4:49pm: The Patriots have officially signed Fletcher to a one-year deal, the club confirmed today in a press release.
9:48am: It’s a one-year, $2.5MM deal, according to Jeff Howe of The Boston Herald (on Twitter).
9:33am: The Patriots are set to sign cornerback Bradley Fletcher, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Agent Andy Simms confirmed the news to Reiss. Terms of the deal are not yet known but it wouldn’t be surprising for it to be a one-year deal to help restore Fletcher’s value.
Pro Football Focus (subscription required) rated Fletcher as the 92nd best cornerback last season out of 108 qualified players at the position. He was much better in 2013, however, having been ranked 44th out of 110 players at the position. The Pats are hoping that they can get Fletcher to revert to his old form and they weren’t the only team with that idea in mind. The veteran also drew interest from the Vikings before the official start of free agency.
The Patriots hosted Fletcher this week, along with fellow cornerbacks Terence Newman, Tarell Brown, and Robert McClain. After losing Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner this offseason, New England has made it a priority to reload at the cornerback position.