2022 Free Agent Receivers - Will the Patriots Target One?

[Love The Drake]

5 catches on 8 targets for 26 yards.
How is that good?

it was more about his footwork and release at the line of scrimmage.
He looked like he was getting his explosion back.

 

[Ring 6]

it was more about his footwork and release at the line of scrimmage.
He looked like he was getting his explosion back.

He hasn’t been good for 3 years.

 

[slifersd]

Scratch Mike Williams off the list. Saints added void years. Don't blame them - with Brady out, if they get a competent QB, they can take that division. They're still way over the cap, but they're clearly willing to mortgage the future a lot to take the run.

Michael Thomas you meant?

 

[50-yard-line]

Michael Thomas you meant?

Oops, yeah, thx...

 

[mgteich]

As always, it is a matter of cost.

Would the WR corps be better with Shuster instead of Harry? Is this really a question?

 

[50-yard-line]

As always, it is a matter of cost.

Would the WR corps be better with Shuster instead of Harry? Is this really a question?

Would it be better with Schuster $$$$ over Humphries or Conley $$?

Do they keep Meyers in the slot or move him around and put Humphries there?

 

[AQPE]

And that was after the Pats lost, so Bill really made an effort to seek him out... As Arte Johnson would say, verrry interesting...

Great reference!

 

[Ian]

Is Smith-Schuster really a top WR? He had one excellent year ( plus a good rookie year) but it seems that was as a piece with Brown taking most of the attention and since then he has not done much.
How much would you pay to get a repeat of his last 3 seasons, and is it reasonable to expect better than that?

I wouldn't put him as a top receiver, but I feel like he's an upgrade from Harry (they would have to move on from him) and that's where I feel like he would help them if the $$ was right. I absolutely wouldn't overpay, but if he wants to play here with Belichick on a 1-year deal (ideally longer, but if not...) to reset his market, I think it would be a good signing. You put him out there with a pretty good group that just needs someone who is a threat to get open and catch the ball to spread the defense and I feel like they'll definitely be better.

But again, that's with the disclaimer that Harry would have to go for it to make sense. JJ would compliment this group and be a playmaker among them and the idea of Bourne, Agholor, or Meyers getting more 1-on-1 looks I think would definitely make a big difference since Harry was never a threat or a guy anyone worried about.

 

[AQPE]

Also an upgrade over Harry; it gets open more and is just as mobile:

 

[DaBruinz]

With the Pats making the splash they did last year at TE and the understanding that Belichick prefers the 12 formation over others, why do people think that getting ANOTHER receiver should be in the cards?

Especially when you consider the following:
- Most agree that they didn't use Bourne enough and that he should see more snaps
- Most agree that the Patriots need to find more ways to use Smith effectively, which McDaniels didn't seem to do.

To increase the snaps of those two, the Pats also need to increase the snaps of Henry. And, for reference, Bourne participated in 573 (52%) offensive snaps, Smith saw 526 (51%) offensive snaps, and Henry 750 (68%) offensive snaps. I think increasing it so they're each in at least 75% of the offensive snaps will see this offense look trememdous.

If you increase the snaps of those three, 2-3 players are going to have to lose snaps. That means players like Agholor, Harry (which most people would be happy with) and Meyers.

Despite leading the Patriots in targets, I don't believe that Meyers made that next jump as a receiver that was expected of him. His Yards/Reception and Yards/Game were both down from the previous year. His YAC was also down from each of the previous 2 years. His 1st down % dropped from 62.7% to 50.6%.

Meyers isn't Troy Brown. He's not Welker. He's not Edelman. I think he's an adequate but unspectacular receiver who can be upgraded upon. I think that Meyers would be a great trade piece to get a 3rd round pick this year to help the defense. And I would approach teams like the Panthers, Giants, Falcons, Jaguars, Packers, and Commanders about what they'd offer for Meyers.

And yes, I'm still advocating for the Pats to trade Agholor and/or Harry to the Raiders for a pick or picks.

To me, this sends the signal that I want Bourne, Henry, and Smith to be my top 3 offensive weapons in the passing game. That I'm going to build around that. Then I add complementary pieces like an new slot receiver in the draft (Burks/Phillips). I add another TE if I feel that Asiasi and Keefe aren't going to be develop, and I add someone else to work on the outside. I'm only carrying 4 WRs, but carrying 3-4TEs to focus on the change in offensive philosophy.

