Patriots land Shea McClellin

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The Patriots continue to make moves at a dizzying rate.

A day after sending pass rusher Chandler Jones to Arizona and hours after trading for Bears tight end Martellus Bennett, the Patriots have acquired another former Bear, via free agency.

Linebacker Shea McClellin has agreed to terms on a three-year deal with the Patriots, via Adam Schefter of ESPN.

McClellin, a first-round pick in 2012 and once believed to be on track to become the next great Bears linebacker, was a disappointment in four seasons in Chicago. He had only 7.5 sacks in four total seasons, and his most memorable moment arguably came when he dragged quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the ground and broke his collarbone in 2013.

The Patriots also signed defensive end Chris Long on Tuesday, the second overall pick in the 2008 draft.

85 responses to “Patriots land Shea McClellin

  1. Phil Emery’s smartest-guy-in-the room inaugural 1st round pick. Inexplicably drafted as a 3-4 OLB to play DE in a 4-3. And a big reason Emery no longer occupies the GM office in Halas Hall.

    He’s a guy you’d want your daughter to marry but he has no business drawing an NFL paycheck. Slow, can’t shed blocks, a bad tackler and absolutely zero football instincts. Two head coaches, two GMs and three DCs tried to salvage him in Chicago and no bueno. Good luck Pats fans… hope there’s not a lot of guaranteed money in that deal.

  2. Winning the offseason huh patriot fans? Not winning a sb when you can cheat and have a clear advantage over every other team by doing so is pathetic. Be lucky Goodell is commish.

  3. Also, no one in Chicago ever believed he was the next great linebacker. Everyone wondered why we didn’t take Chandler Jones instead of this kid out of Boise State. Just another Emery bust

  4. Wow! Shea McClellin! You’re right Mike, the “dizzying rate” of these high profile signings by the Pats is hard to keep up with. In no way is this a low level waiver wire-type deal that no one cares about, regarding a player that probably won’t be on the roster in Sept. This is the Patriots! This is Yuge!

  5. .
    Mclellin has the versatility Belichick loves. He can play all the LB positions plus DE, plus special teams. He’s the type that can save needed roster spots at other positions.

    In the last two days the Patriots have acquired former first round picks Chris Long, Jonathan Cooper, and Shea Mclellin along with former second rounder, Martellus Bennett. All have previously underperformed for their previous teams, some due to injury. But, they all have a chance to resurrect their careers and go on to bigger paydays.
    .

  6. saying they “landed” him implies he was in high demand, and i can assure you he was not. he’s not even overrated anymore, everyone realizes he just isn’t that good.

  7. Is the rest of the AFC East asleep? How could this happen?

    Doug Whsley – are you in a coma?? This guy will be a flat out STAR in New Englsnd. It’s almost as ifthe rest of the division capitulates on an annual basis.

    It’s almost so pathetic anymore that it’s not even fun to make jokes about it.

  8. McClellin looked a lot better last season when they moved him inside. This is a sneaky good signing.

  9. Phil Emery doomed McClellin from the very beginning with that out of the blue draft pick. He was never going to meet the expectations that a first-round selection sets. The Bears were never able to develop him but it’ll be interesting to see if Belichick and company can get more out of him or if he is a bust.

  10. He’s average at best, if that. This is a fishing expedition. Seems like BB is following Whaleys pattern of grabbing up former no:1 or 2 picks

  11. I think they are putting in all the chips to see about a girl errrrr a ring. Funny thing, Chiefs are better still, Steelers are right, Houston is coming as well as the jets. So Tawmie better enjoy the four weeks off he is about to receive cause his body is going to get beat up this year knowing that’s how to beat the pay toilets. Rush 3 or 4 and drop 7-8 in coverage. Shea is not the answer at all. You gave up paying a player that was proven and was definitely going to play way hard in a contract year to settle for Shea and Chris long. Cooper was god awful, Donald brown was not the answer either. And Hogan? Who? They don’t pick till 61 and there won’t be much left by then unless they package both 2s and a 3 to get Ogbah who they covet.Maybe the marbles are going.

  12. Maybe the Browns braintrust should take note?

    You mean to tell me, Sashi Brown and Money Ball didn’t even realize these guys are/were available after losing 5 of their starters???

    Then, Browns get NOTHING and just CUT Dansby!??!!?!?!

    What’s going on in Cleveland?????

  13. And….. I’m tired of hearing about how great every Patriots move is…. I hope they suck this year.

    Lombardi can go spoon with Bill.

    –disgruntled, bitter Browns fan.

  14. It appears New England will be undefeated yet again this season. 19-0 seems to be a forgone conclusion at this point and a 5th championship for Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.

  15. The remarkable thing about BB isn’t the winning record, it’s the fact that for the last umpteen bazillion years, they’re always playing deep into the playoffs.

    Which means drafting lower consistently… and yet.. they do it… and do it really, really well… remaining competitively consistent.

  16. Almost appears as if Bill Belicheck took the first week of Free Agency off and let the big spenders go crazy and then he re-entered the contest trading and selectively signing players who can embrace the Patriot Way. Welcome to the elite team, Shea.

