Boutte available for trade?

[Wozzy]

The "seeking alpha" approach: any move might be a home run and known quantities with role-player ceilings are not welcome.

The 2026 Patriots are doing the same thing at every position group. Continue to add layers of talent and improve the entire room.

One question, just to calibrate for/admit the risk profile you're embracing:

If the UDFAs are really talented,, why were they UD?

Talented players come from small schools, division 2, from losing or middling programs. They don’t just come from Alabama.

 

[Bill Lee]

We finally draft a good WR that produces and we trade him?

To each their own, but to me the fact that we drafted him doesn't move the needle at all.

The team should do what's best for the starting lineup, not for the front office's reputation.

Boutte turns his story around, becomes increasingly productive every year, has great chemistry with your star (and still developing) QB...and you guys love to want to trade him. *sigh*

I don't think love enters into it.

It's more of a numbers game.

Personally I hope he ends up finding a way to play a role on our team this season, but can see why it might not work out.

The concept of him being traded for a late draft pick has been out there for a while now with no takers as far as we can tell.

That should tell the Boutte camp that his value isn't great around the league.

His best chance to be in the NFL this upcoming season might be right here, like it or not.

 

[rkarp1]

Comparing Boutte to Pickens? Really?!?

Diggs had basically the same catch success rate with more than twice the receptions and almost twice the yards. In fact, the Pats have three receivers in the top 10 in completion rate last year (Boutte, Diggs, and Hollins). The completion rate has a lot to do with Maye and the offense.

I like Boutte, but I think people overrate him. He can look like a stud one minute and then disappear for two to three games.

The problem is unless you move Doubs to the slot, you have no need for Boutte. Doubs is better than him and would start at the Z with Hollins as the back up. Brown is the starter in the X with Williams as his back up. Where does Boutte fit in? He doesn't want to be a back up.

which game, pre injury did he disappear?

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BoutKa00/gamelog/2025/

 

[upstater1]

Comparing Boutte to Pickens? Really?!?

Diggs had basically the same catch success rate with more than twice the receptions and almost twice the yards. In fact, the Pats have three receivers in the top 10 in completion rate last year (Boutte, Diggs, and Hollins). The completion rate has a lot to do with Maye and the offense.

I like Boutte, but I think people overrate him. He can look like a stud one minute and then disappear for two to three games.

The problem is unless you move Doubs to the slot, you have no need for Boutte. Doubs is better than him and would start at the Z with Hollins as the back up. Brown is the starter in the X with Williams as his back up. Where does Boutte fit in? He doesn't want to be a back up.

I don't know why you'd respond like that.

I wrote that only Pickens has a similar success rate with high YPC. I provided the link that showed it.

I didn't say Boutte is Pickens.

Doubs better be better than Boutte or Eliot Wolf should be out of a job if he isn't.

As for Diggs, his YPC is 12!

That's a far cry from 16.7

 

[VrabelMayeWin]

I would really like to get something in the 2028 draft, maybe a round higher if that rule applies to us too. We have extra late 2027 picks already, getting some quantity in 2028 to make up for the presumed loss of the #1 would be nice. Maybe a 2028 #5 for Boutte and an2028 #6 for Pop. Make up for lack of quality with some quantity in 2028.

 

[Rob0729]

which game, pre injury did he disappear?

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BoutKa00/gamelog/2025/

Week 2-4 he had 4 catches for 62 yards and a TD combined for three games. That is disappearing for your X WR.

 

[Real fan 02]

Boutte was considered a 1st rd pick B4 he blew out his ankle, and then had issues with the coaches..
Talent doesn't lie.
I haven't heard 1 word about him since he was drafted.
I saw him take a ball over the middle and truck to the house..
WHO have you seen do that over the years?
Who have you seen catch almost an impossible ball over his shoulder for a huge TD?
Kid is good, giving him up for a Malcontent with a bum knee at stupid $ is STUPID IMO.
Fkn Fantasy Players are pathetic. Bah

All this is true and I agree.. now even with Boutte ,Diggs the team still felt they needed more.. tells you just how pathetic the position had become...

