HEADLINES

Patrick Chung

Extra Points: Washington, Williams, Chung

June 17th, 2017 at 12:43pm CST by Ben Levine

Daryl Washington hasn’t played in an NFL game since 2013, but a potential comeback attempt got some hope following his reinstatement in April. Now, the 30-year-old isn’t only focused on making it back to the league, but he’s focused on becoming a dominant force.

“[NFL executive Adolpho Birch] asked me, ‘How you know I’m not going to see your face again and you’re not going to be in the same situation?’” Washington told Tom Pelissero of USA Today. “I said, ‘Adolpho Birch, next time you’re going to see me is if you’re at my Hall of Fame speech.’”

In fact, Washington has even outlined how the entire comeback attempt will play out. The Dallas native wants to sign with the Cowboys, win the Comeback Player of the Year award, earn a Pro Bowl birth, and lead his team to a Super Bowl championship.

“I think that star will be on my helmet real soon and it’s going to be a great moment, man,” he said.

“You’ve got to have your mind in a positive place, say ‘I can do this.’ In my mind, I already know I can do it. I don’t know if that’s pride, ego, cockiness, but it’s confidence for me. I know I can play to the best of my abilities. Football is easy. Life is challenging.”

Let’s take a look at some other notes on this Saturday afternoon:

  • Meanwhile, free agent defensive back Tramon Williams said he’s willing to play multiple positions if it means he could join a contender. “The team I’m looking for is stable and wants to win,” he told SiriusXM NFL Radio (via Twitter). “I’m ready to help a team at cornerback or safety.”
  • Williams also indicated that he was ready to give up on the Browns during the 2016 season. “There was a point during the season last year where I wanted to be released,” he said. The 34-year-old appeared in 12 games (seven starts) last season, compiled 36 tackles, five passes defended, and one interception – his lowest totals since 2007.
  • Patriots safety Patrick Chung was given “a chance” to earn an additional $800K in incentives this upcoming season, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates (via Twitter). This will now bring the veteran’s potential incentives total to $1.7MM. Chung, who has two years remaining on his contract, compiled 91 tackles in 16 starts for New England last season.

Patriots Rumors: Chung, Knighton, Gronk, Edelman

April 3rd, 2016 at 10:22am CST by Rory Parks

As most of the NFL world continues to be consumed by Colin Kaepernick rumors and draft talk, let’s take a look at some notes from the Patriots, who are quietly preparing to make a run at their eighth consecutive AFC East title:

  • Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com weighs in on Patrick Chung‘s recent contract extension, observing that the Patriots took the $1.8MM that Chung was likely to earn in playing-time incentives in 2016 and 2017 and turned it into a $1.8MM signing bonus, along with an extra $600K. In return, Chung added one year to his contract, keeping him under club control through 2018. New England, as Reiss notes, frequently turns incentives into signing bonus money as part of a win-win strategy that makes the player happy by giving him upfront cash and makes the team happy by keeping a productive player in the fold for another season. The extension was therefore not, as some have suggested, a simple display of generosity on the part of the Patriots as a reward to Chung for a job well done; there are rarely any giveaways in Foxborough, and the Chung contract was no exception.
  • In the same piece, Reiss opines that the one-year, $4.5MM deal Terrance Knighton recently inked with New England sounds a little high, given that the team was unwilling to make that kind of commitment for Akiem Hicks and Nick Fairley and consequently missed out on both players. Reiss believes that Knighton’s base pact is more likely to be closer to $2MM, with realistic incentives that could push it to $3MM and less realistic incentives that could max out at $4.5MM.
  • Knighton is just the latest in a long list of defensive tackles who sign on with the Patriots in the latter stages of their careers hoping to rekindle or continue their success, as Christopher Price of WEEI.com writes. Keith Traylor, Ted Washington, Shaun Ellis, Albert Haynesworth, Andre Carter, Tommy Kelly, and Alan Branch have all landed with New England relatively late in their careers, and you can pretty much count on New England bringing at least one such player aboard every offseason.
  • Just as the Patriots converted some of Chung’s incentives into a signing bonus, Ben Volin of The Boston Globe believes the team will likely do something similar in the near future with Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman. Volin writes that New England will probably take future base salaries for Edelman and Gronkwoski–both of whom are significantly underpaid when compared with the going market rate for their respective positions–and convert them into signing bonus money in an effort to keep them happy and focused.
  • Volin does observe that the Patriots have already prepared for Gronkowski and Edelman to be at least little unhappy with their current deals. The contracts for both players call for $250K workout bonuses for attending 90% of the team’s offseason practices, by far the highest workout bonuses of any Patriots player, so if they were to protest their contracts by skipping offseason workouts, they would miss out on a fair amount of money.

