New England Patriots Should Extend Malcolm Butler’s Contract
There is no time to mess around, the New England Patriots need to extend CB Malcolm Butler before his price sky-rockets next off season.
Probably the biggest question facing the New England Patriots entering the 2015 season was whether their secondary could hold up. Sure, they were able to bring back safety Devin McCourty, but they let CB Darrelle Revis walk in free agency and did not even come close to replacing him.
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Fellow corners Brandon Browner and Kyle Arrington were also shown the door, as the Pats entered 2015 without their top three corners from their Super Bowl run. Little did we know at the time, but Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler was going to turn into a legitimate number one corner who would solve all of the Patriots’ issues at the position.
Seriously, Butler was fantastic this season, and while he will probably always be best known for his Super Bowl saving interception, he is a legitimate shut down corner in the making with huge upside going forward. Not bad for an undrafted free agent who had to try-out to get a chance with the Patriots, the only team to show any interest in him.
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Butler is never going to be the fastest or most athletic player on the field, but he is a tough and physical corner who shows incredible natural coverage ability and ball skills. Butler matched-up with some of the best wide receivers the NFL had to offer in 2015, and he held his own.
The Patriots felt perfectly comfortable placing Butler on the outside one-on-one against an opposing team’s wide receiver. With little help, Butler was able to shut down his opponents a majority of the time, allowing the Patriots to free up other players to help in coverage against other receivers or get an increased pass rush.
Butler was one of the most important player on the Patriots’ defense, and his growth as a player undoubtedly had a lot to do with their 10th ranked scoring defense this season. They may not have been the best defense in the NFL, but the unit was a strength for the Patriots, and they suffered many significant injuries throughout the season.
Butler is under contract with the Patriots through the 2016 season, and will be a restricted free agent after that. The Patriots are not forced to make a move on Butler right now, but it could be in their best interest to do so.
You see, Butler made the league minimum of $420,000 as a rookie in 2014 before getting a slight bump in salary this season at $510,000. Butler is set to make $600,000 in 2016, but I imagine he would jump at the opportunity to earn more.
While he is certainly making enough to get by, Butler is undoubtedly anxiously awaiting his big-time NFL pay-day. He proved this season that he will be a strong part of the Patriots’ offense for a long time, and they would be wise to look to lock him up early. An increased pay-day for Butler in 2016 would likely go a long ways towards keeping him affordable for the foreseeable future.
If Butler is great against next season, and the Patriots allow him to reach restricted free agency, the price to bring him back is going to be high. Getting Butler more money up front and saving the franchise down the road is something that would make sense for both sides.
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The Patriots know that Butler is a great player who is an important part of their immediate future. Making sure he is around for a fair price would be a financially responsible move for the franchise to make.