NFL Rumors: New England Patriots Could Be Planning To Reunite With One Of Tom Brady’s Favorite Players

The New England Patriots could be reuniting with one of Tom Brady‘s favorite past teammates in the coming days.

Ahead of this week’s NFL trade deadline, there are reports that the Patriots hope to bolster the offensive line. As Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reported, New York Giants tackle Nate Solder, who was a longtime stalwart on the Patriots offensive line, could be in their sights.

La Canfora noted that the Patriots may have been hoping to land Washington Redskins offensive lineman and holdout Trent Williams, but that now appears unlikely. He noted that Solder may be the next best bet for the Patriots.

“Washington’s Trent Williams would solidify an offensive line that has been struck by injuries as well, and some general managers I spoke to believe that the Patriots could end up re-acquiring Giants tackle Nate Solder, who was formidable for the Patriots but has struggled in New York on a huge contract,” he reported.

There was plenty of consternation among Patriots players when the team let Solder walk prior to last season, leading to him signing with the New York Giants. Tom Brady, who played behind Solder for seven seasons and won two Super Bowls with him, said he was sad to see him go. However, Brady was not surprised that Solder was in such high demand in free agency.

Brady expressed that he had learned how to deal with teammates departing, noting that he was more emotional about it when he was younger. Still, the departure of Solder seemed to hit him harder than most.

“It’s not like it’s a shock anymore (when teammates leave). I think when I was younger, I was pretty naive to the business side of the NFL and couldn’t understand why guys would switch teams, because you come from a high school system or you come from a college environment into a professional environment, and it’s just different,” Brady said, via NESN.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rz1LqRb4OzY

The New England Patriots have already shown a willingness to be very aggressive in building a team that might offer up an NFL record-tying fourth straight Super Bowl. Earlier this season, the team took a chance on troubled wide receiver Antonio Brown, a pairing that lasted less than two weeks before he was released amid a cloud of controversy. This week, the Patriots traded for wide receiver Mohamed Sanu, though his acquisition was offset by the announcement that receiver Josh Gordon was being placed on injured reserve.