Say this for the Patriots so far in free agency: They’ve been active.

In some cases they’ve even been aggressive. And while they haven’t netted any big fish, at least not yet, they’ve certainly lived up to their pledge to maintain a strong middle class on the roster. At the very least, Matt Cassel’s salary cap space is being put to use. It’s not quite a spending spree, but it’s a far cry from inaction. And after a 2008 offseason in which the Patriots spent little and got little, 2009 already looks better.

So before we get to the bag, let’s recap the signings (and re-signings) so far. These are ranked in order of my favorite to least favorite:

CB Leigh Bodden: The veteran corner was thought to be one of the better corners on the market this year, which explains why the Pats had him in Foxborough on the first day of the signing period. They didn’t get a deal done that day, but they obviously stayed in Bodden’s ear. And when no other suitable offers came in, the Pats were able to land him to a relatively risk-free, one-year deal worth $2.25 million, with only $1 million in guaranteed money. That seems like a very good contract for the team.

Yes, Bodden was cut by the Lions this offseason, just as the disastrous Fernando Bryant was last year. But this is a different guy. Younger, better, more viable. He’s 27 and had 11 interceptions in the three years he played under Romeo Crennel in Cleveland. This just feels like a good signing. And if it’s not, the Pats have lost very little.

S James Sanders: The quintessential “middle class” guy. While he’ll probably never be a star, Sanders is a starter who plays a key position and, according to Belichick, is as instrumental as anyone in setting the defense prior to the snap. He doesn’t make many plays on the ball in the passing game, but we won’t quibble. He hits hard, is a good open field tackler and knows the system well. He would have been more difficult to replace that you realize. His contract (three years, $9 million, $2-3 million in bonus money) seems fair.

CB Shawn Springs: The money (three years, $10.5 million, over $3 million in bonuses) seems way too much for a 34-year-old corner who has missed 17 games since the start of the 2005 season and has a steroid suspension on his resume. But he’s an upgrade over the likes of Bryant, Deltha O’Neal and the other detritus from last offseason. The Pats need defense. They need talent in the secondary. They feel Springs still has it. We’ll see. This one has some risk.

DL Mike Wright: Resides with Sanders in the middle class. While unspectacular, the coaches know exactly what they are going to get out of him (which Belichick loves), and he’s versatile enough to back up at all three spots up front. He’ll average under $2 million a season (his four-year, $7.5 million deal can rise to $10 million if he hits incentives), which is fair value.

OL Russ Hochstein: Returns for another year of backup duty inside and a little TE/FB action on the goal line.. A good guy and a good Patriot. It turns out he’ll have some competition this year....

C/G Al Johnson: Johnson was pretty good in Dallas, and got good money from the Cardinals in free agency prior to the 2007 season. Injuries took hold soon after and last year Johnson appeared in only four games (no starts) for the Dolphins. Obviously a reclamation project, but at only $900,000 on a one-year (probably non-guaranteed) deal, what’s to lose?

WR Joey Galloway: At 37, the guy is ancient, and very well could be training camp fodder. But what the heck? He wants to win and still might be able to play. If he can get to the ball, he’ll probably catch it, which is more than can be said for Jabar Gaffney.

S Tank Williams: In training camp last year, it looked like Williams was going to play a prominent role on the defense as a hybrid linebacker. Maybe that’s still on the table. Either way, Williams’ one-year, minimum-level salary comes at no risk.

WR Greg Lewis: The folks in Philadelphia aren’t shedding any tears over his departure, but this is a much different situation for him. Donovan McNabb needed him in Philly. Here he’ll just be an outlet. Maybe less pressure will be good for him. Yes, Lewis is underwhelming and this was a weird trade given the Pats needs on defense, but it only cost them a fifth-rounder and Lewis’ base salaries, which are all that the Pats inherited from the Eagles, are very reasonable and imminently release-able.

ST Ray Ventrone: A pretty valuable special teams guy.

