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#PostPulpit Mailbag: Who could the Patriots acquire at the wide receiver position?

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This week’s Patriots mailbag takes a look at the wide receiver position, draft targets, and more.

A report from the Boston Herald Thursday morning proved what everyone already knew when watching the New England Patriots throughout the 2022 season: they were extremely dysfunctional.

From a poor install of a new offense and blocking scheme, to continued on-the-fly adjustments, to leaving players unprepared, to “profanity-laced outbursts” between Mac Jones and Joe Judge, it’s easy to see why New England’s offense regressed significantly after the departure of Josh McDaniels.

But, as the Patriots and new offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien landed in Las Vegas Thursday morning for the Shrine Bowl, they are on to 2023. While they still have some question marks to answer among their coaching staff, New England will now start focusing on how they can improve their system and roster.

Let’s explore how they could do that in this week’s #PostPulpit mailbag;

@patscap Who are the number 1 receivers that the Patriots can trade for? Why does it make sense for the current team to trade the player? What draft package from the Pats will win the bidding war?

One of the first orders of business for the Patriots this offseason is to address the wide receiver room. Nelson Agholor and Jakobi Meyers are set to become unrestricted free agents while Kendrick Bourne and DeVante Parker could be cap casualties entering the final year of their deals. Moves will have to be made.

Much has been made about bringing in a true No. 1 wide receiver, but it’s easier said than done. As for acquiring one of those guys through trade, New England would not only have to surrender valuable draft capital but likely then hand their new shiny toy a large, multi-year contract.

Players like DeAndre Hopkins, Jerry Jeudy, Keenan Allen, and Tee Higgins are the most common names floated out there. More recent possibilities include Mike Evans or Hunter Renfrow.

To me, Tee Higgins is the top name on that list. But, I still have a hard time seeing the Bengals move him this offseason with their Super Bowl window wide open. Even if they did feel like it’s time to move on in order to pay their other stars, the price would be astronomical in terms on money and draft capital.

Mike Evans is another intriguing option, but Tampa Bay will save more money on the cap if they wait until post-June 1 to move him. Might be too late on New England’s timeline.

Hunter Renfrow doesn’t move the needle for me, especially with his extension kicking in next season. I would rather just give that money to Jakobi Meyers. Keenan Allen is in a similar boat as a 30-year old receiver with injury history that’s due big money the next two seasons.

That brings the list to DeAndre Hopkins and Jerry Jeudy. Hopkins would give the Patriots the true No. 1 receiver on the perimeter and likely could be had for just a day two selection. The issues here are his relationship with Bill O’Brien is unknown and would the 30-year old be looking for a pay raise himself?

As for Jeudy, the fit is obvious. Jeudy played at Alabama and while he never was on the field with Mac Jones, the two were roommates and had a strong connection. He could be the perfect player to fit in the slot/Z-role in O’Brien’s offense as a shifty, explosive receiver who excels against man coverage. Denver will have to make a decision about his fifth-year option this offseason, but was reportedly debating trading him at last year’s trade deadline.

Out of all the options, Jeudy seems like the most realistic to me. He’ll need a new deal, but is still only 23 years old and should be a strong fit in the offense. As New England has 11 projected picks in this upcoming draft — including three in the top 100 — they should be able to make that work.


@TeamCrazyMatt Granted that Meyers is the top of the WR market, who else could the Patriots sign at the position to at minimum compete for snaps, at best compete for a consistent role?

@Cheky011 WR in free agency?

Where the Patriots likely won’t find their next great wide receiver is free agency. It is an overall weak free agency class that is led by New England’s own Jakobi Meyers and Kansas City’s Juju Smith-Schuster.

Besides Meyers, there really isn’t a player I see there that would be competing for snaps right away on this roster with DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne, and Tyquan Thornton above them.

What this means for Meyers’ market will be interesting to see. He’s proven to be a reliable wide receiver that can produce, but his lack of physical tools could scare teams away. If he ends up in the $10-12 million annually range, New England would be wise to bring him back.


@PatsSavage What position should be our 1st round priority?

Where the roster stands right now, offensive tackle. They need multiple at the position. Northwestern’s Peter Skoronski, Georgia’s Broderick Jones, and Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr. are the undisputed top three tackles in this class. Them even getting to pick No. 14 could be a stretch, but if they do New England should run to the podium.


@Sebnbell Free agent class is much deeper at OT than WR. Do you think the Patriots go the FA route or through the draft? Who are some interesting targets?

I think they should do both. Sign one and draft one. I’ll say it all offseason long until they do so. San Francisco’s Mike McGlinchey at right tackle to pair with one of the tackles we just mentioned at left would be how I’d attack it.

Atlanta’s Kaleb McGary (RT), Kansas City’s Orlando Brown Jr. (LT), Jacksonville’s Jawaan Taylor (RT) project to be the other top free agent tackles available.


@Carmen62970121 Who’s a good first round target for the pats? Specifically a WR that fits in Bill O’Briens scheme

Perhaps New England does land a veteran OT in free agency, they could then audible off the position early in the draft and add a pass catcher. The problem is draft evaluators don’t seem to think the positional value is there in the first-round.