  17. That’s my team right there! Going after those mid level free agents once the market has settled, trading for a talented Player in the last year of his contract while giving up minimal assets.

  18. It’s amazing how a great quarterback like Brady makes all these cast offs they are getting look great.

  19. Now if Brady sues Goddell for slander, gets an
    .

    injunction to play while it is settled. We will

    be in good shape. Lawsuit should have been

    filed by Kraft, who wimped out.

  20. Faith and begorrah! Shea McClellin landed by Billy O’Belichick on St Paddy’s Day, no less.

    Happy St. Patrick’s Day, all (except Colts and Ravens fans).

  21. “once believed to be on track to become the next great Bears linebacker”

    Not sure who thought that in Chicago, outside of maybe Ray Emery.

  22. Oh, this just keeps getting better and better! BB you have forever endeared yourself to me since yesterday! I have always admired you, but seriously, now you have made me laugh as well! I know they are “cleaning house” and all, and poor Shea never fit, under any circumstances, but you know BB is going to make him shine and it is just is going to make the Bears look SO bad! Watch and learn I guess will be the key, right?

  23. I hope Bennett and McClellin don’t have much of an impact when the Bears play them in the Super Bowl next year.

    Yeah, I know it’s a dream, but it’s also mid-March, so it’s allowed.

    Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

  24. Looks like the Pat’s are going on a reclamation project shopping spree for. If the second time around turns out better then the first for these guys, Pat’s have a tremendous shot at another title.

    Still need to address that porous secondary.

  25. Now watch McClellin become a pro-bowler. No team does reclamation projects better than the Pats.

  26. this is the difference between Bill and everyone else… 12 million dollars extra in cap space so what do teams do??
    They sign a big name like….
    lamar miller
    matt forte
    demarco murray

    and they think that one person is gonna take them to the promise land!!

    what does belichick do??
    STACKS THE DEPTH CHART

    Belichick signs 10 decent guys that make up a team to everyones else 1 or 2 superstars… Not bragging just saying

  27. Boy the Patriots sure love scoopin’ up the Bears’ fizzles. Enjoy having this lump of coal on your roster, Pats fans! I’m sure he’ll complement Jon Bostic quite nicely.

  28. Belichick is being Belichick as only Belichick can be. You know there are some gems in there. It will be an exciting 2016.

    BTW, the only time I want to read about Schefter is when he goes to court on the illegal distribution of private medical information.

  29. realitycheckbaby says:
    Mar 17, 2016 8:59 AM
    Can he play QB during Shady Lady’s suspension?

    Love the smell of desperation

    Yeah, because the Patriots are “desperate” for a LB!

    Why is it every offseason when the Patriots bring some player in who may or may not make the team the CRYBABIES come out and call them “desperate”?

  30. This is typical Belichick. Feel free to compare Mcclellin to Bostic but Belichick picked up guys like Ayers, Casillas, and Freeny at linebacker that the mass of posters panned but all of whom worked out well for the Patriots.

    Bill builds a team whereas other GMs keep trying to find the one or two stars that they delusionally believe will push their team over the top. Elway had success doing just that but most GMs fail.

    It is great to be a Patriots fan during the preseason, season and playoffs but even the off-season allows us to watch Belichick twink the roster oh so fine. Last year all of the Patriots AFC East opponents won free agency and we all know how that worked out.

  31. we read the same comments from the same people time and time again. it’s very clear that for them, it’s not about the Patriots as much as it is about Patriots’ fans.

  32. ahhhhh lets slow the roll on the Shea could be a gem for ole hot pants…he’s more of a turnip.

  33. 81 tackles in 12 games last year, almost 7 a game. That’s not bad production. Not many sacks, but not sure how he was being used, if it wasn’t as a pass rusher, then it doesn’t matter.

  34. Joker65 — he was used as the starting Mike backer in a defense designed for D linemen to keep O linemen off the linebackers so that they can make plays. In that scheme, 7 tackles a game is not great production; and McClellin has never been able to get off a block or make a play when needed. But if he can just concentrate on using speed to rush the passer, he may be of some value.

  35. This would be a good time to remind people that many of Belichick’s reclamation projects fail miserably. Shea McClellan is terrible at football.

  36. He was Chicagos second leading tackler last year with 81 in 12 games. The other ILB was first with 86. Third had 67. The other ILB also had zero sacks, so it leads me to think their scheme didn’t have the ILB’s rushing the passer much.

    I don’t know much about him, but it doesn’t sound like he was horrible over there. Maybe they didn’t get the production they wanted from a 1st round pick,, expectations are always high.

  37. Even Belichick and Patricia can’t save McClellin. Worst 1st round pick for the Bears since Cedric Benson. And there were a lot of bad 1st round picks between them.

    He tackles and covers ghosts very well. When it comes to real people, he is lost. His body type and size really don’t have a real position on the front 7. Too small for the line as he can’t beat a Tackle as an edge rusher. His size is more LB, but as LB he can’t cover his zone adequately because he opens his hips at the first break every single time. He is fast, and you will see him chasing down ball carriers from 5-10 yards behind. Never anticipatory, but always chasing down.

