Sam Shields contract makes it seem more and more likely Patriots won't be able to afford Aqib Talib
The Pats of course are looking to retain, maybe their most important free agent, Aqib Talib.
The corner is scheduled to hit free agency Tuesday at 4 pm but there have been a couple of contracts announced already that could put his price tag out of the Patriots' reach.
First there was Brent Grimes agreeing to an extension in Miami worth $8 million annually. That clearly set the market for top cornerbacks.
The latest deal to raise the bar was Sam Shields in Green Bay. Shields just agreed to an extension that will pay him $9.75 million annually over the life of the four year deal.
Chris Wesseling, NFL.com:
With free agency just days away, the Packers agreed to re-sign Shields to a new contract, agent Drew Rosenhaus revealed Saturday.
A person who has seen the contract tells NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport the deal is worth $39 million over four years. NFL Media's Albert Breer adds that Shields received a $12.5 million signing bonus and will collect $21 million over the first two years of the pact.
ProFootballTalk first reported the new contract.
The Packers increased their offer considerably, as Rapoport previously reported the team was offering just $6 million annually.
The argument could, quite easily, be made that Talib is a better cornerback than both Grimes and Shields. Given his injury history though, I would think that the Patriots were probably thinking about a deal in the $6 million range to retain him.
They will have to re-think that, as the Packers did, if they want to retain their top defensive playmaker. Talib is not going to take a hometown discount to stay in New England.
He gave up on a big payday last year when the market was lukewarm, and accepted a one year deal to stay in New England. That strategy has worked out tremendously for him with the market now proving very lucrative for some of the best cornerback free agent.
RELATED:
Top 5 free agent cornerbacks the Patriots could sign
Redskins are in on Aqib Talib
