New England Patriots 2021 linebacker playbook: Who stays, who goes

John Simon

John Simon has been a solid if an unspectacular player for the New England Patriots since joining the squad in 2018. He logged 53 tackles albeit with a meager 2 sacks in 2020.

Simon is another of those decent but unspectacular members of the Patriots team.

Now, having many of that type of player on a squad is hardly a bad thing. In fact, if you’re going to contend for anything, you need a bunch of them. But when too many of these types of players are manning starting positions, you have a problem. You’re not going to be a playoff team.

John Simon will be a bargain for the New England Patriots, but is he even worth that?

Simon is an unrestricted free agent and will save just above $2m on the cap if he’s leaves. That’s not a boatload of cash. But since this fictitious version of New England Patriots’ team composition planning is seeking to remake the team and every dollar counts. $2M is still a decent amount of cap savings.

Simon is an OK rotational player who is better suited to backup status at 30 years old. He’s served the Patriots well but they can do better. It’s time the team started drafting players who can immediately slot in and produce big for a change. Too few lately have and more simply must.

Since John Simon is a good player, it is possible that he would accept a reduced value contract to stay in New England as a backup. He’s too good enough o start on a playoff team at this stage of his career.

The salary would have to be halved.

Otherwise, it’s time to allow a rookie or a second-year player to fill this slot. It’s unlikely that he would accede to this reduction in salary though.

John Simon goes.