Patriots Extend Patrick Chung Through 2018

April 1st, 2016 at 8:42am CST by Luke Adams

The Patriots have tacked on an extra year to safety Patrick Chung‘s contract, giving him a raise for 2016 in the process, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com. Yates reports that Chung is now under contract in New England through the 2018 season, with the one-year extension adding $5.7MM in new money to his deal.Patrick Chung

As Yates and Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald explain, the new money in Chung’s deal breaks down as follows:

  • Signing bonus of $2.4MM.
  • 2017 base salary increased by $700K ($1.8MM to $2.5MM).
  • 2017 per-game roster bonuses increased by $200K ($200K to $400K).
  • 2018 base salary of $2MM.
  • 2018 per-game roster bonuses of $400K.

Despite the fact that Chung is getting a raise for 2016, his cap number will actually decrease by $100K, since the Patriots eliminated $900K in likely-to-be-earned incentives from his deal for the coming season. However, the veteran defensive back will have the opportunity to earn up to $1.5MM in total incentives later in the contract now — there’s a $900K not-likely-to-be-earned incentive for 2017, and $600K in NLTBE incentives for 2018.

While the math on Chung’s new extension is a little convoluted, the upshot is that the Pats are pleased with the 28-year-old’s performance and chose to reward him for it. Since returning to New England for the 2014 season, the former second-round pick has started 29 regular-season games and another five playoff contests for the club, teaming with Devin McCourty to form a reliable duo at safety.

In 2015, Pro Football Focus ranked Chung as the fifth-best safety in the NFL, two spots ahead of McCourty.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AFC Links: Bills, Jets, Titans, Chung

January 14th, 2015 at 8:42pm CST by Zachary Links

Rex Ryan was introduced earlier today as the Bills head coach, and the 52-year-old addressed some of the leftover whispers surrounding his signing. Ryan disputed claims that the Bills were his “third choice” behind the Falcons and 49ers (via John Kryk of the Toronto Sun)…

“No, that’s definitely false. Did I interview with the Falcons? Did I interview with the 49ers? Absolutely. There were plenty of opportunities.”

The coach also discussed the team’s search for a quarterback, including former Jets play-caller Mark Sanchez…

“Certainly, he’ll be a guy under consideration. We’ll explore every avenue. If we think there’s a free agent like Mark or somebody else out there that we think can help us, then we’ll absolutely explore it.”

Finally, the coach acknowledged that his opportunity in Buffalo may be his last shot as an NFL head coach…

“I (have) one more shot to be a head coach and I have to get it done. And I understand I won’t have another opportunity, and don’t want another opportunity. This is the shot I want.”

Let’s check out some more notes from the AFC…

  • Like it or not, Steve Serby of the New York Post says Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn will forever be connected to Jets head coach Todd Bowles. The writer opines that one day, the organization may regret rushing to sign Bowles instead of waiting for Quinn to finish his playoff run.
  • The Titans have a big quarterback decision on their hands as they’ll have to choose between Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota, and incumbent Zach Mettenberger, writes Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean. Wyatt runs down the pros and cons of each.
  • After inking a three-year extension with the Patriots, Patrick Chung is determined to show New England that he’s worth the money, writes Phil Perry of CSNNE.com. “I’m happy,” he said. “I’m happy. But it’s over now, and I can’t keep talking about it. I’m happy I’m back. I just gotta hopefully show them why they kept me.“

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Pats, Patrick Chung Agree To Extension

January 9th, 2015 at 8:50am CST by Ben Levine

The Patriots recently extended offensive lineman Marcus Cannon and special teams ace Matt Slater, and they continued to take care of their depth players this morning. ESPN’s Field Yates tweets that the team has signed safety Patrick Chung to a three-year extension worth up to $8.2MM, with $3.4MM guaranteed.