As the Patriots have never seemed to care about that, USC’s Jordan Addison and Ohio State’s Jaxson Smith-Njigba would like be on New England’s radar. Neither have top-end speed, but both are extremely crafty route runners that can separate with ease. They’d be strong fits in that same slot/Z-receiver role in O’Brien’s system.


@PatsSavage Any chances we can and will get Devon Witherspoon in the 1st round?

Another area New England could pivot to based off how free agency unfolds is cornerback. They need a guy with length along the boundary and that’s what Witherspoon brings to the table at 6-feet, 180 pounds. He was one of the nations best cornerbacks all season allowing just 22 catches on 63 targets. Witherspoon also played at Illinois under former Patriots assistant Bret Bielema, so Belichick will definitely have all the information he needs on him.


@rahul_stuff Top 3 Free Agents we should target

@NEBOS94 Who’s a realistic defensive FA the Pats can sign?

I would put the Patriots top needs at offensive tackle, wide receiver, and cornerback. What follows behind is free safety (especially if Devin McCourty retires) and inside linebacker. In free agency, I’d look to fill one of the offensive tackle spots and some of the defensive holes. We talked about OT above, so let’s focus on the defense here.

As for free safety, it’s harder and harder to draft single-high safeties these days as college programs move their best defenders all around the field. Due to the importance of that position in New England’s defense, it would not surprise me to see them pay top of market value to a player like Jessie Bates II. Bates is one of the best safeties in the league and a deal for him would likely be cheaper than any significant cornerback they hope to add in free agency.


@PatsSTH1969 Sign 24 year old Bills LB Tremaine Edmunds to 5 year heavy cash, cap friendly $80MM contract? Sorry Bob & Jonathan it’s how it’s done in 23.

Mike McGlinchey and Jessie Bates II. That’s two, so who’s the third potential free agent target? Well, it’s Tremaine Edmunds, so thanks for bringing him up.

If New England wants to continue to play more zone defense next season (something they’ve done over the past few seasons), they could use a better athlete at the off-ball linebacker spot. Players like Raekwon McMillan and Mack Wilson were too inconsistent, so enter Edmunds. He’s a great athlete at the position that is still only 24 years old. He’d be a strong pair with Ja’Whaun Bentley, while also taking a star away from your division rival.


@FYN_Zaino Given the current landscape of the team, cap space availability, and our draft picks. Should we franchise Meyers and build the rest through the draft

The projected franchise tag for wide receivers sits at just under $20 million. Don’t see that happening.


@Bobby_Bogart Thoughts on whether David Andrews is returning next season or retiring? He suffered a few injuries during the year, and had an emotional end to the season. Looks like a fairly deep draft class for Centers, or would you expect they them to sign a veteran FA if DA did retire?

It’s a good point, Bobby, and the thought definitely did cross my mind. I’d expect him to return this season, however. The team does have UDFA Kody Russey on the roster who they like internally. He’s likely next in line at the position.


@Skywal1Thaddeus Is it possible the Pats move on from Nick Folk?

Tough to tell at this point. I would expect them to have a second kicker on the roster again throughout training camp, whether that’s a rookie addition or perhaps Quinn Nordin, who spent the season on the non-football injury list. We’ll see what happens from there.


@TomeTrosanina Can BOB utilize two TE sets with Henry and Jonnu like he’s done in the past? (With the Patriots)

When people think about Bill O’Brien, they rightfully think back to those historic two-tight end formations. While Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith are obviously not the duo that took the league by storm in 2011, O’Brien should be able to find ways to get more out of them then the past few seasons.

At Alabama, O’Brien used his two-tight ends in nub formations to attack opposing defenses. New England did this minimally the past two years with their high-priced duo, but had some success when they did.


@JiveBreg What would be enough from Mac under another OC next year for the Pats to lock up his fifth year option? How bad would it have to be for them to know it’s time to move on? Is the middle the worse case scenario?

He’d have to be better than he was his rookie season. For as much blame as the coaching staff (rightfully) deserves from last season, Mac Jones deserves plenty of blame as well. There’s no excuses this year. He has to play better and leave no doubt that he can be the guy for the future. If not, time to move on.


@ptctransformer Where does Bill B’s kids fit into the coaching staff with Mayo taking a bigger role?

I wouldn’t expect much to change in this aspect. Steve Belichick will likely still call defensive plays and lead that unit with Mayo, as Brian Belichick will likely stay coaching the safeties.


@Captmike24 How many more game would NE have won with BOB in 22? I say 3 at least which would have put them in the playoffs

I’d certainly add a few wins to their total. The fact that they went 8-9 and handed away a few games with everything that went on is funny to think back on. We’ll see how the roster construction goes the next few months, but they will be better offensively next year with O’Brien at the helm.


@dpoker305 What did you have for lunch?

Dom, I had a wonderful BBQ pork tenderloin sandwich. I hope you had a delightful lunch as well.


@thephinsider What is the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?

A Google search brings me to 24 miles per hour, or just slightly faster than Tyreek Hill’s career top speed (23.24 mph).


@Magic8Bill How are you folks doing today?

We are doing great, Magic 8 Bill. Hope you have a wonderful weekend.

That’s all for this week’s #PostPulpit mailbag. If you have questions you’d liked to be answered next week, submit them on Twitter using #PostPulpit! Make sure to be following @iambrianhines and @PatsPulpit as well!

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