By Nick Cafardo, Globe Staff, 2/4/2002

EW ORLEANS - The football is over, and now the Patriots must face the usual tough decisions that Super Bowl teams face in the offseason.

Of course, they all involve money. Bob Kraft's money.

No. 1 on the list is offensive coordinator Charlie Weis. When offensive coordinators reach the national spotlight, one of two things happens: They get a head job or they demand more money.

In Weis's case, his contract has come up at the right time in his career. He will have the option of joining friend John Fox in Carolina or re-signing with the Patriots.

It is unclear whether Weis is completely happy in New England, and whether a significant raise would keep him here. Weis, who is currently in the $350,000-$450,000 range, likely would want something in line with the top coordinators, which is the $750,000 range.

Weis's departure certainly would leave the Patriots in a tough spot. They would have to get a coordinator and a quarterbacks coach (the late Dick Rehbein has not been replaced yet).

In addition to Weis, strength and conditioning coach Mike Woicik's contract is also up.

The Patriots must submit their unprotected list for the expansion list by tomorrow at noon. Veterans Willie McGinest, Ted Johnson , and Charles Johnson likely will be three of the five names on the list. Andy Katzenmoyer, who spent the season on injured reserve, could be another candidate.

The Patriots would like to see the Houston Texans take at least one of their higher-priced players.

McGinest, for instance, had two years added to his contract in a renegotiation last offseason; it now extends to 2004. After the renegotiation, the Patriots basically were dealing with a four-year, $10 million contract that reduced this season's cap number from $7.2 million to $4.44 million. The number will rise to $8.367 million in 2002, drop to $5.650 million in 2003, and go back up to $10 million in 2004.

Johnson's contract was redone just last spring, but it still carries a large cap number of more than $3 million.

Charles Johnson has another year remaining on his deal, for the veteran minimum. He has not been an integral part of the team, but he certainly was insurance at the receiver spot during Terry Glenn's absence.

With winning comes the notion that players want to be paid more. Agents try to seize such an opportunity to forgo the incentive-laden contracts for deals with larger signing bonuses.

The major players whose contracts are up include kicker Adam Vinatieri, punter Ken Walter, linebacker Roman Phifer, and running back Antowain Smith. Less pressing are defensive tackle Brandon Mitchell, tight end Rod Rutledge, and cornerback Terrell Buckley.

If the Patriots can get Smith at a reasonable rate - he earned $1.1 million this season after reaching incentives - he will be retained. Smith will be 30 next season, and it doesn't appear he would get a ''market'' contract for a starting running back.

Patriots cornerback Terrance Shaw left in the first quarter when he injured his right wrist and did not return. Shaw was used in dime coverages and to spy on Rams running back Marshall Faulk... The Patriots also lost left tackle Matt Light late in the second quarter. He was replaced by veteran Grant Williams, who made a nice block to spring a 7-yard run by Kevin Faulk on a late first-half scoring drive ... There were no surprises on the Patriots' inactive list: wide receiver Jimmy Farris, cornerback Leonard Myers, tight end Arther Love, offensive linemen Stephen Neal and Kenyatta Jones, defensive tackles David Nugent and Chris Sullivan, and quarterback Damon Huard. Huard was designated the emergency quarterback, meaning he was not eligible to enter the game until the start of the fourth quarter, or unless Tom Brady and Drew Bledsoe both went out with injuries.

This story ran on page C9 of the Boston Globe on 2/4/2002.
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