Now instead of questions of will he show up for minicamp June 12-14, it turns to will he and the Pats be able to work out a long-term deal by July 15, the deadline for tagged players to sign multiyear contracts. Bottom line, he'll be there for the first game of the regular season and maybe even OTAs next week if he feels like it.
Of course this is nothing new for New England: in the past few seasons, they've taken former cornerback Asante Samuel, guard Logan Mankins, defensive tackle Vince Wilfork and even quarterback Tom Brady to the negotiating table in hopes of brokering the right deal on their terms. I have no problem with them spending their money wisely (it's one of the main reasons they've had such sustained success for a decade) but I wish they could ease up a bit when it came to stars like Welker.
If ever there was a guy that deserved to avoid this needless bartering, it's him. He's always been a team-first guy, hell he even talked to the media after the last Super Bowl loss to the Giants and basically blamed himself for losing the game (which was partly true). You can't help but love him and root for him, there's very few guys like him in professional sports, let alone on one of our local teams.
He's savvy too as he proved with the tweet he fired off today announcing his move: "I signed my tender today. I love the game and I love my teammates! Hopefully doing the right thing gets the right results. #leapoffaith," he wrote.
Don't mind me while I put my Patriots footie pajamas and Welker jersey on while patiently waiting for July 15 to come and go. Just notify me when this blows over either way.
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