RB Fred Taylor: This is the one I really don’t get. The Pats won games last year with Benjarvus Green-Ellis starting at running back, for crying out loud. The running back spot in this offense is a compliment, not a focus. While I’m not saying they should make Green-Ellis the starter, I am saying the Pats can get away with lesser options in the backfield in case Sammy Morris or Kevin Faulk get hurt again, or in the event Laurence Maroney continues to be a non-factor. I don’t see why the Pats had to have a 33-year-old Taylor in here at $3 million in first-year money.

TE Chris Baker: Another tight end. Yawn. He got some money, too. Like Taylor, he received $3 million in new money in 2009 ($1.5 million signing bonus; $1.6 million salary).

OL Wesley Britt: The career backup stays in house.

LS Nathan Hodel, P Chris Hanson: Whatever.

OK, on to the bag. I was in Florida all week and missed the Julius Peppers hoopla on the radio. Too bad. We’ll do some here....

--

Subj: Can we end the Vrabel binky bemoaning now?

Sent: Monday, March 16, 2009: 9:36 p.m.

Mikey,

You’ve done it now, you enormous DB. The very first thing I thought of when I heard today’s rumor that the Patriots are going to acquire Julius Peppers? That you’ve been owned and embarrassed. After watching you cry about Vrabel on Comcast Sportsnet, weep on WEEI as the day is long, and write on weei.com six ways to Sunday, I had enough. Any seasoned fan of Belichick’s system knows not to react with emotion at the departure of Mike Vrabel, but for some reason you acted like a rookie on this one. I should probably wait until the deal is official, but I just couldn’t wait to jump the gun and call you out. Mikey Felger. Owned and embarrassed. Love it.

Your friend,

The Great BHL

A: Very hostile, BHL. Also a bit premature.

And just so you know, we’re on the same side when it comes to Peppers. I’m rooting for the Patriots to get him in here. I love it when the Pats surprise me/prove me wrong — it usually means they’ve spent some money and gotten a great player, and then I get a bunch DB e-mail as a bonus. So everybody’s a winner.

I just don’t see how it happens. The Patriots will have to pay Peppers either the $16.7 million franchise tag for one year or sign him to a long-term deal that looks like the one Albert Haynesworth just got in Washington ($100 million, $41 million guaranteed). I don’t know how either could be considered a realistic possibility when Richard Seymour and Vince Wilfork (among others) are up for contracts after this year and Tom Brady is up after 2010. Even if the Pats could figure out the cap situation (which I have a feeling they could, especially given the fact 2010 and beyond might not even have a cap), the bigger factor, as I keep pointing out, is the actual cash outlay. Bob Kraft isn’t Dan Snyder or Jerry Jones. He doesn’t typically spend that kind of money on more than one or two players at a time. Something would have to give for Peppers to fit on this payroll, never mind this salary cap.

I’ve heard people speculate that Seymour could be that “something.” Putting aside whether it’s realistic or not, I’m not even sure if Peppers-for-Seymour would be an upgrade. It’s close. While I’ll be the first to point out that Seymour is a bit overrated and certainly hasn’t provided good value on the big contract he signed in 2005, he’s still really good. And I get the feeling Peppers frustrates the fans of Carolina in the same way Seymour frustrates some of the people who choose to watch him closely around here. There are games you don’t see him very often. That was certainly the case in Super Bowl XXXVIII when Peppers was basically rendered invisible by the Pats and tight end Dan Graham. I’ve seen Seymour have some bad games, but I don’t recall him getting blocked by a tight end like that. So when it comes to Seymour vs. Peppers, I don’t think it’s a slam dunk. They’re the same age. Peppers will probably cost more, and he wants to switch positions. I don’t know if he’s worth it.

While I believe the money makes this deal a non-starter, the Pats have surprised us before and they could do it again. Vic Carucci is the last guy to throw something up against the wall. And his fellow NFL.com writer, Pat Kirwin, who has also written some Peppers-to-New England stories, used to work with Bill Belichick. Their reports should be taken seriously.

