There was a point in his career where Deion Branch was the main man in New England as he played practically every position for the Patriots. He was there on special teams, defense and of course, a wide receiver option for Tom Brady. After his cut, however, those days are long gone.
Despite the Patriots' lack of interest in the 33-year-old wide out, there are teams that should consider signing Branch and making him a part of their roster.
First of all, Branch can still play as he caught four passes for 66 yards during the preseason.
Teams that immediately come to mind, the New York Giants, the Jets, the Jacksonville Jaguars, just to name a couple.
The Giants will rely heavily on Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks as they have no reliable third option since Mario Manningham is now a San Francisco 49er.
Knowing the Giants, however, they might prefer to develop their younger wide outs like Reuben Randle, their second pick and 63rd overall in the draft and Ramses Barden.
Dominik Hixon is unreliable since he is prone to injuries.
The New York Jets could use anything and anybody on offense. Branch knows how to run routes, he knows how to catch, he knows how to perform in big situations.
The Jaguars come to mind for the same reasons. With Justin Blackmon looking like their No. 1 receiving option, Branch could not only be a distraction, but he can also mentor the rookie wide out.
All in all, having Branch on the roster would only be valuable to a team. Increasing his value is that he can still perform on the field.
Last season Branch caught 51 passes for 702 yards and five touchdowns.
Those numbers are better than the Giants' third wide out option, Manningham. He was always twice as better than the Jaguars' 2011 No. 1 option, Mike Thomas and he had similar numbers to Jets' No. 1 option Santonio Holmes.
