Our offseason countdown continues with the 9th worst Patriots moment of 2023
We’re right on the cusp of Free Agency, what will likely be one of the most exciting Free Agency periods in Patriots history, so we’ll all be turning our attention
Which is appropriate, because the 9th moment on our countdown of the 10 Worst Patriots Moments of 2023 deals with this very topic.
But first, the list so far:
10. Marcus Jones, Christian Gonzalez, and Matthew Judon are all lost for the season by Week 4.
At Number 9, we’re reminded that sometimes you shouldn’t overthink things.
9. Jakobi Meyers out, Juju Smith-Schuster in.
Ever since he signed with the Patriots as an UDFA in 2019, Jakobi Meyers was one of the few constant, reliable weapons the team had. Through Tom Brady’s departure, Cam Newton’s season as quarterback, Mac Jones’s standout rookie year, and then Jones’s big regression, Meyers remained a steady bright spot and hands down the most reliable receiver on the team. As his contract came to a close and he played out the 2022 season on a RFA tender, the thought was that the Patriots would try to retain him, provided he didn’t garner a massive contract elsewhere that New England. Meyers had certainly earned a payday, plus he was a team and fan favorite who proved that he could produce and would provide some nice consistency for the offense as they revamped their system.
However, on March 16th, it was announced that Meyers had just inked a 3 year, $33 million contract with the Raiders.
In addition to disappointment, Patriots fans felt a good deal of confusion. 3 years and $33 million wasn’t a massive contract, so why didn’t the Patriots try to at least match? Just like that, the only sure thing the team had in the 2020s was off to Vegas.
To make things even more confusing, the very next day the Patriots announced that they signed free agent receiver Juju Smith-Schuster to a 3 year, $25.5 million deal. For the same amount of time and almost identical money, New England opted for Juju over Jakobi.
Fan response at the time was somewhat mixed. One one hand, letting Meyers walk now made more sense, as the team had their eyes on Smith- Schuster and thought he provided similar, if not better production. Juju had been very productive as a member of the Steelers, and flashed with the Chiefs, but was somewhat of an odd man out in KC’s wildly potent offense. New England represented a good chance to be a more prominent part of an offense that could cater to his strengths.
On the other hand…why not just bring back Meyers? He already knew the system and had a rapport with Mac Jones. Meyers would likely have come back for the money that Juju got, so why take a chance on a non-proven commodity in the Patriots offense. Just seemed a bit odd.
Maybe more went on behind the scenes than any of us know about and Meyers really wanted out, but there were no indications of any kind of rift with the team. All signs pointed to New England believing that Juju was an upgrade over Meyers.
About that…
In the 11 games Juju was healthy for, he was a starter in seven of them. When he wasn’t dropping the ball, he amassed 29 receptions for 260 yards and a single touchdown. Juju was maybe the fourth option in an offense absolutely screaming for someone, anyone, to take charge and become a playmaker.
Meyers, on the other hand, started all 16 games he was healthy for. He racked up 807 yards on 71 catches and scored eight touchdowns. Meyers also added 24 yards on the ground and two rushing TDs.
Oh. He also threw for a TD as well.
If this matchup were a tale of the tape, the Patriots would have thrown in the towel after round 1. Meyers ran circles around Smith-Schuster in 2023, by every possible metric. As Patriots fans spent weeks at a time forgetting that Juju was even on the team, Meyers was out there doing what he had done in New England from the start. Every time Jakobi found the end zone or made a great play, we were of course happy for him- but it was hard not to notice who got the better receiver, and what a miss this was by the front office.
Beloved players leave teams all the time. It’s part of the game. And when young guys get the bag elsewhere on their second contract, it’s difficult to get too upset. But for a homegrown receiver to be allowed to walk and then the Patriots sign another receiver for very similar money and that homegrown guy remains as consistent as he has always been as the new guy remains as inconsistent as he has always been…it just kind of sticks in your craw. The Patriots offense was bad enough as it is, and it’s not like Meyers would have been some magical fix. But he would have for sure been a better signing than Juju, and having to live with that will forever irritate me. So here it sits at Number 9.
In case you want to rub some more salt on the wound, here are Jakobi Meyers’s 2023 highlights.
Here are Juju Smith-Schuster’s.
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