The Boston Globe’s Ben Volin clarifies (via Twitter) that Chung will make $1MM, $1.4MM and $1.8MM as the contract progresses. Volin adds that the veteran will receive a $2.4MM signing bonus, as well as $200K in annual roster bonuses and $500K for incentives in 2016 and 2017. Due to the relatively low cap hit, Volin states his belief that Chung should at least stick around for two more seasons (Twitter link).

The Patriots inked Chung to a one-year deal this offseason with the mindset that he’d compete for a starting safety role. The 27-year-old has rewarded the organization with one of the best seasons of his career, as he’s compiled 85 tackles and an interception while playing in 16 games for the first time since his rookie season. The advanced statistics suggest that Chung was one of the best safeties in the league in 2014, as Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked him as the 12th-best at his position.

Chung will now be sticking with the organization that selected him in the second round of the 2009 draft. Chung signed a one-year deal with the Eagles two years ago, but a mediocre 2013 season prompted his release.

Earlier this season, coach Bill Belichick spoke about Chung’s tenure in Philadelphia and his reunion with the Patriots (via ESPNBoston.com’s Mike Reiss):

“I think some of the circumstance of the ’12 season didn’t work out as well as we all hoped, for a combination of reasons. Pat and I talked about that last year after he was released from Philadelphia. Pat and I talked about that. We had a long conversation about a lot of things. I don’t think it was anybody’s fault. It was just one of those things that didn’t work out.

“We both felt that we would want to try to give it another shot and we were able to come to an agreement on that contractually, and I think he has done a real good job for us. He’s filled a lot of different roles. He’s played well, helped us in the kicking game, helped us defensively in a number of areas. He’s been around the ball, productive.”

AFC East Notes: Williams, Thomas, Johnson, Kelly

July 19th, 2014 at 3:06pm CST by Ben Levine

Bills newcomer Mike Williams sat out portions of minicamp to rest his troubled hamstring, but the veteran wideout has no worries heading into training camp.

“I’m fully ready to go,” Williams told Mark Gaughan of the Buffalo News. “I trained this whole offseason. There was really no offseason for me. I kinda had to get my leg better. I had to get back to feeling like Mike again, like my mom always tells me. Today running that conditioning test made me feel like I was Mike again.

“At the start of camp, just did the conditioning test and I feel real good. I feel great. I feel I got an A-plus, if there was a grade for it. I feel I’m ready to go.”

Williams finished 2013 with 22 catches for 216 yards and two touchdowns – all career lows. The Buccaneers traded the wideout to the Bills in early April for a sixth-round pick.

Let’s look at some more notes from the AFC East…

Patriots Sign Patrick Chung

April 4th, 2014 at 12:50pm CST by Luke Adams

FRIDAY, 12:50pm: Chung gets a one-year deal with a base salary of $740K, a $60K signing bonus, a $60K workout bonus, and $240K in per-game roster bonuses, tweets Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com.

THURSDAY, 12:54pm: The Patriots have officially signed Chung, the team announced today in a press release.

12:30pm: Following the Eagles’ release of Patrick Chung, the Patriots will bring the veteran safety back to New England, according to Tom E. Curran of CSNNE.com. Curran tweets that Chung is re-signing with the Pats.

Chung, who was drafted 34th overall by the Patriots in 2009, spent four seasons in New England and started 30 games for the team, but never developed into the kind of impact player the Pats likely envisioned. The 26-year-old regressed further during his lone season in Philadelphia, placing 71st among 86 qualified safeties according to Pro Football Focus’ metrics (subscription required), and failing to grab an interception for the first time in his career. That prompted his release, which came on the first day of free agency last month.

Returning to the Patriots for his second stint with the team, Chung figures to start out in a reserve role, though he’ll likely be given the opportunity to compete for playing time this summer.