid them i don't even know if they actually got the cash i thought i was on the impression they would have to get the cash i don't know folks but i was blown away by that as for my one of my least favorite people in the world antonio brown you got a lot of company there i'll tell you okay so like i said i think about it i put i'm 100 sure i said this in january i said i thought the patrons he could probably come up with a settlement all right where they just for the pages say, 2019, and we'll pay you – we'll forget it. Let's try to do something for 2020 and get the money back for 2020. That's what ended up happening, folks.

Right. So bottom line right now, he was – Antonio was counting $4.75 million on the cap. They got a $4 million credit. All right? And there's another. I think other people have said this. I know I definitely said this on Twitter before. Hopefully I did.

So remember, part of his money proration was his active roster bonuses in 2019. The Patriots had guaranteed that she was getting thirty three thousand three hundred thirty dollars per each active game right so that was prorated over two years over two years because the only it was only active for one game the Patriots got a credit for the rest four hundred sixty six thousand six hundred and sixty seven dollars all right so his Antonio Brown's net cost on the cap right now is $283,333. All right. Folks, I'm not going to put that on Twitter. This is a podcast only thing. I might put it on Twitter later, like in a couple of months from now, but just right now, I'm going to say that. And I'll say that. This is what Mike keeps on saying, like I'm the best out there. Like no one, like all these stories about Antonio Brown on the settlements,

none of them guys talked about where the money came, how the money came out. They just said, here's the money. So none of them did the – so the guys didn't any digging on how much the Patriots, he caught on the cap now. None of them talked – no one says the $2.55 million is what is shown in signing the board of operations for 2013. I'm like, come on, guys. Let's do just a little. You know what I'm saying?

But that's – I like – and that's about – I was blown away that, Mike. And I'll say the other thing I was blown away, Mike. I am shocked they got the money in the middle of the year. Four months after the start of the league year. Because I'm looking at the CBA right now. And I read this phrase, I looked at this sentence they have, for a credit for salary forfeited or refunded. All right?

And I'm just going to quote directly from the CBA. I hate to be boring people, but it says such amount as of previous been including team salary shall be credited as a club's team salary for the next league year. I've always interpreted that

if they were to get any grievance money from Antonio Brown, that would show up in the next year, in 2021. I must have said that several times on Twitter. I was wrong, folks, and I apologize to all those I was wrong to, all right? But I read – I got that sentence. This thing is looking at me and it's going to haunt me because I cut it wrong. I interpreted this a little bit wrong, all right?

And the other thing people have been asking me, did the Patriots know that the money was coming? Folks, they were engaged with settlements. Of course they knew. You know what I'm saying? They were engaged with settlement talks. So of course they knew they were going to agree. Eventually they would agree to a settlement or not.

So of course they knew. I don't know if they knew it was going to come right after they signed Cam Newton. I don't know if they knew is that's going to come right after they signed Cam Newton. I don't know about that, but it does help them. I, and I'll say this and I hate the, I always have to set the registration, but today I'm reading a piece by on WEI by Ryan, Ryan, him saying that Cam Newton should be mad at his agent. All right.

That the, he should have known, done more digging, that the Patriots was going to get more cap space. And I'm like, come on, Ryan. First of all, you never said it during your stories that the Patriots was going to get more cap space from Antonio Brown and Aaron Hernandez. So if you get, so, and neither did I. So I'm saying, but literally,

Ryan's blaming the agent for something he also didn't do and neither did this guy do. All right? I always said it was going to come in 2021. I might have been the only person who said the Patriots was going to win the grievance. I was 51-49. But I thought that they was going to win the grievance with Antonio Brown. All right? The fact that they settled makes me feel better about my prediction.

If Drew Rosenhaus wouldn't have settled, he thought he was going to have any chance of losing, especially if Antonio Brown doesn't pay his bills. He needs as much money to get to get. No, you're right. Yeah. So. So. Did they know? Yes. Did they know? After Newton, should Cam Newton be mad that they got the money?

