I'm Sad To See A Good Young Player Like Kyle Love Released, Especially For This Reason

He will never make a Pro Bowl, an All-Pro team or many highlights on Sportscenter but Patriots fans could see over the last few seasons that Kyle Love had developed into a solid defensive tackle in the NFL. That's why the news that he was released by New England this afternoon came as such a surprise.

Love made the team as an undrafted free agent out of Mississippi State in 2010 and he put together two good seasons in a row in 2011 and 2012 (when he played all 16 games in the regular season plus playoffs). In fact, during last season the Pats rewarded him with a two-year deal. Apparently, New England cut him because he has Type 2 diabetes. I'm not a doctor, my name isn't Doc Slate and I don't play one on TV so I won't pretend to know the ins and outs of Type 2 diabetes. From what I read today, there have been plenty of other athletes that have played through it and had productive careers.

I can understand where the Patriots are coming from, they were clearly worried about Love's health going forward but at the same time, it seems pretty heartless (this is the NFL after all) to show him the door right away. I hope that Love can soon feel like himself again and hook on with another NFL team quickly. Haha I just hope that it's not another AFC East team since he'll certainly be extra motivated if he ever plays the Patriots.

The timing of this move was strange too since the Pats just released fellow defensive tackle Brandon Deaderick on Monday (claimed by the Jaguars on Tuesday). Other than Vince Wilfork-who is still one of the cornerstones of the franchise-New England's defensive line is looking mighty thin (no pun intended) with Tommy Kelly and Armond Armstead (CFL pickup) expected to replace Love and Deaderick. I think this means that the Pats will invest in another big body between now and training camp.

UPDATE 5/16: Today Love was also claimed by Jacksonville. The Patriots signed rookie cornerback Logan Ryan. He joins former Rutgers teammates safety Duron Harmon and linebacker Steve Beauharnais who are the other two 2013 draft picks to sign with New England. They have four more guys from the draft to agree to terms with in the coming weeks or months.

UPDATE 5/17: New England signed their top pick, second round draft pick Jamie Collins (a linebacker from Southern Mississippi).

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Typical Patriot Kyle Love Receives A 1-Year Extension Through 2013

I'm willing to bet that hardly anybody outside of serious Patriots fans, Mississippi State fans and his own family know who New England's defensive lineman Kyle Love is.

Soon enough, he could be more well known around the NFL and with any luck, it will be with the Pats. Today, Love received a contract extension through the 2013 season. That carries a maximum value of $3.09 million and also comes with a signing bonus of $500,000.

Those numbers might not sound like much but let's remember where Kyle Love came from: he was an undrafted free agent out of Mississippi State so he's had to fight for everything he's received so far in Foxboro. After barely playing in nine games and having limited impact his rookie season, he really started to come on last season as he played in all 16 games then all three playoff games.

Combined in those 19 games, Love had 40 tackles (23 solo, 17 assists), three sacks and one fumble recovery. Since Albert Haynesworth never did anything before he was released, Love's emergence was valuable since they needed another guy that could play defensive tackle next to Pro-Bowler Vince Wilfork.

His game is more centered around power but for a guy his size (6-foot-1, 315 pounds), Love has some quickness. Just look at the play he made on Monday night against the Eagles. He collapsed the pocket and forced Philadelphia quarterback Michael Vick to hold the ball, allowing Love's teammate Jermaine Cunningham to crush Vick.

To get back to the Super Bowl and ultimately win one for the first time since 2005, New England's defense needs to continue its relative improvement from last season. Make no mistake, you probably haven't noticed him that much before but odds are if the defense is good then Love will have a significant role in that.

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2012 NFL Free Agency Begins Or So I've Heard

The new calendar year for the NFL officially began at 4 p.m. this afternoon, meaning that free agency opened.

For New England Patriots fans, this day is strange. You watch so many teams around the league make big splashes but the Pats rarely spend a whole lot in free agency or acquiring marquee names. They much prefer to draft and develop guys or find castoffs that they turn into valuable players.

So while Vincent Jackson was getting paid in Tampa Bay, Peyton Manning was traveling around the country and Brandon Marshall was traded from Miami to Chicago, the Patriots chose to lock up mostly depth players that don't get many headlines.

Backup quarterback Brian Hoyer received a second-round tender from New England. The $1.92 million tender means that any other team can sign him to an offer sheet. If the Patriots don't match it, they get a second-round pick.

Defensive lineman Kyle Love received an exclusive rights free-agent tender. Center Dan Koppen is headed to the open market in free agency although he could return to Foxboro. Linebacker Niko Koutouvides was signed to a one-year deal with a base salary of $825,000. Finally, Matthew Slater is expected to reach an agreement tomorrow.

Only Brandon Lloyd is left in terms of impact free agent wide receivers. Let's hope that the Pats can get something done with him soon and they don't lose out to a team like the 49ers (who's hosting him on a visit tomorrow). I would list other pipe dreams like Mario Williams but I fear there's no chance they'll land anybody in his range.

UPDATE 3/14: The Patriots resigned linebacker and special teams standout Tracy White, terms were not disclosed. They've also signed former Bengals defensive end Jonathan Fanene to a three-year contract worth $12 million which includes a $3.85 million signing bonus. I'm excited that the Pats addressed one of their biggest needs but honestly, I've never heard of this bum. Looks like another nobody that they'll try to squeeze something out of on short money. He had 6.5 sacks last season and six sacks in 2009. He's 29 years old, 6-4, 285 pounds and he's from American Samoa. You probably would recognize him from his long hair.

UPDATE 3/15: Today the Patriots resigned Slater and also came to terms with defensive lineman Marcus Harrison, who was on the team for one day (haha really) last season. New England also signed safety Steve Gregory to a three-year deal (averaging between $2 million and $3 million) and they resigned Dan Connolly to a new contract. Gregory was on the Chargers since entering the NFL as an undrafted rookie in 2006.

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