HEADLINES

AFC East Notes: Patriots, Edelman, Jets, Bills

April 12th, 2020 at 10:51am CST by Zachary Links

Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman won’t be prosecuted in connection with his January incident (via TMZ). One week after the Patriots were eliminated from the playoffs, Los Angeles police alleged that he jumped on the hood of someone else’s Mercedes and caused damage. His drunken escapade won’t result in legal consequences because the owner of the car doesn’t want him to be prosecuted and Edelman does not have a “known criminal history,” per the DA’s office. With that, it’s unlikely that the Super Bowl LIII MVP will face league suspension.

Last year, Edelman tallied 100 receptions for 1,117 yards and six touchdowns. Even as he enters his age-34 season, he remains a key player in the Patriots’ offense. Now, the Pats have to figure out who will be throwing to him in 2020.

Here’s more from the AFC East:

  • The Patriots still hold Rob Gronkowski‘s rights, which means that he wouldn’t be able to simply come out of retirement and rejoin Tom Brady in Tampa (if that’s what he wants to do). However, he could easily force the Patriots’ hand, as Mike Florio of PFT notes. Gronk could un-retire, put his $9MM salary back on the books, and push the cap-strapped Pats to trade or release him. In that scenario, Florio speculates that the Patriots could swing a trade for one of the Bucs’ talented tight ends – Cameron Brate or O.J. Howard.
  • Despite the chatter, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY doesn’t think the Jets will trade Jamal Adams. He reasons that if the Jets wanted to trade the Pro Bowl safety, they would have done it already – the Cowboys reportedly offered a first-round pick for him, but they countered by asking for a whole lot more. That sky-high asking price, he says, is a pretty good indication that they want to keep Adams for the long-haul. Despite all of the drama, Adams is one of the game’s premier young defenders and the Jets seem to think that an extension is possible.
  • With that said, Vacchiano doesn’t think the Jets are in any rush to extend Adams. The 24-year-old (25 in October) can be kept through 2021 through his fifth-year option. After that, they can realistically use the franchise tag twice over to keep him through 2023.
  • The Bills are believed to have running back on their draft to-do list, but they also see rising sophomore Devin Singletary as a potential workhorse back. “I think Devin can do either or. He’s an unselfish player,” GM Brandon Beane said (via PFT). “If we want him to be the workload guy, I think he could definitely do it. I think Year Two is going to be better for him.” Singletary averaged over 5.0 yards per tote last year and could have had a chance at 1,000+ yards if he hadn’t missed time with a hamstring injury.
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