I'd say no. And I'm going to say no, and I'll explain further why. A, if he's looking at the Patriots, and he's thinking that they need to create more cap space before they sign me, then why did he sign before Joe Tooney's deal before 4 p.m. June 15th? Because he could have waited until then. The Patriots could have traded Joe Tooney and created over $14 million cap space or extended him, which would have created several million dollars in cap space. Right. It was important. you know what I'm saying? So he could have waited until June to today to sign with the Patriots.

You know what I'm saying? If he was that much more than cap space and, I'm sorry, but folks, any agent worth his salt knows that the Patriots, if I'm an amateur, right, the Patriots could create cap space right now. We know we're going to talk about this later, Patriots could create cap space right now. We know we're going to talk about this later, but they could create cap space with Gilmore, Hightower, Sanu, Mason, Elmore, Wise, Stooney.

I mean, they had all this time. There's still four months. Anytime they wanted to create cap space, they could have done so. To say, well, they're going to be mad that Cam Newton, who's made over $100 million, is going to be mad because he didn't get, he's not signed for a $3 million salary instead of a $1 million salary.

I find that a stretch. And I'll say this, why didn't he sign with the Bills or the Broncos who did have the cap space? You know what I'm saying? Blame – why would he be mad for the Patriots? At least the Patriots reached out to them. The teams with cap space who also – who didn't reach out to him, that he should be mad at them and not the Patriots.

Which, you know what I'm saying? I don't get the negativity about the Patriots. And this is one case that, like, this doesn't make sense, that argument from Ryan to say he should be mad at his agent. That's just – I don't get it. Whatever. You just want to put a story out there? Go ahead. No, and you know what?

I'm ranting. No, you're not. And I think you make a lot of excellent points. And just to hammer that home, thank you, first of all, for clarifying your stance on whether or not Tooney's salary cap number that he's going to be making this year had any correlation to what the Patriots got in terms of the settlement. I kind of agree with you. I think we could see the handwriting on the wall, even the last time we talked, that the Patriots seem content to be able to lock in Joe Tooney at that amount. Now, technically there's still a chance for a trade folks, but ultimately I think Tooney is too valuable to this team to trade. I think they keep him in the fold and I think it makes perfect sense to have him on the roster.

And obviously this grievance settlement makes it a little bit more palatable for them to do that. The other point that you made that I really want to hammer home as well is the point on cam newton and the ability of his agent to foresee exactly what was going to happen i think that's an interesting point and a good point to make and i'm glad you set the record straight on that uh we're going to give you more opportunities to set the record straight my friend in just a moment but i'm glad you were able to clarify that. But sticking on this subject for just a moment, buddy, now that the Patriots have close to 8 million in available cap space, there's a large section of the fan base and even some media that seem to believe that the Patriots are primed

for a spending spree here. We've heard rumors about tight end David Njoku of the Cleveland Browns. We've heard about defensive stalwart Jadavion Clowney possibly being linked to Foxborough. But you know far better than I do that cap space is needed for many reasons that go beyond signing potentially high-priced players. So in your estimation, my friend, what will the Patriots do with their current cap space, and are they even likely to invest in a free agent like Njoku or even Clowney? Okay, so let's go stick with round numbers, all right?

We'll just use $8 million in cap space right now, all right? Mike, when you did your roster project in your first one, you created over $3 million in cap space for the Patriots, all right? Because he had guys who were not in the top 51, being out players in the top 51 in the 51 for roster spots. I'm talking like the rookies, the drafted rookies. I'm talking about the practice squad, the guys in the practice squad from last year. I'm talking a couple of two nine two thousand nineteen draft picks. Right. Those guys have low salaries being out players who have salaries like one to three million dollars and even with all even with the dead money that some of the mike's cuts he created over three

million dollars cap space all right so let's go from let's just use eight that's 11 million little cap space for the patriots let's just use that that let's say mike is mike's 53 man rosser projection which was before burkhead's pay cut and signing Cam Newton. Let's just use that just to keep it simple. All right? So that's $11 million in cap space. Is that enough for the Patriots to operate the rest of the year? Folks, it is.

