Could the Patriots be targeting Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul in an NFL trade ahead of the Oct. 31 trade deadline?
We know that the Patriots aren’t afraid to make a monster splash at the NFL trade deadline as last year they shocked the NFL by trading away linebacker Jamie Collins, and five years ago they made a trade for cornerback Aqib Talib.
The Pats have a clear need for a new, dynamic member of their front seven, a group which has not generated much in the form of a consistent pass rush this season. With Dont’a Hightower now done for the season with a torn pec, New England is desperate to upgrade somewhere in the front seven – not necessarily at linebacker.
Bill Belichick routinely thinks outside the box when it comes to injuries. If a key player at one position goes down, he may elect to beef up a different position to compensate. Belichick likes to hide weaknesses and accentuate positives.
The Patriots defensive line is strong with Trey Flowers and Deatrich Wise, but the more the merrier.
Pierre-Paul would be a welcomed addition to the Patriots, as he’s still in his prime at 28-years-old. He dominated the Broncos a couple weeks back with eight tackles and three sacks and he has 4.5 sacks on the season. Last season he registered 7.0 sacks in just 12 games played and in his last full season played in 2014 he posted an impressive 12.5 sacks.
A huge roadblock to this trade scenario ever becoming a reality is Pierre-Paul’s massive contract, signed this past spring. After a lengthy contract dispute with Giants management, Pierre-Paul inked a four year, $62 million deal.
Belichick is historically hesitant to pay defensive players that amount of coin, but he has strayed a bit from the so-called “Patriot Way” recently – signing cornerback Stephon Gilmore to a five year, $65 million deal. Because Gilmore has been so bad for the Pats this season, doesn’t mean Belichick and the Patriots would be scared off by bringing in another big-name defensive player for big money. The Patriots don’t care how something is perceived, only that it makes sense for the team currently in place. Pierre-Paul would make great sense for the Patriots right now.
The Giants would have reasons of their own to make a trade with the Patriots. New York GM Jerry Reese is under fire and needs to give the fan base some sort of hope for a brighter future. The championship window with Eli Manning leading the offense and Pierre-Paul leading the defense seems to be closed and the team needs to go into full rebuild mode. At 1-6 this season, the Giants are set to do what the Jets were supposed to do this season and tank. Getting a couple draft picks out of the Patriots war-chest would help expedite that process.
