Get ready to hear this a lot more between now and the start of NFL free agency: New England Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler would be an “ideal” fit with the Detroit Lions.

That’s what NFL.com’s Gregg Rosenthal thinks, and he’s far from alone.

“New Lions coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn have seen the Malcolm Butler beyond the recent Super Bowl headlines,” Rosenthal wrote, “and they know he can ball. It’s rare for a young cornerback who has ranked among the 10 best in the league for multiple seasons to hit free agency in his prime. It’s even rarer for that to happen when recent events have conspired to make him a buy-low candidate.”

This is all absolutely true. But just because Patricia and Quinn have behind-the-scenes knowledge of what happened with Butler at the Super Bowl, firsthand experience with his character and extensive exposure to his on-field ability, that doesn’t mean the Super Bowl thing goes away.

In fact, depending on what actually happened, the connection might be what kills any Butler-to-Detroit move. As Lions Wire’s Erik Schlitt wrote in his breakdown of the free-agent options at the position, whether Butler’s apparent benching was Patricia’s decision could decide everything.

While there’s no doubt Detroit has a need to improve the No. 2 spot, they’ve also invested a ton of money and picks into a unit that’s already one of the best, if not the best on the team. Paying Butler a big-money deal to marginally improve the starting cornerback trio doesn’t make as much sense as bringing in a veteran defensive tackle or left guard.

We’ll see, of course, whether Quinn and Patricia’s relationship with Butler is a positive or negative for his coming here. But either way, adding Butler shouldn’t be a top priority for a team with much bigger holes elsewhere.