And I'm going to say it is for the rest of the year because this will break down what they need the cap space for. All right? And I hate to repeat myself I'm hoping somebody new you guys are new users here new listeners because I've said this before what they need the money for players 52 and 53 all right those got those salaries and that count against the cap right now so that's about 1.2 million dollars you get your practice squad that's gonna be about 1.4 million dollars so now we're up to 2.6 the Patriots have right now 19 guys who have active roster bonuses if they earn them during a

year well the Patriots will lose in total 2.7 million in cap space. For example, let's go with my boy David Andrews. He didn't play last year. Neither did Brendan King. The first game those guys are active, the Patriots are going to lose some cap space the next day. The following Tuesday. Well, hopefully the NFLPA public salary package goes up to update itself, goes back to updating each daily basis. They'll lose that cap space. All right right and then you got to account for injuries none of us know who's going to get injured during the year or during the preseason but we do know at best and especially

with the pandemic some of those guys somebody's going to go on going to get injured you have to replace those guys the pay depending on when they depending on when the player gets injured a player gets injured that's how much cash space you lose it's a lot easier to replace a guy at the end of the year than at the beginning of the year because you don't you know at any year you only play maybe one week salary beginning year you're playing 17 week salary all right i don't know we don't know Mike who's gonna get injured during the preseason you know say and so the teams have a cushion like and the Patriots somewhere my guess from passengers they have a question between three to five man dolls and then you

know the other thing is you want to have cap space to be able to acquire a player during the season for a trade. And or, folks, extend the player who has a low cap number. And the person I'm talking about specifically is J.C. Jackson. All right. If you sign him to an extension, because his salary is at the minimum, any signing bonus, let's say you get to pick a number for any signing bonus you want to give him. Let's just pick an $8 million. Let's do $8 million for four years, folks. This is just an example.

That's a $2 million proration for 2020. If you want to do that, you have to have that cap space. That's where they're at. They could definitely. Now, let's talk about. So for Clowney to come on board, boy, you're talking about Darrell Revis kind of structure, signing structure, where you give him a signing bonus that goes over two years, but a large option for next year where your team is forced to make a decision early

so he gets hit to eat free agency. Because players don't want to hit free agency after the start of free agency. They want to be part of that free agent market at the beginning. So you would do the same thing. Do I think they could be able to they could sign clowny if i thought the patriots would extend gilmore or high tower or now they can't with thuny they i would go with yeah they could get clowny all right but now i don't think they can get clowny do i think they can get nagujuey. Do I think they can get Noguju?

Or I'm mispronouncing his name. Sorry about that, folks. Yeah, he's an easy get. Because you can cut Matt LaCoste. And he doesn't have the same salary, but close enough. Great insight. Okay. Yeah, so they have enough money right now because I was just using –

folks, I just used Mike's roster projection. It was pretty much spot on. Like I think I might have only made one more change than him. But that was a pretty spot on roster projection. That's the one I'm using for my numbers right now. So I can't wait until he does – I can't wait until you do your next one. Because now you'll know about Rex Burkett, right? You'll know about Cam Newton.

So, like, literally you've got to get – you've got to make room for Cam Newton on your roster. All right. No, you're absolutely right. Yeah, so, like, that's – yeah, they have enough space. Did – and the other thing people always ask about next year. I can't – I don't know that – I can't – we can't talk – no one knows what's going to happen next year. Like, folks, that $100 million people talking about, that was in February

when everybody thought the NFL was going to play 256 games and in front of packed stadiums. That's not happening, folks. So I don't know what the number of the 2021 league cap is going to be. Therefore, I can't tell you how much cap space the Patriots are going to have. All right? I mean, it's basic. You know, so it's basic math.

I need to have too many variables out there right now. I mean, I'm hoping that the owners do, like, at least agree to a flat cap. But these guys, I don't trust them. I don't think they'll be the hotliners, and I'm not sure. So that's why I can't give you any answers about 2021. Sorry. Again, folks, this is why Miguel is on that very short list of being the best of the best at all things salary cap. The insight with Njoku, the insight with Clowney, giving the insight as to next year's cap and why it's not an exact science and why there's a lot still up in the air.