Anyway, a Peppers trade would certainly provide some logic to the Vrabel move, because there is none right now. And come to think of it, BHL, I can’t see myself changing my mind on the Vrabel thing no matter what the Pats do. Given how many positions he played on the field and the number of things he did off it, Vrabel was worth what he was getting paid. Seeing as how he took up less than three percent of the cap, the Pats could have kept him and still done whatever they wanted at outside linebacker, whether that be with Peppers, Jason Taylor or at the draft. I’ve promised not to dwell on it, but who are we kidding?

Actually, here’s a promise: If the Pats add Peppers to the defense and don’t give up anything other than draft picks in return — meaning a defensive line of Warren-Wilfork-Seymour, flanked by linebackers Adalius Thomas and Julius Peppers, with Jerod Mayo and someone else (too bad No. 50 is gone!) inside, I’ll never mention the words “Mike Vrabel” again. I’ll even throw “Deion Branch” into the package. Write it down. With one deal, the Pats could eliminate half my material.

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Felger,

You wrote last week: “The spin is in.”

It certainly is. I’ll translate your article (March 4 mailbag) in one sentence. ``I can’t prove the Pats would’ve gotten a better deal, but I can’t pass up any chance to take a shot at the Patriots.’’ Thanks for reminding me why I’m not a regular reader of yours.

Marc Nisbet 
Manchester, NH

A: Not a problem on not reading, Marc. You can watch me nightly on Comcast Sportsnet and hear me weekends on the radio. Plenty of options for you.

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Hey Felger,

When a rumor like the Pepper’s trade breaks, why do ``reporters’’ run with it with little research to investigate the reality of the rumor? For example, the teams are prohibited from talking trade until Peppers signs the tender, so the "agreement’’ is a violation of NFL rules. That was missing from every initial piece I read.

But in this case, cap space is why it won’t happen. I know you believe cap space is a BS argument, but give me a second. The Pats currently have just under $8M available. Let’s work with that. Last year their draft picks were about $4M, but they had the No. 10 vs. this year’s No. 23. Let’s say 2009 adjusted draft costs $3M. The last 4 years they have entered the season with between $2M - $3M available for in season signings. So we’ve got about $5M tied up in future known costs; leaving around $3M for Peppers. It’s expected his guaranteed money will be $35M on the light side. You can’t work those numbers in under the current cap; it would be tough even with cuts, unless they can push money into the uncapped year. I know there is a ``playoff penalty’’ for free agents prohibiting the signing of them, but as I read it there is NO restriction on renegotiating existing contracts with current players. Could this be accurate? If it isn’t, then Peppers to NE is a bogus story.

Mike,

Bedford, NH

A: I could go into all the rules in the Collective Bargaining Agreement for an uncapped year in 2010, but 1) I don’t know them all, and 2) I don’t feel like getting an ice cream headache. Quickly, resigning your own players before their contracts expire wouldn’t bring the free agency rule into effect because those players would never reach free agent status. So that’s another reason why, cap-wise, Peppers wouldn’t be an issue starting in 2010. The problem, as you point out, is in 2009, especially since the Pats have signed nearly a dozen new contracts since they traded away Matt Cassel. There doesn’t appear to be enough room right now. Then again, as you also mention, I’m a firm believer that there are so many loopholes and the cap limits are so high ($127 million per team this year), that teams can pretty much do whatever they want when it comes to signing players. I would never say that fitting Peppers under the cap in 2009 is impossible. You never know what the Pats have up their sleeves.

But you’re thinking too hard, Mike. You’re better off focusing on the real dollars over the cap dollars. There’s no way around the first; there are dozens of ways to figure out the second.

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Felger,

Am I the only one who remembers Dan Graham singlehandedly manhandling Julius Peppers in the Super Bowl? What’s going on here? That is burned in my mind. My keen evaluation skills (I kid!) tell me he doesn’t seem like a Patriots’ kind of player to me. 

