The New England Patriots have turned their attention to Darrelle Revis now that Aqib Talib has signed with the Denver Broncos.
The Patriots have called the Tampa Bay Buccaneers regarding a trade for Revis, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reported Wednesday.
Revis won’t take a pay cut to facilitate a trade, however, despite reportedly expressing interest in playing for the Patriots. Revis is due $16 million annually over the next five years. The Patriots have less than $15 million in salary-cap room.
The Patriots can release players and restructure contracts to make a trade work, and they can lower Revis’ 2014 cap hit by converting non-guaranteed money into bonuses. That would raise his salary from 2015 to 2018, however.
The Bucs are expected to cut Revis if they can’t find a trade partner by 4 p.m. Wednesday. The Patriots would have to compete with teams with much more cap space on the open market.
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