That's why I call him the Pat's cap top gun. He is the best of the best. And next up here on Locked On Patriots, in a segment that is unique to this podcast, you've all been waiting for it, folks. Miguel will address the salary cap myths floating around, and he sets the record straight. Do not miss this next on the Locked On Patriots podcast. Folks, again, Miguel Benzon, the Pats cap himself, joins me here on the Locked On Patriots podcast.

And again, insight you can only find here, folks, the Patriots have some cap flexibility heading into the season. And Miguel has broken down exactly what that means for the Patriots, both in the short term and in the long term, and also what it might mean for the Patriots even into next year, even though there's not much insight there. But one of my favorite parts of having you join me here on the pod, my friend, is your ability to identify some of those other cap reports out there. And in your infinite wisdom, you either confirm them or debunk them. So without further ado, my good friend, take us home and set the record straight

when it comes to the Patriots' salary cap and their financial future in 2020. The floor is yours, buddy. Let's get the big one out of the way. Cam Newton's incentives. All right? Folks, if he earns them, there's going to be a debit against a 2021 cap. All right? And I'll just say this.

And that's those playing time incentives, his pro bowl incentives, his playoffs incentives, right? I personally don't consider active roster bonuses incentives, but the CBA does. And so it's because of that. If you earn an previously and not likely to be earned active roster bonus, it counts against the cap that day, the next day, like I talked about before. The Patriots aren't like – so Cam Newton, if he's active for all 16 games, his cap number is going to go up. Well, at the end of the year, it will be 1.75 million dollars instead of its current number all right i don't um so someone has said you know a couple times i get that question about the incentives it's not going to count 2021 they don't have to save the space if he hits the incentives for this year they could just do the the net for next year. Because maybe if

it happens every year, some of the players who have likely to bring in incentives don't earn them. So there's going to be a net. There's going to be netting. And I'll tell you this, because Cam Newton has incentives, you'll see the beat writers talk about

them. But I'll tell you this, I'll be the only one who tracks every Patriots player. You know what I'm saying? So that's going to give me a little bit of an edge, and that's why you want to follow me on Twitter at Pat's Cap. All right, so the other thing I wanted to talk about, for some reason, I have no idea why. For some reason, people are talking about trading Shaq Mason

and how the Patriots couldn't do it because they would cost them cap space. Folks, that's wrong. All right? After June 2nd, all right, the only signing board operation that would hit this year's cap would be this year's signing board operation. Future signing board operations are going to be on the 2021 cap. So the Patriotsers i'm not saying they should trade them or they will trade them of all i'm saying is that the notion that they can't trade them because of the cap is incorrect because they could create cap space they traded them this

today all right and i hope that it's not they don't do this while we're doing this podcast all right that'd be That'd be weird. If they did trade... I keep my eye on the breaking news wire, buddy. If it comes, don't worry. We'll break it. We'll break it together. Imagine that.

Yeah. All right. It would create cap space in 2020 and in 2021. I don't get what the... That's the thing. And, folks, you could trade most players on the Patriots, except the guys in the bottom who are not in the top 51, trade them, and they would create cap space.

All right? You can't cut – there's some players you can't cut and create cap space because they've got guaranteed salary. And I just want to circle back to Joe Tooney about trading them. Folks, if the more games he plays, like the trading, we were talking about trading Joe Tooney. Remember, his cap hit is $14.781 million. There ain't that many teams who can,

there's less than half of the NFL can afford to take his cap space on right now. All right? And then, and that's before, and since most draft picks haven't been signed, that number is going to shrink. So as for trading Joe Tooney before the start of the regular season, I wish that people who talk about it wouldn't be like, give us, Hey,

name the teams you think they could trade them and see how they're going to create the cap rates for them. All right. And then during the season, his every game, season, every week he's on the roster, his cap number for the new team goes lower because the Patriots will be on the hook for that week's salary. Okay? So by the time the trading deadline comes around,

his cap number is going to be close to half of what it was. Close to $7-8 million. Alright? So there's going to be a lot of cheats that trade him at the deadline. But I'll say this. I'll put this out there. No team can extend Joe Tooney

during this year. They have to wait until after the regular season. And if he signs the the after the regular season and if you sign the extension After the regular season that money any money setting both doesn't count against the 2020 cap It's not just this cut it all counts against the 2021 cap and whatever years he signed out for Once the regular 2020 regular season ends You can't touch that 2020 cap. All right?

