While rumors of a possible trade have mentioned the names of Emmanuel Sanders of the Denver Broncos, A.J. Green of the Cincinnati Bengals and Stefon Diggs of the Minnesota Vikings, former New England executive Mike Lombardi suggested a new wideout that the Patriots could pursue before the Oct. 29 trade deadline. Lombardi told WEEI’s “Ordway Merloni and Fauria” that the Patriots could consider talking with the Atlanta Falcons for veteran wideout Mohamed Sanu. Lombardi, who now works as contributor and analyst for The Athletic and the New England Sports Network (NESN), the Falcons might be interested in a trade considering that Sanu is on the fourth year of the five-year, $32.5 million deal that he signed in 2016.
“Maybe they want to get some pick for him before they lose him,” Lombardi said.
In addition, the Falcons have a 1-4 record and might consider dumping some assets if their season gets worse. Also, Lombardi said Sanu, as a big inside receiver, would be a perfect fit for the Patriots. “Maybe you could find a tight end, but Mohamed Sanu comes to mind as somebody who would fit what they do perfectly because he’s a big inside receiver,” Lombardi explained. The 30-year-old Sanu could provide veteran quarterback Tom Brady with another reliable target on offense. This season, he has 29 receptions for 281 yards and a touchdown.
Patriots in a bind
With two weeks to go before the trade deadline, the Patriots are in a bind with the Broncos and Bengals declaring that they won’t trade Sanders and Green, respectively.
After Denver clinched its first win of the season in Week 5, Broncos general manager John Elway declared that he won’t trade any of the team’s veterans, including Sanders. The Bengals, for their part, said Green won’t be part of any trade. The Vikings already indicated that they won’t part ways with Diggs as he could be a vital cog in their push for a playoff spot despite his limited playing time this season.
However, Diggs on Saturday rekindled trade rumors after dropping a comment on Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman’s Instagram post. After Edelman posted a photo of himself with the caption “Hard hat, lunch pail and thermos. #JustAnotherDaysWork”, Diggs commented “Swaggy.” Earlier, Diggs sparked trade rumors when he followed several Patriots stars on Twitter, including Brady and Edelman.
Brown would welcome return to Patriots
Troubled wide receiver Antonio Brown wants to clear up all of his off-field issues so he can return to the NFL, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN. According to his sources, Fowler said Brown is training rigorously so he can sign with an NFL team once all of his legal troubles are over. Also, Fowler said that Brown would welcome a return to the Patriots, but it is unlikely to happen, according to a report by Jeff Howe of The Athletic. The Patriots released Brown 11 days after signing him to a one-year, $15 million deal due to his legal troubles, including a civil suit for rape and sexual misconduct filed by his former trainer.
