Report: Patriots Wanted To Re-Sign Malcolm Butler

If the Patriots had it their way, Malcolm Butler would be suiting up in this Week 10 contest in a New England uniform.

Despite the controversial and infamous Super Bowl LII benching, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reported on Sunday morning, just hours before the Patriots and Titans square off down in Nashville, that New England still had interest in bringing back Butler. Of course, the corner did elect to leave and ink a five-year $61 million deal with Tennessee. Rapoport notes that New England couldn’t have paid him as much as the Titans ultimately did, but he was, in fact, on their radar.

Here’s Rapoport’s report of Butler, via NFL.com:

But during the free agency period that immediately followed, Butler remained on the Patriots’ radar. As the Titans cornerback gets set to face his old team Sunday, it’s worth noting that New England was still interested in re-signing Butler at the right price, sources say.

Butler ended up signing a five-year, $61.25 million contract in Tennessee, picking the Titans over offers from the Houston Texans and Chicago Bears.

But the Patriots — even with the events against the Eagles that oddly left Butler watching every snap from the sideline — informed Butler’s agent Derek Simpson to reach out to them if he didn’t get an offer to his liking. Already paying top corner Stephon Gilmore, the Pats perhaps could have paid Butler around $10 million a year.

As it relates to not bringing Butler back, the Patriots may be thanking their lucky stars. This year hasn’t gone particularly well for the corner as Pro Football Focus says he’s allowed 39 catches for 618 yards and seven touchdowns, the worst among corners in the league this season. When asked about that specifically earlier in the week, Bill Belichick scoffed at it sarcastically saying, “that means a lot to me.”

When speaking to reporters this week, Brady relayed that he was happy for both Malcolm Butler and Logan Ryan, who each departed New England for more lucrative contracts.

“Yeah, we had a lot,” Brady said of his practice battles with Butler and Ryan. “I really enjoyed playing with those guys and playing against them. They certainly challenged us on every play. They’ve gone on to have some really great contracts and I’m happy for them. They really earned it. I think when you’re a great player, you get the opportunity to do that. I know we can’t keep everybody but obviously happy for them and what they’ve accomplished. They were hugely impactful in what we were trying to do in the roles that they played.

“Logan was a great player, still is – incredible awareness and just such a smart player. And Malcolm, I’ve always loved playing against him and in practice, it was very competitive. He’s a very competitive person. He wants to try to win every play and hopefully we can have a good plan against that entire defense. It’s challenging because they’ve got really a good rush, some really good mix of linebackers and they’re talented in the secondary. They spent quite a bit on the secondary and they have some really good players. [Kevin] Byard’s a hell of a player, Adoree’ Jackson’s a first round pick. They’ve got a great secondary, best red area defense in the league. They make you earn it. There’s nothing easy about this week for us.”