Those are two things I wanted to set the record straight. Those are actually three things. All right? And the other thing is, oh, the other thing is about the money, how much cost base the Patriots will need for the rest of the year. Folks, I think, but I don't know, that the NFL will require a bigger roster. And then, therefore, if they have a bigger roster, a 55-man roster or a 14-man practice squad instead of a 12,

that's more cap space the Patriots are going to need. I mean, I don't get why the owners of the NFLPA haven't made a decision. We're, what, 11 days away from the start of training camps and we still don't know those numbers? That's just ridiculous. I thought I would say more than anything else but the circle back with Joe Tooney and his tag I think the uncertainty about how much cap space you mean is was more likely to do why didn't extend them

then the settlements Mike you know saying that I would say I always thought them the first thing he quieted in settle because he didn't get the money he didn't get they didn't offer him a deal that he couldn't refuse, a.k.a. let's make a reference to Godfather. The God of Godfathers, all right? I love it. I love it. I love it. All right.

They had to, like I said on Twitter, and I love you, Godfather, right, Mike? They had to make Joe Tooney an offer that he couldn't refuse. They didn't. And that's the number one thing. That's the number – main thing. All right? And then two for me would be the uncertainty about – from COVID. And I don't think there's any chance it has to do with the settlements.

All right? And then I might as well circle back. And I was thinking – now I'm thinking about the settlements. The other thing in Newton being – I don't think Rex Burkheadhead – some of you mentioned Rex Burkhead should be mad too. Like really? No, folks. That's his value. He agreed to the deal because he knew if he didn't say – he didn't accept the pay cut, the Patriots were going to cut him.

All right? So it didn't really matter if the Patriots had $100,000 in cap space or $100 million in cap space. If they think you're worth $3 million in the cap and your cap number is four, they're going to ask you to take a pay cut. You say no, if you say, no, I'm not taking a pay cut, you're out. You're out of here. If you do, if you say yes, you're on the team. That doesn't matter how much what they value a player as.

It has nothing to do with how much cap space you have. If they have a value for you, that's what they value. Sorry. No, I was just going to say, does that mean that we should classify Rex Burkhead as not a wartime consigliere, Miguel? I don't know. I was, Mike, I was surprised they did that.

But when I looked at the deal he took, holy cow, they cut him left and right. They cut his salary. They cut his roster bonus. They took away his incentives. And people were telling me that he was a lock. Folks, if you thought he was a lock, let's be real. You were wrong. He wasn't a lock.

If you thought he was a lock before the pay cut, you were wrong, folks. Because he literally had to take that pay cut to be on the roster. No, it's true. And I hold Rex in such high regard. And one of the great guys on the team, one of the great guys in the locker room, always prolific on the field when he's healthy. And look, I think in a lot of ways, you're absolutely right. The Patriots had a value on him. And they basically went to him and said, look, you want to talk about an offer you can't refuse? This was basically it. This is the deal. You know, I don't mean to get morbid here, folks, but it's like Don Corleone. Either his brains or his signature are going to end up on the contract. And that's exactly what happened with Rex. He was either going to be on the chopping block or he was actually going to be cut. And I think right now it's more palatable for the Patriots to keep him around.

But I've discussed this with our good friend Murph. I've discussed this with our good friend Steve Balistrieri. He's not that roster lock that a lot of people think he is right now. So again, my friend, great, great insight when it comes to recs and all the way around. Whenever you set the record straight here on Locked On Patriots, it's always my honor. It's always my privilege that you choose this medium to be able to bring this information to all of our listeners and to Patriots Media as a whole. We know that there's a lot of people listening when you're talking, and they should be. I liken you to the E.F. Hutton of Patriots Media, where if Miguel is talking, everybody stops, they cup their ear,

and they're listening, and they should be, buddy. The respect that you get is so well-deserved. Thank you so much. That's all I got, folks. I mean, I love coming on. I love coming on the show. I mean, I absolutely love coming on the show. I just appreciate Mike giving me the opportunity to be on here.

