Patriots Play Hardball with Soft Handed Branch

Walter Anaruk
Field Position Sports Media
http://www.fieldposition.com

The Patriots are really sticking to their guns. They have given top receiver, fan favorite, and former Super Bowl MVP Deion Branch permission to seek a trade. Now, given their restrictions on the trade, they obviously have no intention of letting Deion go. Instead, they have set the asking price at a first or high second-round draft pick. To make the deal even harder to consummate, they've given Deion to the end of the week to find a trade partner willing to offer the Patriots and acceptable deal. Clearly, Branch is meant to go nowhere.

Despite the best efforts of the front office in Foxboro, there are plenty of suitors for Branch. The Eagles were a top contender for Branch's services until they secured Donte Stallworth for a conditional fourth round draft pick and LB Mark Simoneau. The Bears were in the running for the speedy but completely and utterly handless Ashley Lelie but lost out in the three way trade consummated by Denver, Pittsburgh, and Atlanta. The Bears sorely want a weapon to compliment Mushin Muhammad. Branch would easily become the primier receiver for the Bears. But the Bears are unwilling to part with a high draft pick. The Patriots plan is working.

Is any of this a suprise to anyone? Does the name Ty Law ring a bell? The Patriots also got done waxing the Washington Redskins, a playoff team last season, in a 41-0 shutout embarassment of a non-game. The fact that it is preseason my lessen the significance but not the strength of the message.

The Patriots are saying to Branch:

"We can win against anyone, anytime, anyway ... and with ANYONE."

Tom Brady is angry. Fans are angry. Branch is pragmatic, classy, and diplomatic about the whole situation. But the Patriots 'valuation' methods aside, isn't a receiver of Deion Branch's caliber worth more than a measley $1.05 million he earned last year? Especially when you consider that he only made that much AFTER a $500,000 incentive escalator almost doulbed his salary?

The Patriots are going to find that less and less of their players are going to buy into their team concept when the team elects to pay some players and play hardball with others. The point isn't that the Patriots should pay everyone more than their worth. But the point is that when some one is performing at a certain level, they deserve to be paid at that level. Especially when they've lived out the majority of their undervalued contract without complaint. This is not Terrell Owens holding out after one year into a $49 million deal.

For those who are saying that Branch is under contract and should just play, keep in mind that no contract in the NFL is guaranteed. The team can cut any player, any time, anywhere. The hold out is a player's only bargaining tool.

So the stand off is under way. Branch and Belichek/Pioli are standing on opposite sides of the street staring one another in the eye. Who will flinch? I hope it's the Patriots. I hope they can realize that you can't treat players like so many Topps trading cards and then tell them they are part of 'the family' and should buy into a 'team concept.' It's hypocritical and dehumanizing. Pay the man what he's worth. All hold outs are not created equal.