New England Patriots

Quick-hit thoughts around the NFL and with the Patriots: 1. When media members are present for the Patriots’ organized team activity on Tuesday, one of the first areas of interest will be starting middle linebacker Brandon Spikes’ presence. Spikes, who joined the team as a 2010 second-round draft choice, enters the final season of his contract so this is a big year for him to improve his stock and land what he hopes is a big payday. Given that background, it’s notable from this perspective that Spikes hasn’t been seen much at Gillette Stadium since the offseason program began in mid-April.

Picked-up pieces while blowing out the candles on Kevin Garnett’s 37th birthday cake . . .

Aug 20, 2012; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots wide receiver Donte Things haven’t gone well for Stallworth over the past few years. He was able to return to New England last season and made a big impact when he returned, but it didn’t last long. He suffered a high ankle sprain and was forced to be put on Injured Reserve. He also was in a hot air balloon accident recently, and was just cleared to resume football activities. We all remember the huge tragedy that he was involved in a few years back. As he was suspended for the 2009 season after a car he was driving, he struck and killed a pedestrian in South Florida that March. He spent 24 days in jail for a DUI manslaughter conviction. Now he’s being questioned by the CIA? This isn’t going to be good for him one bit. This is quite laughable if you ask me as he’s not truly in trouble. He had a  brief brush with the CIA after he snapped a picture standing in front of a roadside sign for the CIA’s headquarters in Langley, Virginia. This is pretty funny, if you ask me. They are upset with you, if you take a picture in front of their roadside sign? One thing is if you’re doing anything to it, but just taking a picture of it is pretty funny. He explained the situation with a series of tweets on Twitter, here’s what he said: “Taking that pic in my avi, I came eerily close to being sent to #GuantanamoBay… Lucky for me, he was a #Redskins fan and gave me a pass!” “Y’all think I’m joking. They rolled right up on me and I hadn’t been there for more than 2 mins, tops. The 1st Q was, “what are you doing?” “The second question was, “why were you taking pictures in front of the sign?” To which, I started to understand sh*t was about to get REAL” “That’s when I told buddy, “I live not far from here, I play for the #Redskins (yes, I pulled that card), and I love my country.” Lol” “He looks at me and asks, “Stallworth?” In which I replied, “ummm, depends who’s asking?” “But he was cool. We laughed it off. Until that day, I had no idea the #CIA had police.” “Before we parted ways, he did inform me that, ” #they don’t like people taking pictures around here.” I thought to myself, who is ‘they?’” Now that he has been cleared to play, Stallworth hopes to land on an NFL team this offseason.  He’s played for six different clubs since 2006 and has only 44 catches in the past three seasons.  He played in 11 games for the Washington Redskins in 2011 and just one game for the New England Patriots in 2012.

Dec 10, 2012; Foxborough, MA USA; New England Patriots wide receiver Donte Stallworth has been a memorable name for most Patriots fans since the magical 18-1 season. Lots of fans were glad to see him back with the team last season, but it didn’t last long. Luckily for his future, he’s been cleared to participate in football activities. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reported on Friday that the veteran wide receiver has been cleared to resume football activities on the heels of his March hot-air balloon accident. Stallworth and his girlfriend suffered burns when the balloon they were riding over Miami collided with xome power lines. Luckily, for his sake he suffered no permanent damage, but the definitely  incident shook him. “In that moment, I thought my eyes would close and I’d never wake up again,” Stallworth said in April. This is very interesting, as he’s already 32 years old and that doesn’t help his resume. He’ll hope to find a team very soon, but is it realistic that he will? It’s debatable. At 32, he’s played for six different clubs since 2006 and has just 84 catches over the past four seasons Lots of Patriots fan will be rooting for him to get back onto the field. But, will he back in New England once again or is this just too late for his hopes of returning to the NFL? The Patriots have always loved Stallworth, so don’t be surprised to see him back in New England if they decide to sign another wide receiver. One thing though, that might hurt his chances of returning is that they already had signed a good amount of wide receivers and do they really need to add another?

With Patriots minicamp now less than a month away, there are a number of players we’ll be curious to see for more than a cursory look on the field.For obvious reasons, slot man Danny Amendola is high on the list. Then there are the other newcomers: rookie receiver Aaron Dobson, Southern Mississippi linebacker Jamie Collins, CFL refugee Armond Armstead and, of course, the entire Rutgers contingent plucked in last month’s draft.

Before any back problems can be addressed with respect to Rob Gronkowski, doctors must first take care of priority No.?1.The Patriots tight end will have a fourth procedure performed on his left forearm tomorrow at Massachusetts General Hospital, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.The date was somewhat up in the air, but come tomorrow Gronk will have some definitive answers about whether he’s finally free and clear from an infection that’s dogged him for months.

Before any back problems can be addressed with respect to Rob Gronkowski, doctors must first take care of priority number one. To that end, the Patriots tight end will have that fourth procedure performed on his left forearm Monday at Massachusetts General Hospital, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.The date was somewhat up in the air, but come Monday, Gronk will finally have some definitive answers about whether he's finally free and clear from an infection that's dogged him for months.

In a column that provides a snapshot look at some of the larger issues facing each team in the NFL, Pete Prisco of CBSSports.com writes a piece titled, "Pressing questions for all 32 teams heading into the summer." For the Patriots, Prisco focuses on the offense, with this question: "Who starts outside at receiver with Danny Amendola in the slot? As previously noted by Patriots owner Robert Kraft, the club returns all but two starters and both are at the receiver position (Wes Welker, Brandon Lloyd), so it makes sense that Prisco would look to that area.

Owner Robert Kraft and tight end Rob Gronkowski are among team stars at a football clinic for youngsters in the stricken Connecticut town.

Dwight Freeney garnered "last minute interest" from the New England Patriots, but it was all for not, as he is reportedly set to sign a two-year deal with the San Diego Chargers. Ian Rapoport reported the agreement while the USA Today's Jarrett Bell reported the Patriots' late interest. The seven-time pro bowler Freeney had been in San Diego for the past few days talking with the Chargers. With pass rusher Melvin Ingram tearing his ACL, the Bolts acted quickly, and wanted to bring in Freeney for a visit and ultimately sign him to fill in for Ingram. He can make up to $13.5 million over his two-year deal with San Diego. Even though I think Freeney fits the Patriots' 4-3 scheme better than he will the 3-4 defense of the Chargers, he ultimately did what we all expected him to do, and that's chase the money. There's no way that the Patriots would have offered that kind of money (Freeney is reportedly guaranteed around $8 million). Plus, it seems that they would have used him as a part-time player, and maybe as a third-down pass rusher. I can't fault him for taking the money, but he likely won't win a ring out in San Diego. With Freeney now off the market, the only big-name pass rusher that the Patriots have been connected with is John Abraham, who could make his decision in the coming days. But for the Patriots to land him, he'll have to take less money and probably less playing time.