I just absolutely love it. You're already listening to this, but if you're just listening to this, listen to me. I highly recommend subscribing because Mike does an outstanding job. The Lockdown Patriots stuff, the crossover episodes are awesome. He's got

great guests. He's got Murph. He's got Steve. He's got Tanya Ray Fox. He's got Mark Schofield, who's the QB whisperer. It's just..., uh, Mark Schofield, who's like the QB whisperer. Um, it's just, this is folks. This is my favorite daily Patriots podcast. Um, I say that all the time. How could I not be more grateful? Really? How could I not be more grateful to hear that? Listen,

they say you're humbled by the company that you keep. I keep such esteemed company, not just in terms of knowledge and what they bring to the table, but amazing, amazing people. I'm truly blessed to have this microphone and I've been able to talk to some of the great people in Patriots media, in national football media, and really all across this landscape. You're at the top of that list, my friend, and a very select group of people that I consider family on this show and in life as well. And you're just, you're a great person, a great man, so knowledgeable. And again, I could not be more honored, more humble, every time your wisdom and counsel graces the airwaves here on Locked On Patriots.

Everybody, follow Miguel at Patscap on Twitter. I call him the top gun. He is the top gun, the plaque for the alternates. It doesn't exist because he has no equal. My friend, thank you so much. Stay safe.

Stay well. We look forward to having you back here on the pod very soon. Maybe I'll have you come in after I do my next roster prediction. And you can tell me how much cap space I unintentionally freed up uh and make me look a little bit smarter than I really am as you always do okay okay no you did it you did a great job last time yeah we're good anytime Mike anytime um I just want to just ask for the people who believe in prayer if you could say a prayer for our good friend Joss, that'd be awesome. Thank you, my friend. And absolutely, Joss is such a supporter of this podcast.

Joss Binder Singh, you know him at Sights on 7, at Turban Patriot, at six-time Super Bowl champs. He's one of the great guys in any walk of life that you'll ever meet. And we definitely wish him the absolute best. I know he's going through a little bit of a tough time health-wise right now, but he's got this. He's got positivity and a good outlook, both medically and positively-wise. So we wish him the best. Thank you so much for saying that.

Again, Miguel, I can't thank you enough. Have a great weekend, buddy, and we'll definitely welcome you back to the pod really soon. Anytime, Mike. Bye-bye. And just like that, folks, we put a bow on the week that was here on the Locked On Patriots podcast. Anytime, Mike. Bye-bye. I know, folks, it's bad alliteration, but I've got to stick with what works. And, of course, dished on the Dolphins. Last but certainly not least, today's great discussion on all things Foxborough Financials with my good friend Miguel Benzon. Folks at Locked On Patriots, we aspire to bring you the best content possible

and content you can only find right here on these airwaves. So to ensure that you do not miss a single episode of Locked On Patriots, please be sure to subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts. Follow us on Spotify. Download us wherever you prefer to get your podcasts. And of course, don't forget, you can always listen to Locked On Patriots right on your very own smart device. How do you do so?

Very simple. Just ask it to play the latest episode of Locked On Patriots. And if you've enjoyed today's episode, now tell your smart device to play the latest episode of Locked On Patriots. And if you've enjoyed today's episode, now tell your smart device to play the latest episode of Locked On Fantasy Football. That's right, folks. Friday, Fantasy Football. Foxborough Financials with a flair. Alliteration galore, and you know I love it.

And bottom line, folks, I hope you do too. Once again, my name is Mike DeBate. Again, I'd like to thank Joe Marino of Locked On Bills, Kyle Krabs of Locked On Dolphins, and John Buchko of Locked On Jets for their time and insight on what was a great ultimate divisional crossover week here on the pod. I also want to thank Miguel Benzon for his time,

his insight, and his appearance today. But most of all, folks, I would like to thank each and every one of you for taking the time to listen and for remaining locked into Locked On Patriots. Stay safe, stay well, continue to be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great weekend, everyone.