during the AFC Divisional Playoff Game at Gillette Stadium on January 14, 2017 in Foxboro, Massachusetts.

You have most certainly heard the phrase “The Patriot Way” and either rolled your eyes at it, because it genuinely has been far more successful than your favorite team’s way of doing business, or taken some crack shots at the expense of the Patriots in wake of recent “gate” investigations, such as Spygate and Deflategate. Whatever it is, it produces a team that is built and ready to win and win big. It is also a phrase that instills frustration in sports agents looking to get their players the best possible contract.

The Patriots are not a team that is going to skimp on a roster, but it has developed a knack for taking scraps from around the league and continuing to win games and put themselves in position for a Super Bowl run far more often than not. It is why some players are willing to take a smaller contract in order to have a chance to win a championship. That gives the Patriots the advantage at the bargaining table.

“I had never hit the market before, but I knew where I wanted to be,” former Rams defensive end Chris Long said after celebrating the Patriots’ AFC Championship Game victory on Sunday. “If I didn’t have an opportunity to play somewhere I could win, I would have retired. I would have played this year for five dollars—I just wanted to be here.”

Fortunately for Long, the NFL league minimum is a bit higher than $5.00.

They’re a nightmare for agents, because you know that if your player wants to play for the Patriots, they’re going to take the discount,” one anonymous sports agent said for a story published by The MMQB. When faced with negotiating a deal with the Patriots, this agent and others are eventually faced with the one big question from Patriots brass, including head coach Bill Belichick.

“Does your guy want to win a Super Bowl, or doesn’t he?”

That is the Patriots’ equivalent of holding an ace up the sleeve ready to play at any given moment. You can’t say no to that question, right?

The Patriots will pay top dollar for certain players, but they even manage to work out a bit of a deal with them at times. The Patriots managed to rework a contract with Tom Brady, who is the 27th highest-paid player in the NFL. And when the Patriots can manage not to pay one of the NFL’s all-time best top dollar, what chance does a free agent have?

“They use Tom Brady’s deal in every negotiation they do in the sense that Tom has never demanded to be the highest-paid quarterback,” one agent told The MMQB. “So because of that, they never want to make someone the highest-paid at their position.”

So good luck, sports agents. If your guy wants to go to the Patriots and the Patriots want him, brace yourself for accepting a lower commission on your latest deal.

[MMQB]

About Kevin McGuire

Contributor to Athlon Sports and The Comeback. Previously contributed to NBCSports.com. Host of the Locked On Nittany Lions Podcast. FWAA member and Philadelphia-area resident.