The New England Patriots are ready to let wide receiver Wes Welker test free agency after not using the franchise tag on him, meaning the team could lose him to another team and may decide to replace him with a name like St. Louis Rams slot receiver Danny Amendola.
According to Fox Sports, the Patriots have been interested in Amendola as Welker tries to test his free agent value to the NFL. The 32-year-old receiver was under a one-year deal last year and NFL teams may not want to pay Welker what he feels he deserves, as many feel he is a product of Tom Brady and New England's system.
"[The Patriots] need to work something out by next Tuesday," Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com said. "The problem is they couldn't franchise [Welker] because it would cost them $11.4 million to keep him around. The ace in the hole for the Patriots is Danny Amendola."
Welker has been extremely productive in his time with the Patriots and he caught 118 passes last season while helping the team reach the AFC championship game. The receiver and the Patriots have not been able to work out a long-term option for a couple years and now he will find out what he is worth on the open market.
The Patriots will have a high need for wideouts if they decide to release Brandon Lloyd before he is set to earn a roster bonus and the depth behind those players is very thin.
Amendola could fit that role perfectly, as he plays the slot like Welker and is the same size and is also a few years younger. The Rams were rumored to possible use the franchise tag on Amendola, but instead they decided to not tag him and pay him nearly $10 million.
"He's the slot receiver from the Rams, several years younger [than Welker], and he's had plenty of injuries, but he's one of the toughest players in the NFL," Florio explained. "It could be that the Patriots already have plans - and tampering's not supposed to be happening. but every team is doing it. But they may already have an understanding that on the first day of free agency, they're going to ink Danny Amendola to replace Wes Welker, which would make a lot of sense if that's what they do.
Amendola made 66 receptions for 666 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games after dealing with injuries. The Patriots could use Amendola in the same ways they used Welker and he could combing with tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez to give the team a high-scoring attack.
"The Rams couldn't justify putting the franchise tag on Amendola because, for a slot receiver, to pay him $10 million, you just can't justify paying him that much money, but it's an important position to take care of. It wouldn't surprise me at all if Amendola is a Patriot next Tuesday," Florio said.
Brady likely restructured his deal so the Patriots could try to sign Welker, but now that he has hit free agency there is a chance that may not happen.
