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With Kansas City Chiefs running back Priest Holmes announcing his retirement today, I have a little story about how he almost became a Patriot rather than a Chief when the Baltimore Ravens let him go after the 2000 season.
The Patriots front office had decided that Holmes would be their No. 1 choice at running back with Antowain Smith, formerly of the Bills, No. 2 on the list.
There was one problem. Holmes was going to cost money whereas Smith would be brought in without a signing bonus.
According to someone who is no longer with the franchise, Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli were pushing for Holmes, but with some guaranteed bonus money (I believe it was only $2 million, but it might have been more), after some discussions with then-CFO Andy Wasynczuk, no longer with the team, the Holmes deal was nixed.
Imagine if Holmes, who was an MVP candidate for three seasons (2002-04), had been here for the last five or six seasons instead of Smith, who ended up being a decent back, especially in 2001?
Remember, after the 2000 season, there were questions about Pioli’s and Belichick’s ability to find talent. Do you remember the name Tom Donahoe being tossed around as a possible GM here after the 2000 season?
Anyway, the point is Belichick and Pioli were right on about Holmes, who was a backup with the Ravens when they decided to let him go.
Interesting.