We already covered that Fred Taylor was cut by the Jacksonville Jaguars. However, today NFL.com reported that he is visiting the Buffalo Bills on Tuesday and the New England Patriots on Wednesday. And as a Patriots fan, I could not be more hopeful/excited.
For one, I don't think the Bills will sign Taylor. I think he'd play well for them, but Marshawn "Beast Mode" Lynch and his above Ghost Riding Skills won't be denied the ball, even if he can't stay out of legal trouble. And the Bills already have a solid backup in Fred Jackson, who does a decent Beast Mode himself.
As for the Patriots? Laurence Maroney has never proven much of anything. Sammy Morris is nice (and also has beast mode capabilities), but he's not a feature back. And Kevin Faulk is a fan favorite and one of the better third down backs ever (and a big Lil Wayne fan), but again, not a feature back.
So where does Taylor fit in? Hard to totally say, but he definitely could. Morris is more of a tough yardage back, while Faulk fills that 3rd down/pass catcher out of the backfield role. Taylor is a bit of both, and as such could handle a lot of 1st and 2nd down duties, especially if Maroney went down and was cut. Granted, cutting Maroney would seem like kind of a waste, given that he was once a first round pick. But I'm much rather the Pats have Taylor available to light it up among four RBs than a Morris/Faulk/Heath Evans three man attack when Maroney, inevitably, goes down. I'd be curious to see if Taylor or Maroney would/could play some special teams were the team to sign Taylor and keep 4 RBs, as that would make the roster spot less of a luxury.
Regardless, Patriots please sign Fred Taylor if the money is right. Defense is a far more pressing need that Offense for this team (especially at LB), but it's always nice to have a stud RB on your team, and Taylor is still more than capable of getting it done.
