Oct 14th 2008 2:25PM by Adam Gretz (author feed)
Filed under: Patriots, AFC EastAs the debate rages on as to whether or not the Patriots dynasty is coming to an end, we’re quickly beginning to realize that the loss of defensive back Asante Samuel has put a substantial dent in the team’s pass defense. Currently, the Patriots are near the bottom of the NFL in terms of opponents’ completion percentage, yards per pass attempt and passing touchdowns allowed, due in large part to guys like Deltha O’Neal getting abused on national TV.

Jim Donaldson of the writes today about how the Patriots are currently paying the price for letting Samuel get away. The Eagles signed Samuel to a six-year, free-agent contract worth more than $55 million, of which $20 million is guaranteed. Guaranteed, Patriots owner Robert Kraft would think that’s a bargain now, if only the Pats could have retained Samuel and still remained under the cap. There’s no question that the Pats miss him. Not as much as they miss injured quarterback Tom Brady, mind you. But quite a bit — as was obvious Sunday night in San Diego, when Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers repeatedly burned New England’s overmatched secondary with deep passes. Continue Reading