Thanks,

Nick

A: I promise I didn’t plagiarize you above, Nick. That Super Bowl game was a great night for Graham. It’s one of the things that led scouts to call him the best blocking tight end in the NFL. Then again, I think you’ve got to throw some criticism at Peppers as well. If he’s that good, he should be able to beat a tight end, no matter who it is. Either way, I don’t think that precludes him from being a “Patriots kind of player.” It just shows he’s had his ups and downs just like Seymour.

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Felger,

I don’t think the Borges story was the only thing Vrabel said that bothered the Krafts. When the Pats had a pre-Super Bowl rally a couple of years ago, Vrabel said it was nice to see the real fans that have been priced out of games. Jonathan was so mad his eyes almost straightened out. I don’t believe for a minute that Vrabel’s comments didn’t have something to do with him leaving

Paul

Whitman

A: Good job, Paul. Don’t let it die ... er, I mean: Let it go, Paul. We’re trying to move on here.

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Mike,

The more this continues the more I want someone who isn’t a mile high to explain to me, what has Jay Cutler ever won, ever done, ever proven in this league that leads him to believe he’s calling the shots in Denver?

He now is requesting that the Broncos trade him because the Broncos tried to trade him? That type of logic collapses in on itself like a black hole and I don’t get it. Add JC the quarterback to the list of players in the realm of major sports who just found religion on the fact that....IT’S A BUSINESS.

So JC is pissed because when he finally went in for his sit down with Josh McDaniels he expected flowers and a foot rub but found out that Josh took a copy of the Belichick playbook? Instead of blowing him kisses and apologizing for daring to float the best Denver QB to never win anything, Josh let Cutler know, “we will do what’s best for the Denver Broncos. Whatever that is, that’s what we are going to do.”

If this guy was as close to JC the carpenter as fans in Denver think he is, he’d have taken that as a personal challenge to show his new coach that despite the sub .500 record he IS what is best for the Broncos. Instead he chose to shrink to the moment, suck his thumb and tell them he wants to be traded and will attend only mandatory team events and meetings. In other words, don’t expect JC to go above and beyond the minimum possible effort. Funny that sounds like business as usual for Cutler. Josh McDaniels must have a little Glen Ordway voice in his head saying, “you’re making my point.”

Truth be told, anyone looking for what is wrong with this guy just found it. He is not a professional, and is not a consummate team guy.  I would love to see this clown get what he deserves, leave via trade and end up on North America’s team with another extremely talented and totally disappointing head case -- T.O. It would put theatre in Buffalo on the map. Put these two self-centered, talented dinks on the same team and in a city with nothing going on but ice storms and hail and watch them play the blame game. Every week of Inside the NFL would be like a Friday episode of As the World Turns. Plus I get the strong feeling that Belichick generally takes weak minded QB’s like Cutler, uses his Jedi mind tricks on them and turns them inside out.

Peace,

Boston   

A: I’ve about had enough of Cutler as well. Grow up. Coaches lie. Get over it. Stop crying..

As I’ve said before, I think McDaniels blew this one badly. If he wanted Cutler out of town he should have been talking to the Pats prior to free agency like Kansas City was, and he should have been ready to go when the clock struck midnight on Feb. 27. He was late to the game and got burned. That’s his fault.

But everything else I put on Cutler. If McDaniels wants a new QB, that’s his right. He’s the boss. There’s obviously something wrong with Cutler — that’s become apparent the last couple of weeks — so I don’t blame McDaniels one bit for trying to move on. I only blame him for not getting it done. I commend him for not groveling in front of a player who, as Jake points out, hasn’t won squat as a pro.

I enjoyed reading Ron Borges skewer McDaniels in the Herald this week. Talk about a flashback. It reminded me of the days of the “Boo Hoo Drew Crew,” when all those Boston Globe writers got their panties in a bunch because Belichick wasn’t able to adequately communicate to Drew Bledsoe just how badly he sucked and that he should take a seat on the bench. The Globies somehow felt the player was entitled to something, as if showing respect to an established veteran was more important than winning games. Same thing here. Poor Jay. Boo hoo. It’d be nice if these coaches had people skills, but most of them don’t. Deal with it.

What I find most interesting is that McDaniels is hardly the only Belichick spawn to send their new players reaching for the hankies this offseaosn.

