Patriots Star Addition Details Hectic Signing Process

The New England Patriots made no shortage of splashes during their first week of free agency, but through those moves were some frantic back-and-forth negotiations to come with it.

The Patriots' biggest move, signing Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams, was far from buttoned up, as New England had to sort out their negotiations right alongside the Carolina Panthers, another team highly interested in the 26-year-old's services.

In the end, it was the Patriots that were the lucky team to land Williams, but it was a signing that came down to the wire to develop.

Williams himself dived into how his deal with the Patriots came to fruition in an interview with The Insiders of NFL Network, ultimately noting that New England was the team that seemed to covet him most.

"My agent was on the phone, and I was kind of in the room," Williams said. "They were on the phone talking to teams, and teams were coming in with new deals. There was a lot going on, and it happened really fast. They talked about Carolina then and I was like, 'alright, it sounds like the best offer we are going to get, so, we were going to go there.' Then, a split second later, New England hopped on and was like, 'Nah, this is what we got for you.' Carolina felt like they went too high on their number, so, they stayed at where they were at. New England came in, and it was [over] after that. They wanted me the most and made me a priority. So, I made them a priority."

While the Panthers, another team desperate for help on their interior, were aggressive in their own pursuit and willing to pay a premium, the Patriots edged out that competition by utilizing their league-most $120 million in cap space to their advantage.

The Patriots made it clear in their negotiations that they were willing to spare no expense in adding Williams onto their defensive front, and by dishing out a four-year, $104 million contract his way, that was a clear way of showing that urgent desire to bring him into the fold.

Williams is a significant addition to that front as well. He was a catalyst in the Eagles' defensive front during their Super Bowl-winning campaign, and can bring that skillset and positive culture over to New England –– hopefully proving the Patriots brass right in investing top dollar into him this offseason.

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