Rumors and speculation about how the New England Patriots may replace departed Darrelle Revis since the All-Pro cornerback agreed to rejoin the New York Jets on Tuesday. The Patriots have so far done nothing to replace Revis — but they may be about to replace another key component of their defense.
The Patriots allowed veteran nose tackle Vince Wilfork , the only player on the Patriots other than Tom Brady who was part of both of the Patriots last two Super Bowl winning teams 10 years apart, to leave as free agent when New England declined to pick up the 33-year-old’s contract option last week.
While according to some rumors and reports , Wilfork may yet return to the Patriots — taking a pay cut in the process — the Houston Texans have also shown a strong interest in signing Wilfork, and chances are good that the 325-pound lineman ends up there.
But the Patriots are now rumored to be taking a serious look at Denver Broncos free agent defensive tackle Terrance “Pot Roast” Knighton, who is five years younger than Wilfork — and 10 pounds heavier — and may be attracted to New England because, as a native of Hartford, Connecticut, the Patriots are his hometown team.
“The Terrance Knighton market continues to take shape,” The Denver Post reported on Wednesday.
“The defensive tackle is visiting Washington on Wednesday, while New England, Seattle and Baltimore have also expressed interest.”
Knighton made news in New England last December with his brash prediction that the Broncos would win the Super Bowl, even if they had to defeat the Patriots in a playoff game in New England to get there.
“We’??re not going to be satisfied until we hoist that trophy. So if we’??ve got to go to New England and win somewhere we’??re not used to winning, we’??re going to make it happen,” Knighton said at the time.
That drew a response from Brady, who said, “Pot Roast is a big man, and I would never say anything to get him mad at me, but I’ll just say there is a lot of football left to be played. They’ll have their chance. We’ll have our chance and we’ll do our talking on the field.”
As the season turned out, of course, Denver was upset by the Indianapolis Colts in the Divisional playoff round, and the Patriots went on to win the fourth Super Bowl in franchise history. But New England would certainly welcome “Pot Roast” anyway, assuming Wilfork does not return.
[Image: Tom Pennington/Getty Images]
