In this installment, I will review the Wide Receivers.\u00a0 I start with the wideouts that are Free Agents.<\/p>\n
Free Agents <\/strong><\/p>\n Jakobi Meyers<\/strong> is the #1 ranked Wide Receiver in all of Free Agency, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF).\u00a0 He is the #7 overall Free Agent available.\u00a0 They are projecting Meyers will get a 4-year contract averaging $16M a year.\u00a0 It\u2019s time for the Patriots to stand up and pay one of their own players they have drafted and developed.\u00a0 Here is what PFF said about Meyers \u201cis predominantly a slot receiver but is certainly not just that, logging a little more than one-third of his snaps out wide. What he lacks in physical tools – his 4.63-second 40-yard dash ranks in the 14th percentile among wide receivers in PFF’s database – he more than makes up for with sharp route running and great hands. Over the past three seasons, his 3.1% drop rate ranks ninth among qualifying wide receivers, and at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, he can use his frame to make contested catches. His 63.2% contested catch rate is a top-five mark among all wide receivers over the same span.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Meyers led the Patriots with 57 catches on 96 targets for 804 yards, 12.0 yards per catch, and 6 TDs.\u00a0 He is more valuable to the Patriots than any other team.\u00a0 Give mac Jones his familiar target back.\u00a0 Meyers missed three games due to injury preventing him from reaching the 1,000-yard plateau.<\/p>\n Nelson Agholor <\/strong>was a bust as a Free Agent signing two years ago.\u00a0 This season he counted $14M against the cap.\u00a0 He had a good season in LA with the Raiders that propelled him to this large contract.\u00a0 The Patriots also had bad memories of Agholor torching them in Super Bowl 52 when he was with the Eagles.\u00a0 He never lived up to that contract.\u00a0 Agholor is an Unrestricted Free Agent (UFA) and as far as I am concerned, good riddance.\u00a0 He was never really a wideout, but a slot receiver. Agholor dropped too many passes for my liking.<\/p>\n Matthew Slater<\/strong> is currently a Free Agent and is mulling retirement.\u00a0 It appears from recent articles that Slater may have an open invitation to join the Patriots coaching staff.\u00a0 Slater was the spiritual leader of the team and may take on that kind of role amongst other things.\u00a0 Many would like him to take over for Special Teams coach Cam Achord.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Players Under Contract<\/strong><\/p>\n Davante Parker<\/strong> played well in his final game of the season against Buffalo with 6 catches in 7 targets.\u00a0 That was the player I was hoping to see.\u00a0 For the season he had 31 catches on 47 targets, 539 yards, 17.4 YPC, and 3 TDs.\u00a0 He missed 4 games due to injury.\u00a0 \u00a0Parker is known for his ability to catch 50\/50 balls.\u00a0 The problem is that everything thrown to him is a 50\/50 ball.\u00a0 For the 3rd<\/sup> consecutive season, Parker was the worst player in the league at getting separation from a DB.\u00a0 He was 4th<\/sup> worse 4 years ago.\u00a0 He is another slot receiver and we just don\u2019t need him.\u00a0 If we re-sign Meyers we already have a big, slow wide receiver.\u00a0 I would cut bait with Parker and sign a better, faster, quicker WR in Free Agency.<\/p>\n Kendrick Bourne <\/strong>His 35 catches were third amongst WRs. \u00a0<\/strong>Bourne was targeted 48 times for 434 yards and a 12.4 YPC, and 1 TD.\u00a0 He played in6 games, tops among the WR group.\u00a0 Bourne was very vocal about the dysfunctional offense and that may have led him to his banishment to Bill Belichick’s doghouse.\u00a0 With a 72.9% reception\/target rate Bourne led the WRs.\u00a0 \u00a0Bourne is another player that just might be a slot receiver.\u00a0 They have no true X receiver.\u00a0 Their Y (slot) receivers are very slow for the position.\u00a0 These players have traditionally been smaller, faster, and quicker.\u00a0 Edelman, Welker, Amendola, and before that Troy Brown were these types of players.\u00a0 All had a 3-cone drill time under 7.\u00a0 I would love to see Bourne have a bigger role under a Bill O\u2019Brien offense.<\/p>\n Tyquan Thornton<\/strong> The 2nd<\/sup> round selection in the 2022 draft was a disappointment to me.\u00a0 There were other players in the draft I liked better such as Skyy Moore of the Chiefs, who will be playing a big role in the Super Bowl on Sunday. \u00a0\u00a0Thornton is rail thin at 6\u20192\u201d and 183 lbs.\u00a0 On his 1st<\/sup> play in the regular season game, he got popped and broke his collarbone.\u00a0 He missed 4 games with the injury.\u00a0 His stat line for the year was 22 receptions on 45 targets for 247 yards, 11.2 YPC, and 2 TDs.\u00a0 His catch rate was an unreliable 48.8%. \u00a0\u00a0He may be able to fly in a straight line (4.28 speed) but he has a limited route tree and really couldn\u2019t get away from press coverage.\u00a0 Thornton only took the top off the defense once during the season.