    Lots of bad habits that are hard to fix after this long in the league. Im going to guess this is a highly incentive laden contract. Extremely surprised if he makes the Pat’s 53.

  38. OMG!!!! He was tackling RB ten yards past the line…Shea has no nose for the ball unless it’s a running back running him over.

  39. There is no guarantee this guy is gonna start or even make the team… he will be asked to play special teams and add depth behind Hightower and Collins. If he pans out and proves himself and wants to stay…well that is the upside… BB is about 50 50 on this type of moves… IMO … it is a great way to build a foot team!!

    This is depth move… thats it.

  40. All these posters using his time in Chicago as reasons to think the guy underachieved. Let’s be real, the Bears entire organization underachieved. They stunk, the Patriots don’t. He will be a situational player like the vast majority of the Patriots roster. Guys like Vrabel and Ninkovich were bit players on their previous teams and look what NE was able to get out of them. Like every other team BB swings and misses but I like his chances of making contact on the guys he picked up so far.

  41. McClellin has underperformed his whole time with the Bears. Has decent speed but doesn’t appear to know how to use it. I would put some of his underachievement on the Bears for sure, but he sure seems to struggle at times on the field. Has a terrible time shedding blocks but also makes wrong decisions with what holes to fill. Could this be corrected with proper coaching? Guess we’ll find out. Got no problem with the signing, if anyone can make him work out, the Patriots can. Wish the Bears organization knew what they were doing all these past years.

  42. “All these moves and being so active in free agency is not “The Patriot Way”.”

    —————

    They do have to replace guys they lost you know. A 53-man roster. That’s a lot of parts to cast.

  43. satanclaus69: “Shea McClellin’s most memorable play for Bears fans is when he ended Brett Favre’s career……”

    ———————————————————————

    Actually it was Corey Wooten that ended Farve’s career. Shea broke Aaron Rodgers’ collarbone.

  44. Mar 17, 2016 8:59 AM

    Can he play QB during Shady Lady’s suspension?

    Love the smell of desperation in the morning.
    ==================================
    You seem to be confusing the Pats with Denver!
    Having Butt Fumble as your QB is the true smell of desperation!!

  45. jchipwood says:
    Mar 16, 2016 10:42 PM
    Winning the offseason huh patriot fans? Not winning a sb when you can cheat and have a clear advantage over every other team by doing so is pathetic. Be lucky Goodell is commish.
    ==============
    Every Pats fan is celebrating everything that is Goodell. So lucky. LOL

    Clear advantage … laughing even harder now. Thanks for that. Made my day.

  46. I know that this is a comment section, but everyone needs to relax. All of these lost cost/low investment moves aren’t made to seal the AFC East title–that’s already been done.

    The luxury of having Tom Brady and his offensive weapons allows the Patriots to bring in hordes of little to no risk guys every year on the cheap, work them out, coach them up physically and mentally, and see if they can be a factor in this winning organization. If it’s not a fit, Belichick will put them on the first bus out of town. He’ll use the 1st half of the regular season to move pieces around until he gets it right, and make a strong run during the playoffs. I hated pickups like Albert Haynesworth and Adalius Thomas because once they got paid, they quit. You get the most out of your players, in general, when it’s pay for play.

    The Miamis, Jets, and Bills of the world, conversely, need to take expensive risks every year in order to see if they can play above .500, and dream of making the playoffs. Paying one guy like Suh a huge % of your team’s allocation is never good when it’s not the one piece needed to go to the promised land, like when Revis put NE over the top to win a title.

    This is the reality for most teams in the NFL that don’t have a top quarterback and a top coach with stability in both, and NE has been lucky to have them for this long run of excellence.

  47. boltergeist19 says:
    Mar 17, 2016 12:43 AM
    I think they are putting in all the chips to see about a girl errrrr a ring. Funny thing, Chiefs are better still, Steelers are right, Houston is coming as well as the jets. So Tawmie better enjoy the four weeks off he is about to receive cause his body is going to get beat up this year knowing that’s how to beat the pay toilets. Rush 3 or 4 and drop 7-8 in coverage. Shea is not the answer at all. You gave up paying a player that was proven and was definitely going to play way hard in a contract year to settle for Shea and Chris long. Cooper was god awful, Donald brown was not the answer either. And Hogan? Who? They don’t pick till 61 and there won’t be much left by then unless they package both 2s and a 3 to get Ogbah who they covet.Maybe the marbles are going.
    =========================
    And yet no one will be asked to carry a full load. They are all role\rotational players. It’s also pretty easy to say rush 3-4. The reality is you need great rushers to do that. Typically all of them. Even an average rushing threat pretty much wipes out that strategy anyway.

  48. McClellin will be asked to assume the role of Mayo leaving. 53 solo tackles vs 35. Not exactly a huge mountain to climb.

    Re: Bostic. Special teamer Bostic? Seriously, we want to point out the merits of a special teamer?

  49. Adalius Thomas 2.0 ( but without the prior success on his resume’)

    He will have 34 tackles like Adalious did his last year.

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