The Facts: Following up on a previous item. ... Welker recently signed his one-year franchise tender. That would seem to indicate that the relationship between the New England Patriots and Welker is improving, but that's not the case. Welker is further away than ever from a long-term deal. "There have been talks, but nothing that's brightened anything at all," Welker told the Boston Herald. "It's actually gotten worse."

Diehards Line:Welker revealed that the Patriots have lowered the two-year, fully guaranteed $16 million offer that they initially proposed. Welker is guaranteed $9.5 million after signing his tender and he didn't have much leverage. As NFL.com's Gregg Rosenthal kindly suggested, The Patriots don't always react well to players holding out. Welker agrees with that notion. "I think those techniques work better with other teams. I think the best thing you can do, as far as the Patriots, is be there and let them make the decision if they want to do something long term or not. Obviously, I want to be there," he said. So, he'll be there next week when the Patriots OTAs start. "At the end of the day, if it's one year, $9.5 million, it's one year, $9.5 million. I'm good with that," Welker said.