Get this: Soon after Eric Mangini took the Cleveland job, he had to deal with a request from defensive lineman Shaun Rogers to be released because the new coach didn’t say hello to Rogers at the team’s training facility and also failed to exchange greetings with him at a Cleveland-area banquet. WAAAAAAAAH! I’m not making that up. Google it.

Scott Pioli encountered a similar situation in Kansas City, where Pro Bowl guard Brian Waters asked for a sit down meeting and Pioli, for whatever reason, refused. Waters got only a brief face-to-face with new coach Todd Haley. A trade request soon followed. Writing in the Kansas City Star, the always-outstanding Jason Whitlock reported that Waters was “offended and shocked by the arrogance of Haley and Pioli.” WAAAAAAAH!

Sometimes I get my facts confused, so maybe someone can correct me here. But didn’t Waters’ Chiefs win two games last year? Weren’t Rogers’ Browns 4-12? Haven’t the Broncos missed the playoff in each of Cutler’s three seasons? I believe I have all that right.

It would seem to me that the players on these teams would need a kick in the pants, not a kiss on the ass. So good for the Belichick-ians.

(And before anyone calls me a hypocrite for crying about the Vrabel trade, just remember: I’ve never said a word about his being “mistreated.” The Patriots didn’t owe him any particular sort of treatment. I’ve only said Vrabel was worth his cap number. Period. Story over. And if the Pats cut him because of his mouth and not his value to the football team, then shame on them. But Vrabel wasn’t owed anything).

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Michael,

Let me get this straight. The Denver Broncos had the second-ranked offense in the NFL last season (395.8 ypg), but the 29th ranked defense (28 ppg). So instead of reassuring Cutler that he’s his quarterback and that he can turn him into a Super Bowl winner, Josh McDaniels alienates him by making a late play for Cassel. Huh??? What the heck was he thinking that the Broncos offense was the problem? The first thing McDaniels should have done was revamp the defense, NOT tick off one of the better quarterbacks in the league.

In light of the fact that every coach who has left the Patriots has proven to be a total Garfunkel, why do people keep insisting that it will be tough for Belichick to adjust to another personnel change?

Rob

Plymouth

A: I disagree with you on the first point, obviously. If one of the “better quarterbacks in the league” can’t make the playoffs in three straight years, then I’m not sure if there’s much risk in “ticking” him off. But your second point got me thinking.

While I defend the right of McDaniels or any coach/GM to take a hard line with their players, I think we also need to make the following thing clear: While the coaches who come from Belichick’s program have proven they can be SOBs just like Bill, none of them have proven they can win like him.

I DO believe that a-holes have a better chance of winning in the NFL than nice guys. But just being one isn’t enough.

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Felger you DB!

Uh, can someone please change Jay Cutler’s diaper? Honestly, is there a bigger whiny bitch in the NFL right now? ”Whaaa, the Bronco’s tried to trade me, Josh McDaniels was mean to me and I want an ice cream right now!” Curran nailed it by calling him “Sweet Baby Jay.” And did you see that he has put his house, and his parents house, up for sale? Let me repeat that last part for those at home: AND HIS PARENTS HOUSE. Are you kidding me? Jay Cutler moved his parents to Denver when he joined the Broncos because nobody cuts the crust off those sandwiches like mommy does, right Jay? If I was Mike Shanahan and I heard this I would have had a Reggie Dunlop “he brought his (bleeping) parents with him?!?” breakdown because this trumps the Hanson brothers packing a suitcase full of race cars by a country mile. Hey Jay, maybe you could move around in the pocket a bit better if you (something unprintable about his mother) and cut the friggin umbilical cord.  At the very least it would result in a better haircut as Daddy Cutler’s Flowbee work is still leaving something to be desired..  

Anyway, the Bronco’s have to deal him, and not because Jay has threatened to cross his arms and hold his breath until they do. You have to trade him because a whiny little Sally is incapable of leading a football team.  If you think that you can win with a quarterback that has all the coping skills of Spaulding Smails, the Detroit Lions would like to see your resume. So naturally the Lions have expressed interest in him.

