Patriots Named Landing Spot For Disgruntled Linebacker, According to Analyst

While all the focus is currently on the New England Patriots offense, the defense suffered some major losses this offseason. Could New England help fill a hole by bringing in a young linebacker who has publicly requested a trade?

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Roquan Smith is fed up with the Chicago Bears. He released a written statement where he claimed that the Bears “refused to negotiate in good faith” and that the “new front-office regime doesn’t value me here.”

Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay believes that New England could be a landing spot for the linebacker.

“The Patriots are an intriguing landing spot for Smith given their need for a talent of his caliber,” Kay wrote. “The team has a rich history of off-ball linebackers thriving under head coach Bill Belichick. New England has some expendable talent in addition to draft picks that could entice Chicago.”

At linebacker, the Patriots lost both Kyle Van Noy and Dont’a Hightower this offseason. Hightower specifically will be a major blow as he was a leader on and off the field spending nine seasons with the organization.

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What Trade Assets Does New England Have?

Acquiring a young linebacker won’t be cheap. Smith, 25, has racked up 524 tackles and 14 sacks in 61 total games played.

But the Patriots have some players they can afford to get rid of. With New England looking to gain cap space and the Bears desperately needing talent at wide receiver, Nelson Agholor seems like a perfect trade chip.

Kay discussed why Agholor would be a good fit in a trade.

“Agholor would give the Bears the type of receiver they direly need to foster the development of second-year quarterback Justin Fields,” Kay states. “The Patriots already sent a failed first-round pick in Harry N’Keal to the Windy City earlier in the offseason, but the reclamation project has a long way to go before he proves to be valuable depth behind Darnell Mooney.”

Agholor will become a free agent at the end of this season but carries a cap hit of approximately $14.9 million according to Spotrac. With the wide receiver having a mediocre 2021 campaign netting 37 receptions, 473 yards, and three touchdowns, that appears to be an overpay.

Kay also mentioned that New England could also trade Isaiah Wynn.

“If New England is confident in its offensive line depth, offering tackle Isaiah Wynn may just get the Bears to bite,” Kay wrote. “Wynn moved from left to right tackle during training camp but still represents a sizable upgrade on either side of Chicago’s line. Pro Football Focus projected the Bears to have the second-worst performance in the offensive trenches in 2022 if a move isn’t made.”

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How Important Would Smith’s Acquisition Be?

The Patriots front seven will likely play a major role this year. With the loss of J.C. Jackson in the secondary, New England will no longer be able to rely on the secondary to do the heavy lifting in terms of shutting down opponents.

The likes of Matthew Judon, Ja’Whaun Bentley, and Josh Uche will need to be performing well week in and week out. Along with the defensive line, the linebackers will need to blow up holes and get into the opponent’s backfield. Adding Smith would increase the talent upfront which will be crucial for New England.

So a bad situation in Chicago could end up being the Patriots gain with the regular season just a few weeks away.