Belichick denies deal
Coach says no draft-day trade in place with Lions
By Michael Smith, Globe Staff, 4/2/2004
Patriots coach Bill Belichick yesterday denied a report in yesterday's Globe that he had agreed to a draft-day trade that would send New England's two first-round picks, a second, and a fourth to the Lions in exchange for the sixth overall pick and Detroit's fourth-round but is contingent on the availability of the player the Patriots supposedly covet -- University of Miami safety Sean Taylor.
"We definitely would not consider that [trade scenario]," Belichick told Patriots.com, adding that there was no agreement in place.
But while Belichick attempted to kill it, the rumor was alive and well last night. An AFC executive said he had heard the Patriots were high on Taylor and are willing to give the Lions "lots of picks" in order to move up so they can select the 6-foot-2-inch, 230-pound safety, whom the executive called "unique" because of his coverage ability. "He's going to be a special player," said the executive, who said he didn't expect Taylor to last past the eighth pick. "They love him."
Despite Belichick's denial, New England, the only team with two firsts, still could be a player for the sixth pick. The Lions have said they are looking to trade down and add choices, and Detroit coach Steve Mariucci acknowledged earlier this week at the league's annual meeting that he and Lions president and CEO Matt Millen had had trade discussions with Belichick.
"We've had some conversations with Bill," Mariucci told the Detroit Free Press. "They're the only team that has two in the first round. When you look to trade back, you always look at who's got two first-round picks. That's who you look at first. I've spoken with Bill, Matt has spoken with Bill, we've spoken with several people with several teams about moving. That's what goes on now.
"Our concern is moving from six to 21. That's a drop, a pretty good drop. You wouldn't do it just for those two picks. It would require more."
With seven picks in the first four rounds and 10 overall, most expect the Patriots to use a few of them to move up in the first round. "I definitely wouldn't rule it out," Belichick said in Palm Beach, Fla. . . .
Dan Koppen went to Gillette Stadium yesterday to get in his workout. He left with a fat check and a new nickname, courtesy of Jarvis Green.
"I call him `Money Grip,' " Green said.
The Patriots who were at the team's facility participating in the offseason program received checks for their "performance-based pay." Each team distributed $1 million among its players this offseason as part of a system, created two years ago when the league and players' union extended the collective bargaining agreement, that supplements player salaries based on playing time. PBP, as it is known, is especially beneficial to players, such as Koppen, whose performance is disproportionate to their pay.
Koppen, a fifth-round pick who started the last 18 games last season, earned $101,521 -- third-most in the league -- on top of his $225,000 base salary. Tom Ashworth, the starting right tackle the last 16 games, received a check for $82,583, eighth-largest in the league. Matt Light got $40,604 and Joe Andruzzi $32,743.
Receivers David Givens and Deion Branch made themselves an additional $49,978 and $38,254, respectively. Asante Samuel ($49,835), Eugene Wilson ($42,669), and Dan Klecko ($31,668) also pocketed a nice chunk of extra change for their rookie contributions.
"It was cool," said Green, who earned a $31,430 bonus.
Any player who plays a down during the season is eligible for "performance-based pay." The smallest payments went to Damon Huard ($180) and Wilbert Brown ($274). . . .
The Patriots had 6-4, 250-pound tight end Zeron Flemister in for a tryout. Flemister, 27, spent his first four seasons with the Redskins . . . The Lombardi Trophy's tour through New England continued with the starting offensive line from the Super Bowl -- Andruzzi, Ashworth, Koppen, Light, and Russ Hochstein -- showing it to assemblies at four Foxborough-area elementary schools
