AP

The Patriots wanted receiver Julian Edelman to accept an offer on a three-year contract by the start of free agency. He didn’t.

So the Pats moved on, right?

Um, no. New England is still pursuing Edelman, who has drawn interest from the 49ers and the Browns.

Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports that the Patriots are working to get a deal done with Edelman, a year after he agreed to a one-year, $715,000 split-salary contract that included the Pats later squeezing him into shifting 80 percent of a $50,000 workout bonus into a Week One roster bonus.

Good for Edelman. When quarterback Tom Brady “took less” in 2013 (creating significant cap space in 2013 and 2014 while getting a $30 million signing bonus), the Patriots vowed to spend to the cap.

While they’ve been spending on players like Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner, there’s more cap space available. And they need to spend some of it on the guys who have been part of the success the team has enjoyed during the past few seasons.

Despite not winning a Super Bowl since the 2004 season, the Patriots remain one of the league’s elite teams, clear favorites along with the Broncos to win the AFC title. To stay there, they need to take care of some of the players who helped them get there.