 

[rkarp1]

Week 2-4 he had 4 catches for 62 yards and a TD combined for three games. That is disappearing for your X WR.

he had 7 targets in 3 games
one of those games he had 1 target
why quote usage stats when he wasn't used?
there are other more accurate stats available to amplify the season Boutte had

 

[40yrpatsfan]

The outstretched TD catch Boutte made in the Houston playoff game is typical of what he can do - we've seen him make similar plays many times. And that's against CB1's - the Houston play was against a top 3 or 4 CB. If he plays this year against CB2's & 3's, and with the offense improving generally, I think he'd be more like 800 yards. He's got talent and 2 years' experience with Maye. I don't think he has any leverage to be holding out. Diggs won't be back, and probably AJ will be here (in addition to Doubs). I'd like to see him here this year. AJ-Doubs-Williams-Boutte, with Hollins-Pop-Chism-Dixon battling for a spot.

 

[Raccoonsuit]

out of all our home grown receivers he should be part of the plans.

its a tragedy to send guys who have demonstrated growth and maturity in their game packing... if he were a scrubini, you let him walk... but he's not... he's a damn good player. better than any receiver we currently have on the roster - including Romeo Doubs...

this stuff pisses me off... wasting talent on the promise of a potential upgrade we do not know the cost of...

would much rather spend the money on Gonzo than Brown... don't know why, but i just don't care much for him as a player... maybe its been the two years of carping in Philly, but eh, **** that guy at this point... ymmv

I became a bigger fan of Boutte when he wrote that article detailing his gambling addiction/loneliness while at LSU. Getting that NIL money all at once was difficult.

Besides Malcolm Mitchell Boutte's my favorite WR the pats have drafted. Malcolm had his literacy program to help children. I like Edelman but hes in the next tier down as far as my WR love.

 

[Real fan 02]

Comparing Boutte to Pickens? Really?!?

Diggs had basically the same catch success rate with more than twice the receptions and almost twice the yards. In fact, the Pats have three receivers in the top 10 in completion rate last year (Boutte, Diggs, and Hollins). The completion rate has a lot to do with Maye and the offense.

I like Boutte, but I think people overrate him. He can look like a stud one minute and then disappear for two to three games.

The problem is unless you move Doubs to the slot, you have no need for Boutte. Doubs is better than him and would start at the Z with Hollins as the back up. Brown is the starter in the X with Williams as his back up. Where does Boutte fit in? He doesn't want to be a back up.

Agree. & Gonna continue to say this... even with Boutte , Diggs on the roster heading into the off season the team still wanted to upgrade the position..

 

[Rob0729]

I don't know why you'd respond like that.

I wrote that only Pickens has a similar success rate with high YPC. I provided the link that showed it.

I didn't say Boutte is Pickens.

Doubs better be better than Boutte or Eliot Wolf should be out of a job if he isn't.

As for Diggs, his YPC is 12!

That's a far cry from 16.7

Boutte had 33 receptions vs. Diggs' 85. Boutte was used as the X down the field WR. Diggs was used quite a bit in the slot as a short yardage WR. That would explain the disparity in yards.

The thing is that Boutte will be moved to the Z this year with Brown coming in. Odds are if he stays, he won't be the deep threat WR that he was used at last year. Which means his average yards per catch will most likely come down.

But saying Pickens has a similar catch rate isn't relevant because Pickens did it on three times as many catches as Boutte (93 receptions). It is a far more impressive feat for Pickens than Boutte.

 

[Real fan 02]

The outstretched TD catch Boutte made in the Houston playoff game is typical of what he can do - we've seen him make similar plays many times. And that's against CB1's - the Houston play was against a top 3 or 4 CB. If he plays this year against CB2's & 3's, and with the offense improving generally, I think he'd be more like 800 yards. He's got talent and 2 years' experience with Maye. I don't think he has any leverage to be holding out. Diggs won't be back, and probably AJ will be here (in addition to Doubs). I'd like to see him here this year. AJ-Doubs-Williams-Boutte, with Hollins-Pop-Chism-Dixon battling for a spot.

This is exactly why his best opportunity is here.. getting to the next FA cycle.. if he forces his way out he will be traded to a team rebuilding with no QB.. I'm sure he wouldn't want to go to the Cardinals and have to play with Brissett again..

 

[Rob0729]

he had 7 targets in 3 games
one of those games he had 1 target
why quote usage stats when he wasn't used?
there are other more accurate stats available to amplify the season Boutte had

A lot of times when you aren't targeted in game is because you aren't open. Probably most of the time. The fact he was only targeted 7 times in those three games are most likely a negative for Boutte, not an excuse for his lack of production.

We praise Christian Gonzalez because he takes away the #1 WR so efficiently that the opposing QB doesn't even target that WR. The reverse goes for why Maye isn't targeting one of his starting WRs.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

The 2026 Patriots are doing the same thing at every position group. Continue to add layers of talent and improve the entire room.

