Adam Schefter

ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter joined Dennis & Callahan Monday morning to discuss the first weekend of free agency and the Patriots’ prospects for the offseason. Schefter touched on two of the biggest areas of need for the Patriots: wide receiver and pass rusher.

“I have not heard Brandon Marshall’s name mentioned with New England,” Schefter said. He added that he thinks that the most likely destinations for Marshall, who will cost any team that tenders him a first-round pick, are Cincinnati and Seattle, where he was visiting over the weekend. Schefter also said that the Patriots “were involved” in the Anquan Boldin discussions. “They had some discussions, but it never ultimately got serious.” Boldin was traded over the weekend from the Cardinals to the Ravens.

The Patriots look like they might try to fill their wide receiver needs with a lesser name. Former Buffalo Bill Josh Reed was scheduled in town for a visit Monday, and Schefter said he would be a good fit for Bill Belichick’s team. “Reed is about as good a replacement as you can find, though he is not going to be Wes Welker,” he said. “Plus, they do need receivers.”

As for a pass rusher, it appears that the Patriots might need to address that in the draft. With Julius Peppers going to Chicago and Aaron Kampman to Jacksonville, the market for an impact player in that role is considerably thinner. “There may be some linebacker or young defensive end that you look at and say, ‘Boy, this guy is pretty good,’ ” Schefter said. “But you go down the list of free agents, and I just don’t see it.” One name he did mention was Marques Douglas, whom the Patriots have been reported to have some interest in. Ultimately, New England likely will have to fill most of its holes via the draft. “I think their options are limited,” Schefter said. “Where else are you going to go? It is not as if this crop of free agents offers a ton of answers for teams.”

If Patriots fans are looking for a glimmer of hope, it could come with Leigh Bodden. Schefter said he believes the defensive back will choose between Houston, where he visited over the weekend, and returning to New England. “It will come down to Houston or New England, and I would imagine we’ll get an answer here in relatively short order, although last year Leigh Bodden dragged his feet in free agency, so perhaps he does it again this year,” he said.

A full transcript of the interview is below. To listen, click here.

How interested are the Bills and Seahawks in [Tim] Tebow?

I don’t buy that at all.

Is Leigh Bodden gone from the Patriots?

I wouldn’t say that, either. I don’t think he is going yet at all. I don’t know that they are likely to keep him. He was in Houston last night having dinner with Gary Kubiak. I’m not saying that New England is likely to keep him, but they are still alive. They’re still in the picture. It will come down to Houston or New England, and I would imagine we’ll get an answer here in relatively short order, although last year Leigh Bodden dragged his feet in free agency, so perhaps he does it again this year.

There are obviously different philosophical approaches that teams can and should take. What do you think that would be as it applies to the New England Patriots?

Well, I think some teams are being careful. The one thing that is interesting is that I continue to hear that some teams are looking ahead to 2011, when next year’s free agent class is supposed to be very good and very strong. And that is interesting because you get the floodgates open once they get a new collective bargaining agreement. Right now there is not one in place and that certainly has affected this year’s market, with far more restricted free agents and far more quality unrestricted free agents. We saw a first day that was busy and active, but I think the dropoff from there was precipitous. There are not a whole lot of teams now that are looking over and saying, “I wonder who is going to get Leigh Bodden.” There are just not a whole lot of players like that out there now.

Well, tell us who is going to get Brandon Marshall.

Well that is an interesting situation because he was in Seattle over the weekend and meeting with them. Obviously he wants to get paid; he wants to get a new contract and he’d love to go to Seattle — they have two number ones. Some people have suggested that the Broncos would be open to negotiating and all I can tell you is that having spoken to people in the Broncos organization is that they tendered him at a one. They didn’t tender him at a one and a three, they tendered him at a one. And they tendered him at a one for a reason. They feel like if anyone wants to sign Brandon Marshall to an offer sheet, they get their one. And if nobody wants to do that, they are happy — and I mean this — to take back Brandon Marshall and have him play for the team last year. So if Seattle wants to part with its number one, then Denver will be willing to make that deal. Now, in the interim, maybe Seattle is not interested in parting with the number six pick, but other teams are discussing Brandon Marshall. Somebody said or wrote last night that, “Adam Schefter is saying this because he is trying to create more leverage for Denver.” I’m not trying to create leverage for anybody, I’m reporting the facts. And the facts are that the Bengals have talked about Brandon Marshall, the facts are that the Bengals are going to make a move at the wide receiver position, the facts are that the Bengals have reached out to Brandon Marshall and the facts are that if the Bengals want to sign Brandon Marshall to an offer sheet — and I’m not saying that they are going to or not going to — that the Broncos would have seven days to match or get back the Bengals number one pick.

How much of the conversations with Marshall centered on his rap sheet?

Plenty. Because if you are going to invest the money that it is going to take to sign Brandon Marshall and give up your number one pick, and compensate him and the Broncos, you better be really sure that is something you are comfortable with and at ease with. Because if you’re not, you can’t be making that move. But again, ultimately Seattle might decide to part with a number one pick for Brandon Marshall, it might not. Cincinnati might decide to, it might not. But I don’t know that there is another team out there that will be willing.

