Multiple clubs are attempting to pry running back Dion Lewis away from the Patriots, but a deal is unlikely to occur, according to Michael Lombardi of the Ringer (Twitter link).
Lewis has rebounded from injury-marred 2015 and 2016 campaigns to become New England’s lead back in a running back rotation that also includes Mike Gillislee, Rex Burkhead, and James White. Although he still trails Gillislee in total carries, Lewis has led the Patriots in rushes in each of the past three games (all victories), and has now totaled 329 yards and two touchdowns on the season. Among backs with fewer than 55 carries, Lewis is second in Football Outsiders‘ DYAR, a metric which attempts to quantify a player’s value over replacement.
This isn’t the first time Lewis has been mentioned in trade rumors — New England received inquiries on the veteran back just before the start of the season, but no swap was ever completed. Despite his injury history, Lewis remains a critical part of the Patriots’ No. 2-DVOA-ranked offense. As such, rival teams may have a better chance at trading for Gillislee than Lewis at this point, tweets Ben Volin of the Boston Globe.
Lewis is scheduled to become a free agent at the conclusion of the 2017 season. He’s earning $1.2MM in base salary this year as part of a two-year extension he signed in 2015, and an acquiring club would be responsible for the remainder of that figure. The Patriots wouldn’t incur any dead money on their salary cap by trading Lewis given that he’s in the final season of his contract.