Talented players come from small schools, division 2, from losing or middling programs. They don’t just come from Alabama.

Somewhere in between.

You don't keep every present player. You don't fire them all. You don't only get them from Alabama. But Ala. is way more likely than Lenoir Rhine. We just like the story about the latter because it's an unlikely provenance.

One place where I'll meet you in the middle is that whenever you get a new staff in, the old staff's decisions are systematically discounted; translation, a pre-Vrabel hire s automatically a little sus, a Vrabel-era hire is "developmental."

I understand that the price for Brown, according to the Internet, is a first, plus some other stuff. They better be real sure about Brown. I honestly like adding that piece, but would love to see Philly standing there with their eagle pecker in their hands, you know, the beak... trying to figure out what to do with all that disgruntled receiver. Nobody else wants to pull that trigger.

With Doubs, without Diggs, we're not improved. But what are we with both, while Kyle Williams works into the outside rotation? Asking for a friend.

We want to get better everywhere. The question is, is there a cost ceiling on this "getting better"?

 

[Bill Lee]

This is exactly why his best opportunity is here.. getting to the next FA cycle.. if he forces his way out he will be traded to a team rebuilding with no QB.. I'm sure he wouldn't want to go to the Cardinals and have to play with Brissett again..

And yet he's staying away from (voluntary) OTAs, working out on his own, ....

KInda feels like a worse-case scenario is playing out. We float trade rumors asking for a late draft pick, no one bites, he stays away from the team, we say it's an open competition, he shows up when he has to, we never do get anyone willing to give us that late draft pick, he loses the numbers game and finds himself on the market at the worst possible time, cut-down day. He hits FA with not a lot of data supporting his desire to get paid. He signs with the Cardinals, his development stalls.

 

[raduray]

One question, just to calibrate for/admit the risk profile you're embracing:

If the UDFAs are really talented,, why were they UD?

Diamonds in the rough. There's a long history of undrafted players turning out to be stars. And as we well know here in New England, player evaluators are not infallible.

Top 30 undrafted players in NFL history

Recently, NFL Media experts made their picks for the best undrafted free agent currently in the NFL. Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo was my selection. That discussion had me wondering about Romo's place all-time among undrafted players. Romo is amo

www.nfl.com

 

[Real fan 02]

And yet he's staying away from (voluntary) OTAs, working out on his own, ....

KInda feels like a worse-case scenario is playing out. We float trade rumors asking for a late draft pick, no one bites, he stays away from the team, we say it's an open competition, he shows up when he has to, we never do get anyone willing to give us that late draft pick, he loses the numbers game and finds himself on the market at the worst possible time, cut-down day. He hits FA with not a lot of data supporting his desire to get paid. He signs with the Cardinals, his development stalls.

Bill spot on... I'm certain he's spoken with Vrabel and Vrabel's aware. Vrabel likely wants Boutte to get paid. But if he's making the choice to go this route then the exact scenario you mentioned will come to fruition.. I'll keep posting this until people catch on.. that even with Boutte and Diggs here the team was looking to upgrade at WR..

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Diamonds in the rough. There's a long history of undrafted players turning out to be stars. And as we well know here in New England, player evaluators are not infallible.

Top 30 undrafted players in NFL history

Recently, NFL Media experts made their picks for the best undrafted free agent currently in the NFL. Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo was my selection. That discussion had me wondering about Romo's place all-time among undrafted players. Romo is amo

www.nfl.com

This is undoubtedly the case. Can't stop panning for gold. Lottery tickets, not diamonds in the rough.

Do you have the list of UDFAs that did not pan out?

It's not like it can't happen, it's a matter of placing some value on what you do have. And it's not like I'm saying, oh shoot, all these guys should be safe. It's more like, how broke do we really think the WR room is, to fix it by buying lottery tickets?

 

[raduray]

A lot of times when you aren't targeted in game is because you aren't open. Probably most of the time. The fact he was only targeted 7 times in those three games are most likely a negative for Boutte, not an excuse for his lack of production.

We praise Christian Gonzalez because he takes away the #1 WR so efficiently that the opposing QB doesn't even target that WR. The reverse goes for why Maye isn't targeting one of his starting WRs.

So is the evaluation that he can't get open? My recollection is that he made some amazing catches in tight coverage, but really wasn't that open. Great hands and kudos to Maye for placing the ball into tight spots.