What about the Patriots, a team that desperately needs a receiver? Would they give up the No. 22 pick for Marshall?

Well, I have not heard Brandon Marshall’s name mentioned with New England. It is something that makes some sense, but here is what I come back to. The Patriots just doled out big money to Vince Wilfork. They resigned Tully Banta-Cain. They are trying to get done Leigh Bodden and they are trying to get done other people. They are going to re-sign Tom Brady at some point this offseason. Are you going to sign Wilfork to a $50 million deal, Brady to a $100 million deal and Marshall to a $50 [million] to $70 million deal?

So you are saying that they are going to fill all their holes through the draft?

I think their options are limited. Where else are you going to go? It is not as if this crop of free agents offers a ton of answers for teams.

Did they make a run at Anquan Boldin?

They were involved. They had some discussions, but it never ultimately got serious. But like any team doing its due diligence, you make some calls. The [Cardinals] at one point did speak to the Patriots, that did go on. I don’t think that it went very far, but it would be irresponsible for a team not to look into it.

What is left out there for pass rushers? Anyone else that is still out there?

Not that I can see. There may be some linebacker or young defensive end that you look at and say, ‘Boy, this guy is pretty good.’ But you go down the list of free agents, and I just don’t see it. You could venture into free agency, but you are not going to give up a one and a three for Shawne Merriman. You are not going to give up the compensation it takes to get Tony Brown from the Titans. Adewale Ogunleye is a free agent, Marques Douglas from the Jets, Tyler Brayton from the Panthers — these are the kind of guy that are out there, and I don’t know if they get anyone excited. Joey Porter is still out there, he is going to visit the Cardinals on Thursday.

The Pats are set to bring in Josh Reed today. How much does he have left in the tank, and how many of their wide receiver problems would he solve?

Well, I think that the Patriots have always liked him and he has always been a crafty receiver. I think what Josh Reed would do is they expect Wes Welker back, but my understanding is he is not going to be ready for the start of camp. What if he is not Wes Welker? Josh Reed is about as good a replacement as you can find, though he is not going to be Wes Welker. Plus, they do need receivers. They do need to make some moves there and stockpile some veterans. So that would make sense to me.

When teams bring in the [Joey] Galloways and Adalius Thomases and those moves don’t work out, does that affect how they are going to approach free agency?

To use a different anaology, it is like in the dating world, if women keep going for bad boys do they think they learn, or do they keep going back to them? Or if a man keeps going for blondes, is that what he goes back to? Sometimes that is just what teams go back to. You’d like to think they would learn from it and realize certain things. My guess is that I think the Patriots would be a little apprehensive about signing a veteran wide receiver at this point. I think that they would be a little reluctant to do something like that, I will say that.

With the salary cap floor, how many teams do you think will take this opportunity to spend more and how many will spend less?

I think the only team that will spend more will be the Chicago Bears.

What about the Redskins?

We are what, three days into free agency? The opening weekend is the most hectic and explosive time, and the Washington Redskins, Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles have signed so far Artis Hicks, the guard from Minnesota. That’s it.

So the Bears go over and everyone else goes under?

Well, I don’t know about over the cap, but they doled out over $100 million in contracts to Julius Peppers, Chester Taylor and Brandon Manumaleuna. … So they spent a lot of money, but they don’t have a first-round pick or a second-round pick. So they spent, and they spent a lot. They were, in my mind, the only team that spent more than they probably would in another year. But I don’t know if there is a relationship to the fact that there is no cap. The bottom line is, every team is being careful with the dollars they dole out. Every team.

Did the Jets really give [Antonio] Cromartie money to pay off all his baby mamas?

I don’t know the particulars of that situation, but my guess would be — and this sometimes happens — that teams will sometimes advance a player his salary. So let’s just say that Antonio Cromartie is due to make $2.5 million this year, and I have no idea what the number is right now. Sometimes in this situation they will say, ‘OK, we will give you an advance. Here is $500,000 we will not be paying you later.’

Just how much trouble is Ben Roethlisberger in, from what you can tell?

Well, I don’t like the sound of it. I don’t know that anybody could. I don’t know the particulars, but my understanding is that they could have some tape of it. And if they have tape of it and it is true, then he is in a lot of trouble.

Speaking of trouble, has [Terrell Owens] burned all his bridges, or is there still some team out there that will look at him?

Well, Cincinnati has discussed it. It is still not a priority with them; they still have other options. He is still on their radar. They were pursuing Kevin Walter. That didn’t get done, he went back to Houston. The Bengals know that they need some kind of wide receiver to team up with Chad Ocho Cinco, so T.O. remains an option, as does Antonio Bryant as does Brandon Marshall. So it is just a question of what that team is going to do. And outside of Cincinnati, I don’t know of another option that T.O. would have. Baltimore was a spot, but they signed Donte’ Stallworth and traded for Anquan Boldin, so that ship has sailed. So his options are, at best, limited. There may be another team outside of Cincinnati. I don’t know it, but last year we saw Buffalo kind of came out of nowhere. So, there always seems to be a team lurking when you least expect it. I don’t know who that is right now, but I wouldn’t rule it out.