And in a development that should shock nobody, Jets fans (re: slightly more evolved than Java-Man) want Cutler in Green and White. I love it. I can’t think of a more perfect match than Cutler, who has thinner skin than Slim Good Body and the New York press. The Jets equipment managers would have to convert the team to Velcro turf shoes and hide all the belts by Week 6. Make it happen Mike Tannenbaum, because an idiotic move like this is right in the Jets’ wheelhouse. If we can get this to happen, and with T.O.’s arrival in Buffalo, all the Pats need to lock up the division is for Miami to sign Barry Bonds. He could play fullback right? 

Mike

Attleboro

A: Thanks to you, Mike, “Smails” and “Flowbee” are now clean words in my spellcheck program. You’re the best.

One final word on Cutler. You all realize who is agent is, right? That would be Bus Cook, the longtime representative of Brett Favre. Enough said.

--

Felgy

I watched the Fox news the night U2 did their concert, and the Wood was lucky enough to be in Somerville. She was downright giddy. She looked hotter than usual and could not stop smiling. What gives, does she have a thing for Bono? Does this make you jealous?

Rick

A: Yes and yes.

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Felger,

Reading your mailbag last week, I was intrigued when you mentioned the baseball show…Are you taking over as host? If so, that just made my day. I’ve braved some pretty violent hangovers to get up at 9 a.m. on Sundays to listen, and your (potential) addition makes it even more worth it. If you want, I can give you my digits for the occasions when the Saturday nights get a little out of hand and I ‘forget’ to set my phone. I believe a wake up call from Felger (or dare I dream, the Wood) would be the equivalent of eight chaser pills. Also, please tell me they aren’t doing that rotating cohost crap. I don’t have a problem with Buck, but you need McAdam.

Eric

A: That would be something, wouldn’t it? Mr. Baseball in the mix with the BBWAA. Roll tape.

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Michael,

Your “raised as nothing” admissions when it comes to religion brings to mind the immortal words of the redhead Arnold Auerbach to a succession of mystified Celtics searching for their identity: Dress British, think Yiddish.

Helped them,

Willie

A: It doesn’t appear to me as if that’s translated to the modern NBA player, Willie.

--

Michael,

I don’t mind that you gave Ted the forum to call me ugly in your mailbag (last week, when an e-mailer suggested Rob Bradford only hires writers weirder looking than him), but the least you could do is correct the complete butchering on my last name. Guttenmeister sounds like a shot of alcohol -- not the last name of someone widely regarded as WEEI’s Next Great Sports Blogger. Right.

Anyway, after reading Ted’s physical assessment of seven WEEI.com writers, I have to blow the whistle. Although it sounds like something Ted might enjoy, my advice to him is to go back to tugging root to your Tom Brady posters.

Dan Guttenplan

A: I don’t feel so bad writing last week that I had never heard of Dan Guttenmeister. Turns out it’s Guttenplan and he works here: thanksforplaying.weei.com.

Had the e-mailer gotten his name right I would have known that. Totally.

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Hi Mike,

I listen to a number of podcasts during the day at work, like Bill Simmons and Adam Carolla, and I can’t help but think you would be great in that medium.  A forum to speak your mind, which you’re not really allowed to do on the radio in this town, get good guests from your contacts. I think it would be great. Here’s to D & C summer vacations and Felger in the morning.

Eric

Cambridge

A: That’s all I need, another forum with which to generate hate mail. Thanks, Eric. All set.

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Felger,

I too saw the “shoe” exchange between Tappen and Milbury (on NESN last week). After thinking about it, it may have been a reference to the night Milbury went into the stands at Madison Square Garden and beat the guy with the shoe.  That is all I could think of.

David

A: Phew. Makes total sense, David. Thanks. It’s good to know the only toe jobs being performed on local cable remain between Dickerson and Tanguay.

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Felger can be seen nightly on Comcast Sportsnet and can be reached at mfelger@weei.com.