Defensive End Eric Lee to be a Patriot Through 2018 Season


The New England Patriots are preparing to take on the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.  One player has had his contract extended through the 2018 season, Eric Lee.  Lee signed with the Patriots last week after being on the Buffalo Bills’ practice squad.  His original deal was going to last through this year but he will be a Patriot next season.  His base salary will be $555,000 for 2018.

Lee played only 25 snaps last week against the Miami Dolphins at defensive end.  Even though it wasn’t a lot of action, he made his presence known with 4 tackles and 1 sack.  This week against the Bills he should see more action.  According to ESPN.com, Head Coach Bill Belichick said, “First of all, I think Eric worked hard this week to try and catch up in a lot of areas. Defensively, there were a number of things -- first down, second down, third down -- it's not all the same. He made a play at the end of the game. He really had a lot to do with the sack that Trey Flowers got down in the red area where Flowers was actually unblocked, but Lee powered [Sam] Young on the other side and kind of collapsed the pocket. He was in on a couple of running plays. ... I thought he gave us some contributions that we needed."

This is a decent deal for Lee and the Patriots.  It’s team friendly at $555,000, giving the Patriots money to spend on other free agents in the offseason to improve the defensive line.  For Lee this is job security.  He knows he will not be bouncing around from one practice squad to another next year.  The deal was made in the hope that Lee will be a contributor for the rest of this season and in 2018.

Lee must prove to the Patriots that he can play.  He showed that last week, but must perform at a high level the rest of the year.  Lee has to continue to progress in the Patriots defensive system and put pressure on the opposing quarterbacks as well as taking them down for sacks.

The Patriots have faith that Lee can improve his play.  If Lee fails to do so next season, he will be cut.  Wisely, the Patriots didn’t give him a large deal.  It is up to Lee to earn another payday from the New England Patriots.  Hopefully he will.  

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