With the 2017 season in the books, the Providence Journal will take a look at each position group on the Patriots, analyzing how the team performed last season and where it might be heading.
Defensive tackle
Malcom Brown, Lawrence Guy, Alan Branch, Adam Butler, Ricky Jean Francois, Vincent Valentine
Contract situation: Brown enters 2018 on the final year of his [...]
With the 2017 season in the books, the Providence Journal will take a look at each position group on the Patriots, analyzing how the team performed last season and where it might be heading.
Defensive tackle
Malcom Brown, Lawrence Guy, Alan Branch, Adam Butler, Ricky Jean Francois, Vincent Valentine
Contract situation: Brown enters 2018 on the final year of his rookie contract. He’s set to count as a $2,422,392 cap hit. Because he was a first-round pick, he has a fifth-year option. If the Patriots pick up the option, Brown will be on the books in 2019 for an estimated $7.678 million.
Branch is signed through 2018, but it’s not guaranteed. If the Pats keep him, he’s on the books for $4.55 million. If the Pats cut Branch, they’ll have a $1 million dead cap hit, but will save $3.55 million on the cap.
Guy enters 2018 on the second year of his deal. He’s signed through 2020. He will count for a little over $2.766 million on the cap in 2018. Guy’s cap hit rises to around $3.766 million and then $4.266 million over the next two seasons.
Butler is in the second year of his three-year rookie deal. He’s on the cap for $556,666 this season. Valentine will be a cap hit of $806,355 in 2018. He’s signed through 2019.
Jean Francois is an unrestricted free agent.
2017 review: Brown played well, finishing with 49 tackles and 2½ sacks. Guy turned out to be one of the Patriots' best free agent signings. He started 15 of 16 games and finished with a career-high 58 tackles to go with a sack.
Butler was one of the biggest surprises in training camp. The undrafted rookie made the team and played mostly on third down as a situational interior pass rusher. Butler started six of 16 games and finished with 19 tackles and two sacks. He added two sacks in the playoffs.
After being one of the team’s best defensive linemen a year ago, Branch was given a lesser role. He played in only 12 games and made six starts. He finished with 12 tackles and no sacks after finishing with 49 tackles and a 1½ sacks last season. He was inactive for the postseason.
Branch was replaced on the depth chart by Jean Francois. The veteran played in six games, finishing with 10 tackles.
Overall, the Patriots run defense was up and down. They had some poor performances in the regular season before looking great in the playoffs. In the Super Bowl, however, it was a different story as the defensive line was gashed by the Eagles for 164 rushing yards and a 6.1 yards per carry average.
The future: It’s almost certain Branch will be released before the league calendar year starts on March 14. Jean Francois may be back at the right price.
Brown looked good last season, but if the Pats don’t exercise his option because of his hefty price tag, they’ll need to work out an extension to keep him. Guy and Butler aren’t going anywhere. Butler seems to have potential as an interior pass rusher.
Valentine spent last season, his second, on injured reserve. Brown, Guy, Butler and Valentine give the Patriots options. Of course, if they don’t see Brown in their future, they might look to the draft. If they lose both Branch and Jean Francois, it’s possible they look to add another veteran on the cheap.