Future Hall of Famer Tom Brady apparently won’t be the only former Patriot to acquire a piece of the Las Vegas Raiders. A current Hall of Famer — and a Patriots player who finished his career with the Raiders — is on the brink of becoming an owner of the team, too.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Hall of Fame defensive lineman Richard Seymour is close to finalizing a deal to become an owner and limited partner of the Raiders.
If/when it becomes official, the arrangement will be the culmination of an effort that dates back to 2020, with owner Mark Davis continuing his father’s commitment to equality. It was Al Davis who was ahead of his (and the league’s) time when it comes to diversity, from hiring Tom Flores and Art Shell to coach the team to making Amy Trask the team’s president. It’s Mark Davis who initiated the effort to involve Seymour in ownership.
Seymour, we’re told, will join forces with Brady. Together (and with their own partners) they would own 10.4 percent of the team.
The combination of Seymour and Brady is expected to resolve most of the concerns about Brady’s bid. Among other things, Mark Davis originally proposed giving Brady a steep discount over market value. That didn’t fly with the other owners.
The combined Seymour-Brady bid would ideally be presented to ownership in October. Twenty-four votes are required, by rule, to approve the transaction.
Another lingering complication for Brady relates to his looming role as a broadcaster with Fox. It’s believed that parameters have been developed to address the issues that would arise from Brady, as an owner of the Raiders, being involved in meetings and attending practices involving teams that compete with the Raiders. (Whether those parameters are sufficient will depend, frankly, on what they are.)
Seymour, the sixth overall pick in the 2001 draft, won three Super Bowls in eight years with the Patriots. He was traded to the Raiders in 2009, and he made two Pro Bowls in four seasons with the Raiders.
In all, Seymour was a three-time first-team All-Pro, a two-time second-team All-Pro, and a seven-time Pro Bowler. He also was a member of the NFL’s team of the decade for the 2000s.
Seymour was involved in the process that resulted in the hiring of coach Antonio Pierce and G.M. Tom Telesco. It now makes much more sense for Seymour to have had a seat at that table; he’s about to have a seat at the ownership table.
Last year the Patriots spent a fourth-round draft pick on a kicker, Chad Ryland. The results were not good: Ryland made only 16 of his 25 field goal attempts and New England finished dead last in the NFL with a 64.0 percent field goal success rate.
This offseason, the Patriots signed veteran kicker Joey Slye, and Patriots.com reports that Ryland and Slye will have a true training camp competition with both of them having a real chance of winning the job and the one who performs better getting the nod.
In minicamp, Slye was the more accurate of the two, but that’s not saying much. Last year Slye kicked for the Commanders, making 19 of his 24 field goal attempts and ranking 29th of 32 NFL teams in field goal accuracy. Slye also has a career extra point rate of just 88.5 percent, which ranks dead last among kickers with at least 100 extra point attempts since Slye entered the NFL in 2019.
The bottom line is the Patriots have two kickers on the roster, neither of whom has proven himself worthy of being counted on. They’ll hope that one of them proves himself in training camp.
Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye is a project, and although the early indications are that he’s taking well to coaching in New England, he’s unlikely to be QB1 for the Patriots in Week One.
Jacoby Brissett is a -300 favorite to be the Patriots’ Week One starter. Maye is a +220 underdog, via DraftKings.com.
Still, Maye’s improvement from the start of rookie minicamp in May to the end of offseason practices a month later was noticeable, according to Tom Curran of NBCSportsBoston.com. Maye’s footwork, timing and accuracy all got better as he worked with the Patriots’ coaching staff.
The most likely scenario, according to Curran, is that Brissett starts most of the season but the Patriots turn the offense over to Maye some time around Week 13, giving him a few games as a rookie to show what he can do before focusing on 2025 as the season when they expect to see him prove he’s ready to start.
The Patriots took Maye with the third overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, showing a lot of faith in his ability to develop into a franchise quarterback. But that development isn’t likely to be fast enough for him to have an impactful rookie year.
Training camp is coming. When the 32 teams gather for preseason practices, several high-profile players might not be present, if they force the issue on getting new contracts.
So which names are the ones to watch? Funny you should ask, even if you didn’t.
The goal of this item is to list all of the potential veteran holdouts, with some explanation and analysis of each situation.
That said, there’s a chance some of the players listed below will “hold in.” That’s a fairly new trend where the player shows up for training camp but doesn’t practice while negotiations continue. The only problem with this approach is that, if/when there’s no deal, at some point it’s time to practice and play. For the player who never shows up, it’s easier to keep holding firm. And the pressure remains even more pronounced on the team if the player isn’t there.
The following list has no particular order to it, other than the fact that I went through the eight divisions from AFC East to AFC North to AFC South to AFC West before doing the same in the NFC when compiling the list.
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa
He wants a market deal. The Dolphins have yet to offer one, or they’d already have an agreement. At some point before training camp opens, the Dolphins will make an offer far better than the $23.1 million he’s due to make in his option year. To get what he wants, Tua’s best and only play might be to hold out.
Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill
He’s doing everything he can to put a happy face on a contract situation that has him nearly as unhappy as he was two years ago in Kansas City. Still, the market has passed him by. Even though he says he’s making $30 million per year, he’s at $25 million — behind teammate Jaylen Waddle.
Hill seems to believe the Dolphins will adjust his contract. Maybe they will, maybe they won’t. Maybe, at most, they’ll move some of the $45 million he’s due to make in 2026 into 2024, where he’s south of $20 million. If that’s not good enough, maybe he’ll stay away in order to get a deal that compares favorably to other high-end receivers.
Patriots linebacker Matt Judon
Judon skipped some of the offseason program as he enters the final year of his contract. He showed up for mandatory minicamp.
Last year, he held in. This year, he said he won’t be “throwing tantrums.”
One way to not throw tantrums is to not show up. Still, he has made it clear that he plans to show up. While plans can change, his mindset as of last month was to show up and get to work.
Jets linebacker Haason Reddick
The Jets traded for a guy who wanted a new contract without signing him to a new contract. It should be no surprise, then, that he skipped the entire offseason program.
Will he show up for camp? No one knows at this point. The possibility that he won’t underscores the magnitude of the mistake the Jets made in trading for him without getting him signed.
Yeah, the Jets supposedly thought they had a verbal understanding with Reddick that he’d show up for the offseason and they’d eventually do something with his contract. As we’ve seen time and again, verbal understandings aren’t worth the paper they aren’t printed on.
Bengals receiver Ja’Marr Chase
On the day Justin Jefferson got his new deal, the Bengals could have worked out a contract for Chase that same day. And they should have.
It should be easy to get to the new-money number Chase wants. Although Chase showed up for mandatory minicamp, he could decide to take a stand if the Bengals keep dragging their feet.
The good news for the Bengals is that receiver Tee Higgins has signed his franchise tender. Since training camp opens after the deadline for doing a long-term deal, there’s nothing to be gained by staying away. He has opted to accept $21.8 million for 2024, followed by a likely shot at free agency in March, given the team’s longstanding habit of tagging a player for one year before letting him walk away.
Browns receiver Amari Cooper
Cooper skipped mandatory minicamp in an effort to get a deal to replace the final year of his current contract, with a base salary of $20 million. If he doesn’t get a new deal by the start of camp, a holdout can’t be ruled out.
Broncos receiver Courtland Sutton
Sutton showed up for mandatory minicamp despite wanting a new deal. (He’s due to make only $13 million this season.) He hasn’t ruled out a holdout.
Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb
Lamb reportedly won’t attend camp without a deal that replaces the $17.9 million he’s due to make in the final year of his rookie contract. Will the Cowboys give him what he wants? As explained Monday, there’s a way to do it while also creating current-year cap space. Which would be a win-win for a team desperately hoping to engineer some wins in the playoffs.
Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons
Parsons has said he’ll be patient when it comes to getting a new contract. He shouldn’t be.
He’s one of the best defensive players in football. He shouldn’t risk his health for less than $3 million in 2024. He should refuse to practice or play until he gets paid.
Yes, he attended mandatory minicamp. So did Ezekiel Elliott in 2019. And then Zeke didn’t show up for training camp.
Without a new contract, Parsons should do the same.
Packers quarterback Jordan Love
There’s currently no reason to think the Packers and Love won’t get a new deal done before training camp opens. If they don’t, however, why should Love show up?
He’s due to make only $11 million this year. He needs to be willing to take a stand, if his contract situation isn’t resolved before the Packers head to training camp.
Buccaneers tackle Tristan Wirfs
With only $18.44 million in salary for 2024, he’s been looking for a new deal all year. He showed up at mandatory minicamp. Again, that’s no guarantee he’ll show up for training camp unless he gets a contract offer that prompts him to sign on the dotted line.
Saints running back Alvin Kamara
Kamara left mandatory minicamp early, due to frustration with contract talks. He wants security beyond 2024, given that the team will tear up next year’s phony-baloney $25 million compensation package.
Will he skip camp without a new deal? We’ll find out when camp opens.
49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk
Much has been said about Aiyuk and the 49ers and whether he will or won’t be traded. He ultimately needs to ask himself whether he’s willing to show up and play for $14.1 million in 2024 — or whether he wants to draw a line in the sand.
Short of a long-term, market-level deal, the 49ers could give him a sweetener and/or agree not to tag him in 2025. For now, there’s been nothing other than a staring contest augmented by the various things Aiyuk has said, on social media and elsewhere.
When it’s time to show up for camp, we’ll see if he does.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford
Stafford has wanted more guarantees for a while. He should also want more money. A deal hasn’t been done yet.
If it doesn’t happen before camp opens, who knows? Given the lack of high-end options on the roster, Stafford had plenty of leverage. If he chooses to use it.
The Patriots have locked up another one of their key players.
New England has agreed to a three-year contract extension with linebacker Jahlani Tavai, according to a report from ESPN.
The initial report indicates Tavai’s new deal has a base value of $15 million that can escalate to $21 million.
