Ross Tucker says Patriots got worse by trading Logan Mankins
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| USATSI |
"They just got worse for this season," said Tucker. "What they are saying is they no longer think Logan is worth that money. I totally understand that, but you can't argue with me that the Patriots are better today than they were yesterday. Unless they get a lot more out of Tim Wright than any of us think they're going to get."
Tucker is definitely right on one thing - you can't argue that they're better today than they were yesterday, simply because they haven't played a full 60-minute game with all of their regulars. The bottom line is that we don't know if they got better or worse from this trade by virtue of it still being the pre-season.
By now, Mankins' stats over the last couple of seasons, especially last year, have been well documented. He has been in decline, and the offensive line has been questioned this pre-season. So yes, on the surface, this looked like a bold move. But what you lose in Mankins, you gain in an elusive pass-catching tight end that can play behind Rob Gronkowski.
From what I've seen in highlight reels, Wright is a big guy with good speed and can make tough catches, much like Aaron Hernandez when he was in New England.
I don't see this diminishing the Patriots' chances at winning it all this year, considering Mankins' production has been dipping, and he's on the wrong side of 32. The Patriots needed a tight end who is solid and can stay on the field in the event that Gronkowski has a setback or is just not ready to go yet.
It seems the Patriots have gotten that in Wright, and by all indications, it looks like he will fit in just fine in this offense.
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