How the fck has he been "undervalued" by his team?? The guy is one of the highest paid linemen in the league. What the hell are you talking about?? If you want to lube up a little over the fact that Wilfork is probably done in NE and the Jets are only going to lose by 34 points instead of 37 points to the Pats every time the two teams play... have at it... but at least have some of your points based vaguely in reality.
(and apologies...you're right, it was the achilles... not ACL like I said)
The guy is on the wrong side of 30 and is coming off a serious injury... that... for a 300+lb lineman who clogs the run, is kind of a big deal. Do I want to see Big Vince go?? Fck, of course not. You're right, the guy has been an absolute monster for the Pats, a total class act, and the fans absolutely love the guy. Of course I don't want to see him go. But the question is... "Do you take an $11M cap hit for a 33 year old, 300+ lb lineman coming off a significant achilles injury"? No. You don't. Period.
The Pats want him to stay and restructure his contract to spread the cap hit out a bit. He is refusing. So he's probably gone. The Pats have a well-earned reputation for not letting emotion play into negotiations. It sucks sometimes but that is a big reason why they have been as competitive as they've been for as long as they've been. Dollars are too tight to pay guys because you really like them and they're great soldiers for the team. It just doesn't work that way.