By: Jeremy Trottier

The New England Patriots are currently seeming to trend upwards as a team after a very solid offseason and returns of players who opted out last season.  Signings like Hunter Henry, Jonnu Smith, Matt Judon, Jalen Mills, and others will help this team move forward and continue the success of an already strong franchise.  With that in mind, the wide receiver position for the Patriots is a relative unknown, and it is pretty hard to predict who will be their lead receiver.  In this article, I will be going over their three main options to lead the receiver group, as well as why they would each be viable options.

Nelson Agholor – #13

First up, we have one of the Patriots more interesting free agent acquisitions in Nelson Agholor, who had a pretty solid season last year.  The move from Philadelphia to Las Vegas clearly helped Nelson out, as he was able to perform at a pretty mid to high level compared to his previous years.  He put up the following statline last season:

• 16 games played (13 games started)
• 48 receptions in 82 targets (58.5% catch rate)
• 896 yards, 18.7 yards per reception, 8 touchdowns

One more worthy stat to note would be his yards per target, which was 10.9.  This is absolutely amazing from a receiver, as he averaged over a first down for every target he had, not every reception, every target.  Being able to get a first down on every time the ball is thrown your way (on average) shows his ability to make plays and get open to the point where he can benefit the passing game a ton.  This capability would help the Patriots a ton as his very high amount of yards per target would only go up with more receptions likely, which being WR1 would give him.

Jakobi Meyers – #16

The Patriots young receiver entering his third season this year was able to break out in 2020-2021, being given the reigns of sorts to the Patriots receiving room.  The NC state product had a relatively uneventful rookie season, however was able to take it up a notch in his sophomore season and prove he was ready to at the very least be a starter with Cam Newton at the helm.  Meyers put up the following:

• 14 games played (9 started)
• 59 receptions on 81 targets (72.8% catch rate)
• 729 yards, 12.4 yards per reception, 0 TDs, 9.0 yards per target

Something else to notice is that Meyers did not play every game, as he was inactive for two of them, and only started just one game over half the season, which makes this statline even more impressive.  You could justify nearly doubling this stat sheet (considering it will be a 17 game season, nearly double what he played last season) and get an idea of his starting production.  Overall his youth and capabilities with having really good hands and solid route trees would definitely make the WR1 position more complete.

Kendrick Bourne – #84

Finally, we have another free-agent addition in the former San Francisco 49ers receiver Kendrick Bourne.  Bourne has shown some flashes as a receiver and started 13 games in four seasons for SF.  His catch rate has pretty much consistently remained above 63% aside from his rookie year, and he has been a quality starter when placed there.  He is not an extremely flashy big-play receiver by any means, but he is reliable, and he makes plays when he needs to, which is something the Patriots desperately need.  

In 2020 he put up a decent stat line, which was comprised of:

• 15 games played (5 games started)
• 49 receptions on 74 targets (66.2% catch rate)
• 667 yards, 13.6 yards per reception, 2 touchdowns, 9.0 yards per target

I would not shoe Kendrick in for WR1 as of day one, no.  However, I think he has the potential to work into that role over time if Belichick can continue his development, as Bourne is still only 25 years of age, and has only played for four seasons.

The post Who will be the Patriots WR1? appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

For the first time since 2002, the Patriots ended a season with a losing record. A 7-9 record doesn’t look bad, but when your team is consistently winning for over 20 years, it didn’t go over well with the organization or its fans. Bill Belichick last year didn’t handle the Queteback situation correctly after Tom Brady left for Tampa. When Tom Brady left last March, everyone in the NFL knew the Patriots needed to respond and have their next great QB. Well, that simply did not happen and the team was scrambling to sign Cam Newton late in the offseason. With all that being said, the Patriots this offseason quickly turned things around and have made this team into a playoff contender. 

Can the Patriots win the AFC East this year? Yes. Here are the 3 reasons why the Patriots can return back on top of the AFC East! 

1. Free Agent Singings

Bill Belichick and his coaching staff wasted no time this offseason trying to get the team better. The Patriots signed two tight ends to solidify a much-needed boost offensively. Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry are both prominent tight ends. They also signed all-pro, Matthew Judon as an edge rusher. When Judon is 100 percent, he can cause havoc all over the field. The Wide Receiver positions also got a boost this offseason as the team signed Nelson Agholor and Kendrick Bourne.  

2. Buffalo and Miami offseason wows 

To be honest, what have either Buffalo or Miami done this offseason? Not really much. Of course, the draft is a week from today, but both teams lost key players from their team. Buffalo lost Wide Receivers, John Brown and Andre Roberts. Miami lost Running back, Matt Breida. They also let Kyle Van Noy go back to the Patriots which could prove costly defensively. The Patriots out of all the team in the AFC East improved the most and can content with both teams. 

3. Defensive improvements 

At the start of the 2020 season, New England wanted to build their team on defense. Knowing it would take time for Newton to learn everything, the team knew it would take some time to adjust without Tom Brady. Well, this last offseason was from normal as teams weren’t allowed to have much of an offseason program. Defensively, New England was without some of their key starters with injury or opting out of the season. Coming into this year, the team has improved in a lot of ways defensively. Getting a healthy Stephon Gilmore back and adding former Eagle, Jalen Mills will make the backend of the Patriots defense stronger. The team added some depth up front to help with pass-rushing and stopping the run. In the last five games last year, it seemed like teams were running at will against the Patriots. If the Patriots’ defense is anything like 2 years ago, they will contend for a division title! 

The post 3 Reasons Why The Patriots Will Return To Winning The AFC East appeared first on Pro Football Mania.