That I'm going to make it hard for opponents to match up and to figure out when we're running the ball vs going with a pass from the primary set while still giving plenty of flexibility to run multiple WR sets or over-loading the line for the run game..

 

[Ring 6]

I wouldn't put him as a top receiver, but I feel like he's an upgrade from Harry (they would have to move on from him) and that's where I feel like he would help them if the $$ was right. I absolutely wouldn't overpay, but if he wants to play here with Belichick on a 1-year deal (ideally longer, but if not...) to reset his market, I think it would be a good signing. You put him out there with a pretty good group that just needs someone who is a threat to get open and catch the ball to spread the defense and I feel like they'll definitely be better.

But again, that's with the disclaimer that Harry would have to go for it to make sense. JJ would compliment this group and be a playmaker among them and the idea of Bourne, Agholor, or Meyers getting more 1-on-1 looks I think would definitely make a big difference since Harry was never a threat or a guy anyone worried about.

Oh sure at a cheap price but I think he will get paid big $$.

 

[Ian]

Oh sure at a cheap price but I think he will get paid big $$.

Should be interesting. He's coming off an injury so who knows, but I think a couple of others have pointed out that he'll probably get priced out and I've already seen that he'll likely be targeted by a few teams, including potentially Kansas City.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

I would take juju at that $6.25m being rumored a couple weeks back (not sure where that # came from or if its even close but i think thats a good deal for him). Hes a solid #2 and he does it all too - see the block / hit on burfict a few years back. Im not his biggest fan but id take that guy on my team at the right price. Going towards 10m and up though, no thanks.

 

[goheels22002]

With the Pats making the splash they did last year at TE and the understanding that Belichick prefers the 12 formation over others, why do people think that getting ANOTHER receiver should be in the cards?

Especially when you consider the following:
- Most agree that they didn't use Bourne enough and that he should see more snaps
- Most agree that the Patriots need to find more ways to use Smith effectively, which McDaniels didn't seem to do.

To increase the snaps of those two, the Pats also need to increase the snaps of Henry. And, for reference, Bourne participated in 573 (52%) offensive snaps, Smith saw 526 (51%) offensive snaps, and Henry 750 (68%) offensive snaps. I think increasing it so they're each in at least 75% of the offensive snaps will see this offense look trememdous.

If you increase the snaps of those three, 2-3 players are going to have to lose snaps. That means players like Agholor, Harry (which most people would be happy with) and Meyers.

Despite leading the Patriots in targets, I don't believe that Meyers made that next jump as a receiver that was expected of him. His Yards/Reception and Yards/Game were both down from the previous year. His YAC was also down from each of the previous 2 years. His 1st down % dropped from 62.7% to 50.6%.

Meyers isn't Troy Brown. He's not Welker. He's not Edelman. I think he's an adequate but unspectacular receiver who can be upgraded upon. I think that Meyers would be a great trade piece to get a 3rd round pick this year to help the defense. And I would approach teams like the Panthers, Giants, Falcons, Jaguars, Packers, and Commanders about what they'd offer for Meyers.

And yes, I'm still advocating for the Pats to trade Agholor and/or Harry to the Raiders for a pick or picks.

To me, this sends the signal that I want Bourne, Henry, and Smith to be my top 3 offensive weapons in the passing game. That I'm going to build around that. Then I add complementary pieces like an new slot receiver in the draft (Burks/Phillips). I add another TE if I feel that Asiasi and Keefe aren't going to be develop, and I add someone else to work on the outside. I'm only carrying 4 WRs, but carrying 3-4TEs to focus on the change in offensive philosophy.

That I'm going to make it hard for opponents to match up and to figure out when we're running the ball vs going with a pass from the primary set while still giving plenty of flexibility to run multiple WR sets or over-loading the line for the run game..

Interesting take on the % of snaps by the top four receivers. It always struck me that Bourne and Henry were not on the field with Meyers for a vast majority of snaps. Your percentages helped define what I thought I was seeing but never dug into the numbers. I believe those three are totally legit NFL starters.

Jonnu Smith is a good TE who needs a clear-cut role. His speed is well above average. I'd send him up the seams constantly to attract LB/safety attention whether he gets lots of targets or not.

Harry should just be let go.

Agholor is the troubling WR due to his $10M cap hit and lack of productivity. I didn't see him get separation nor making himself helpful to Mac Jones when he faced pressure. Meyers was better at both and was a first option safety valve. If Josh and the rest of the defectors would provide a late round pick for Agholor to join them in Las Vegas, I'd be all over that. Open up cap space to dig in on Smith-Schuster or my binkie Chris Conley who would be a fine addition to the other Georgia alumni on the roster.