\u00a0 I was very disappointed in his performance and don\u2019t know if he can improve enough to be a serviceable receiver in the NFL.<\/p>\n Kristian Wilkerson<\/strong> At the end of 2021 he had a very good game with 2 TDs.\u00a0 Unfortunately, he got hurt at the end of training camp and was put on IR.\u00a0 He is a Restricted Free Agent that shouldn\u2019t be too hard to sign.\u00a0\u00a0 I liked what I saw in Wilkerson and would like to see him get some meaningful reps to determine if he can contribute to the team.\u00a0\u00a0 He stands 6\u20191\u201d and weighs 200 lbs.\u00a0 He ran a 4.5 40 but had a 6.68 3-cone drill.\u00a0 That would be the quickest 3-cone drill of any Patriot.\u00a0 The 3-cone drill is important in getting separation, which you know is a big problem for Patriots wide receivers.<\/p>\n Ty Montgomery<\/strong> Is under contract after spending most of the year on IR.\u00a0 During Pre-season camp it appeared that Montgomery was going to play a major role with the team.\u00a0 That\u2019s vanished.\u00a0 He will probably be brought to camp but not sure what the competition will be like.\u00a0 Will he be a receiver or a running back?<\/p>\n Tre Nixon<\/strong> has spent two years on the Practice Squad.\u00a0 He was re-signed to a futures contract. \u00a0Ernie Adams was given the opportunity to make the last selection in the 2021 draft as a parting gift upon his retirement.\u00a0 He chose Tre Nixon.\u00a0 Nixon has the size at 6\u2019 190 lbs running a 4.44 and 6.81 3-cone.\u00a0 It is a make-or-break for Nixon.<\/p>\n Lynn Bowden<\/strong> The former Kentucky Wildcat played both QB and WR at Kentucky.\u00a0 He led them to a Bowl game his senior season as a running QB.\u00a0 After the 1st<\/sup> 4 games, Bowden switched to QB.\u00a0 He amassed 1,285 yards rushing, 330 yards passing, and 11 TDs.\u00a0 In his sophomore season at WR, he led Kentucky with 67 receptions for 745 yards receiving and 5 TDs.\u00a0 I would like to see what he could do.\u00a0 Bill O\u2019Brien could use him as a swiss army knife.\u00a0 He is also excellent on kickoff returns.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Unrestricted Free Agents the Patriots might be interested in.<\/strong><\/p>\n DJ Chark,<\/strong> is a 6\u20194\u201d, 205 lbs, wideout with 4.34 speed.\u00a0 He missed 7 games for Detroit this year. His stat line was 30 receptions on 52 targets for 502 Yards and a 16.7 YPC, and 3 TDs.\u00a0 In 2019 he had a big year for the Jacksonville Jaguars with over 1.000 yards receiving.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0This would give them a true X receiver.\u00a0 Chark is just 26 years old.<\/p>\n Deonte Harty (formerly Deonte Harris) <\/strong>Stands at just 5\u20196\u201d 170lbs, runs 4.48 40 6.82 3-cone drill.\u00a0 As a rookie, he was named to the NFC Pro Bowl team as a Punt Returner.\u00a0 Yes, we have Marcus Jones but I see Jones having a much more prominent role on offense and defense for the Patriots next year.\u00a0 Harris played his college ball at Assumption University in Worcester.\u00a0 I saw him play many times and can tell you that he was magic with the ball in his hands.\u00a0 A potential TD every time he touched the ball.\u00a0 Yes, he is diminutive but he would be the perfect slot receiver.\u00a0 \u00a0Harty was arrested on a DWI charge in 2021 and received one-year probation.\u00a0 The NFL suspended him for 3 games.\u00a0 He played in only 9 games.\u00a0 He missed 12 games in on IR.\u00a0 So 2022 was a lost season.\u00a0 In 2021 he had 36 receptions for 570 yards, 15.8 YPC, and 3 TDs. \u00a0In 2022 he played in only 3 games and missed the remainder of the season with a significant turf toe injury. \u00a0He holds most of the Division II Return records.\u00a0 His 14 return TDs (combined) is the all-time leader.\u00a0 His 8 returns for TD in one season is a single-season record.<\/p>\n Paris Campbell is <\/strong>Another small quick receiver. \u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>The former Ohio St \u00a02nd<\/sup> round pick stands 6\u2019 205 runs a 4.38 40.\u00a0 In 2022 he had 63 receptions for 623 yards and 3 TDs.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think the Colts can afford to lose him.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Draft <\/strong><\/p>\n There are several possibilities in the draft.\u00a0 I would expect the team to select at least one WR.\u00a0 That all depends upon how they fair in Free Agency.\u00a0 As of right now, I think they have higher priorities at other positions and I don\u2019t expect a WR taken until the 3rd<\/sup> day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In this installment, I will review the New England Patriots Wide Receivers.\u00a0 I start with the wideouts that are Free Agents.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":37791,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[23219,23225],"class_list":["post-45362","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-patriots-news","tag-2023-patriots-offseason","tag-patriots-receivers"],"yoast_head":"\n