Tavai, 27, was entering the final season of a two-year extension he signed back in November 2022.
After entering the league as a Lions second-round pick in 2019, Tavai was cut from Detroit’s roster at the start of the 2021 regular season. He signed with New England’s practice squad and has been with the club ever since.
He turned in his strongest season in 2023, finishing with 110 total tackles along with five tackles for loss, four QB hits, one sack, and two interceptions.
The Patriots have been aggressive this offseason in re-signing players who are entering the last year of their contracts. Tavai is the latest to agree to a new deal, joining running back Rhamondre Stevenson, defensive tackle Christian Barmore, and center David Andrews.
The Patriots might have gone younger at coach, but they definitely won’t be going softer.
As noted by Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, new coach Jerod Mayo will delay training-camp practice start times by 90 minutes.
Last year, Bill Belichick started practice at 9:30 a.m. ET. Mayo will get them started at 11:00 a.m. ET. That will give the sun, and the temperatures, another 90 minutes to rise.
That likely won’t ruffle feathers. As former Patriots quarterback Brian Hoyer recently said on ESPN’s NFL Live, “Jerod coming right after Bill -- he learned from Bill, but he’s also bridging that gap to the youth. He has his own flavor and personality. Talking to some of the guys [who are with the team now], they love the way he’s approaching it. You just have to carry that over to wins during the season.”
That will be the biggest challenge. Winning. The talent isn’t what it was, which is one of the main reasons why Belichick is gone.
It’s unclear how many years Mayo will get to turn things around. It’s unrealistic to expect much in 2024. Which, of course, is the perfect way to ensure players avoid being complacent — and that they at all times have a chip on their shoulder.
For years, Tom Brady manufactured the notion that no one believed in the Patriots. Finally, it’s true. And it plays to the team’s benefit, if they can find a way to win some games they’re supposed to lose.
Two of Jerod Mayo’s former Patriots teammates believe he showed signs of his head coaching future when he was still a player for the team.
Rob Gronkowski joined Julian Edelman on a recent episode of the podcast Games With Names and Edelman asked him about his rookie memories of Mayo. Gronkowski explained how Mayo “showed his coaching abilities” by being aware of where everyone on the field was supposed to be and what opposing teams were going to try to do on every play.
“Jerod Mayo was just a phenomenon on the football field with lining every one up and then also in the meeting rooms as well,” Gronkowski said. “He knew where every player needed to be during any situation that occurred on the defensive side of the ball. He knew how to read offenses. He knew when to call out plays and he was always correct when he was calling the play out or else he was just making the whole defense aware when that play was going to be called that they were looking out for or what type of run was going to be run at the offensive side of the ball. He was just always alert. You could always tell that was going to translate into the next phase of his life.”
Edelman was a wide receiver, but he also saw time on defense while Mayo was in New England and said he would “always ask to get the approval from Jerod” about what he was supposed to do because he knew he was doing the right thing if Mayo signed off on it. Mayo will now be doing that for the entire organization and the Patriots hope it will turn out as successfully as it did when he was on the field.
Patriots defensive lineman Davon Godchaux is entering the final year of his contract, set to make $7.15 million in 2024. He wants a contract extension to stay in New England.
Godchaux responded to a social media post asking him about a long-term deal.
“Hopefully we can get something done that’s fair to me and my team before camp starts!” Godchaux wrote. “I love NE. I would love to retire here, but it’s has to make sense for us! What I do on the football field in the trenches most of time doesn’t show on the stat sheet but turn on the film you will see it if ‘U know’ ball! Would love to finish my career here in NE but it has to make sense to me and my team!”
He has spent the past three seasons with the Patriots, signing two two-year contracts. Godchaux has played all 41 possible games and started 40 of those in his time in New England.
He has 183 tackles and 2.5 sacks with the Patriots.
Godchaux, 29, has no guaranteed money for this season.
The Patriots have announced their training camp schedule with 13 practices open to the public.
New England’s veterans report to camp on July 23 with the first public practice on Wednesday, July 24 at 11 a.m. Gates open at 10 a.m.
The Patriots will host the sessions on the grass fields behind Gillette Stadium. Practices are free for fans to attend with no ticket required.
On Tuesday, Aug. 13, the Patriots will host the Eagles for a joint practice in advance of their preseason game on Thursday, Aug. 15.
For more information on dates for New England’s training camp, visit the Patriots website by clicking here.
As a second-round rookie last season, Patriots pass rusher Keion White was primarily a backup, starting only four games and playing a little less than half of the team’s defensive snaps. But the Patriots are expecting big things from him in Year Two.
Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo named White when asked which player has surprised him so far, calling him a budding team leader.
“Keion has kind of taken that step forward as far as being a leader -- not as much vocally, but you see him actually leading the groups and working well,” Mayo said, via Mike Reiss of ESPN.
The Patriots are in desperate need of an influx of young talent on the roster, as the last years of the Bill Belichick era left the cupboard bare. They hope White is on the verge of becoming one of the leaders of a younger, better team than they had last year.