I read an X and O breakdown from a coach on another board that put the blame for that Manningham catch on Sterling Moore giving an outside release in whatever coverage scheme they were playing. I dont know shit about shit, but he was pretty certain that wasnt on Chung
Chung!
- Thread starter Corsi
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The Patriots are no longer on the hook for Gregory's $2,250,000 salary, $100,000 offseason workout bonus money, and the $500,000 in LTBE incentives (numbers from Miguel)
And Gregory contributed little on ST (87 snaps in 14 games, team leader was Collins with 364)
So even if Gregory was willing to restructure he brings little to the table if they don't see him as a starter.
OTOH Chung only played 94 ST snaps in 12 games, so he wasn't used much either, so my money is on "free camp fodder with experience in the system"
Cost is a factor, but it is for other guys they haven't cut yet, like Connolly.JohnnyK said:
As for the "if they don't see him as a starter" logic, he was a starter at the end of 2013. It's reasonable to think Harmon will pass him, but thinking it is one thing, assuming it another. Why make the move in February instead of in August when you can see how people look in the preseason? I don't think Gregory is tough to replace or anything; unfortunately I'm not sure they have replaced him yet.
I will say: cutting Gregory is going to make a lot more sense if they take Calvin Pryor or Deone Bucannon or (insert your favorite safety prospect) in the first couple rounds of the draft.
Chung did play 150-175 ST snaps in 14 games (including playoffs) with the Pats in 2012, so he's got value there.JohnnyK said:
I agree that the timing on the Gregory move is kind of weird, especially since his workout bonuses (boni?) are only 100k, so hardly anything to worry about cap-wise. Connolly doesn't even carry any workout bonus, and I'd speculate they would like to keep the line mostly intact to make the transition to from Dante to DeGuglielmo smoother, so they hope to retain him (I'd guess after a restructure). But of course this is speculation since BB will never speak of Gregory again unless he comes back for the minimum...Super Nomario said:
Regarding Chung's ST snaps - not saying he does not have value there, just pointing out he didn't have that many snaps in PHI for someone who would have to play a lot of ST for the Pats to make the team.
With the addition of Revis/Browner, is there something about Chung's abilities, style that would be more complimentary/a better fit to anticipated schemes, than what either Wilson or Gregory would be?
I'd imagine Chung is just replacing Adrian Wilson as a backup safety whose speciality for this team is playing in the box. Chung wasn't terrible when he didnt have to cover.bankshot1 said:
Is he though? We all harped on his play a lot in the past, and he most certainly isn't a prototypical SS. Can someone check his PFF grades for some approximation of his value?Tony C said:
And as cliché as it sounds, the Pats might have just tried to do him a favour by allowing him to become an FA now if they have no intention of bringing him back for another season.
PFF has Gregory at +2.1 (0.0 in coverage), 25th out of 86 safeties they graded in the regular season. Including playoffs, he drops to +1.1 (-1.1 in coverage). B/R's NFL1000 project had Gregory as their #33 safety (out of 75). I think it is difficult to amateur scout safety play, however.JohnnyK said:
I know he's sort of a whipping boy here hence I'm not surprised that his departure hasn't been met with much agony. That said, while not taking those PFF numbers as gospel (at all), my sense of last season is that he was average or better until he got hurt, then kind of sucked when he returned. It was wishful thinking to think his release meant Adrian Wilson would come back. I don't think it's wishful thinking to believe Harmon can contribute more -- he was competent enough last year -- but with the need for 3 safeties given injuries that will happen, even if a bit overpaid ($3.6 million) I'd sure like to have Gregory back for the last season on his contract. Not like teams are beating a path to his door (giving more credence to doubting PFF's numbers), so perhaps he'll be re-signed. I have a hard time believing the Pats have a specific bead on a guy in the draft to take that slot. I'd much rather they draft for overall talent or for the DL.
bankshot1 said:
Not trying to be a dick, but this has definitely been discussed by multiple posters in this thread
At first I didnt understand the Gregory cut but now this makes a lot of sense. They must have looked at the position and realized they never want to take McCourty off the field, Harmon had taken over or was in the process of completely taking over the other safety spot. So ~$3M is a lot to pay for a backup safety you hope never sees the field. Now you get Chung at basically a veteran minimum deal to add depth, and if you add a safety in the draft who is more deserving of a roster spot there are no ramifications for cutting Chung.
Contingent upon what happens in the draft, they took a minor hit in backup safety but saved $2M which could have been somewhat budgeted to go towards Revis/Browner which also reduces some of the importance of the safety position.
Contingent upon what happens in the draft, they took a minor hit in backup safety but saved $2M which could have been somewhat budgeted to go towards Revis/Browner which also reduces some of the importance of the safety position.
Re: the bolded: snaps in the playoffs last year - Gregory: 135, Harmon: 2. I think it's reasonable to imagine Harmon might improve and pass Gregory, but in January the team judged Gregory the better player.wutang112878 said:
Solid counterpoint, because last year when Gregory was healthy he didnt really come off the field. I just have to believe they really thought Harmon was projecting to take it over or they have other plans for the position which havent completely unfolded. It just seems odd to release Gregory because even though his ~$3M cap hit was an overpay its really not that much of an overpay if you project him to be a genuine starter. Thats what I was basing my projection for Harmon off of, but I didnt consider the possibility of drafting a projected starter.
No. Maybe they had a deep paycut it in mind all along bit thought it best that he hit the market to make it easier to abide.
You would assign neither Gregory nor Chung to a fire brigade. Serviceable in the right scheme with a keen eye to limitations.
You would assign neither Gregory nor Chung to a fire brigade. Serviceable in the right scheme with a keen eye to limitations.
Do we think the Gregory for Chung swap is a role change due to the CB upgrades? This year they may trust Revis McCourty Dennard in deep coverage allowing their 2nd safety to be more run-focused.
I know this was mentioned up thread but recent posts seem to conclude Chung-for-Gregory is a straight downgrade, rather than saying Gregory's role doesn't exist this year.
I know this was mentioned up thread but recent posts seem to conclude Chung-for-Gregory is a straight downgrade, rather than saying Gregory's role doesn't exist this year.
I have to believe thats a big part of the thinking now that they have Revis and Browner that should make the job of the safeties infinitely easier. Its similar to their approach with receivers where they dont mind giving Brady very little to work with at times knowing that he will make chicken salad out of ...
I suspect that it is as simple as (1): they did not think Gregory was worth the $2.8M (or whatever it was) cap hit so they cut him, with the upgrade at the corners and/or the availability of Chung having little to nothing to do with the decision; and (2) with Gregory gone they might need another body at SS, saw that Chung was available and figured he'd be worth a small contract with little guaranteed money, and come camp they'll see if he has any productive role on the team.