As I've said elsewhere, I would not waste a draft pick this year on a WR (unless it came in a trade for Agholor.) Belichick has to get near-term value with the six picks they've got and they should be focused on defense at all three levels. Forcing a punt somehow became a goal for the Patriots. How grim is that?

The Patriots should take the best offensive lineman on the board with their #1 selection. Protecting Mac Jones is paramount and there are lots of injury issues with the current group. If they could land a plug-and-play tackle in the first round, that would be ideal.

 

[Sicilian]

Are we still trusting BB on drafting a WR? Let alone in the first round... no thanks.

I understand the trepidation, but I'm not sure the answer is to never draft a WR high again. That seems like an overreaction that could cause them to miss out on a good player. They're not going to draft scared, regardless.

But even so, their track record of drafting WR in the first round is one player long. If you want to go back really far and include 2nd round players like Chad Jackson, Dobson, Bethel, etc, that's fine, but Jackson and Bethel are so long ago that it's almost a different lifetime/NFL ago. Dobson is a case, but again, you're talking about a player being picked in the 50's (IIRC), not the 20's.

If they believe in a guy enough to take him at 21, I'm fine with that. I know Harry left a bad taste in people's mouths, but I'm not sure it warrants the label of automatic distrust. One player at 32 overall doesn't equal a systemic problem with drafting first round WR.

 

[Wozzy]

Coach up Tre Nixon.

What's the point of drafting a fast talented small school developmental WR if you have no plan for him?

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

I understand the trepidation, but I'm not sure the answer is to never draft a WR high again. That seems like an overreaction that could cause them to miss out on a good player. They're not going to draft scared, regardless.

But even so, their track record of drafting WR in the first round is one player long. If you want to go back really far and include 2nd round players like Chad Jackson, Dobson, Bethel, etc, that's fine, but Jackson and Bethel are so long ago that it's almost a different lifetime/NFL ago. Dobson is a case, but again, you're talking about a player being picked in the 50's (IIRC), not the 20's.

If they believe in a guy enough to take him at 21, I'm fine with that. I know Harry left a bad taste in people's mouths, but I'm not sure it warrants the label of automatic distrust. One player at 32 overall doesn't equal a systemic problem with drafting first round WR.

I feel the same in general. Probably not in a year like this though where we have glaring needs defensively and we are relatively okay at wr/te. In a year like 2019 ,2013, or 2006 it was a pretty easy choice to go wr high and im glad they did, just made poor selections. And being at 21 thats an uncommon area to land a real sure fire prospect like chase.

 

[1960Pats]

Can’t believe after the Patriots tried to pry Sanders away from Pittsburgh as a restricted free agent years ago (effectively landing him a raise), he seemingly shunned them and never ended up here. I don’t know if he has enough left to make a go of it here to be what they need him to be, but that whole situation remains one of the more interesting ones we’ve seen over the years. I forget what year that happened but I feel like he could have been a good player in his prime with Brady.

Was Sanders the guy who said at the time that we should have paid him rather than Amendola? I think it was.

 

[1960Pats]

It's really a shame he didn't end up here. First, Pittsburgh played games and matched the offer in 2013 at the 11th hour just to screw the Pats. In 2014, Sanders told Bill he'd sign with NE if he got the deal Amendola got. Sanders felt he was overpaid and wanted that deal. Bill didn't give it to him. Like Welker, Sanders played games and signed a 3 year $15M dollar offer from the Broncos which was probably similar to what Bill offered.

What's worse is that later Steve Smith went the Derrick Mason moron route and signed with Baltimore stating "weather concerns" and they gave him an offer "he couldn't refuse". NE would've been 2nd on his visit list.

Imagine both of those guys came to NE? They win at least 4 Super Bowls between 2014-2019.

Yup, that was Sanders. I lost a lot of respect for him after he brought Amendola's name into his contract discussion. If he wanted to talk himself up then fine, but bringing in the name of another player didn't sit right with me.

 

[1960Pats]

It's an interesting argument because we've won Super Bowls before without that "explosive, true number 1 receiver"...grant it, we've had Gronk, Brady and a top tier defense in years when we've won, but it's a very interesting debate. You have to figure in order to get back to the SB, we're going to have to be able to beat one of Buffalo, KC and Cincy, who all have explosive weapons. Do we try and match them on offense, or try and build a defense to stop these explosive offenses.

Both please.