After a three-month wait, New England Patriots wide receiver Jakobi Meyers finally signed his second-round restricted free agent tender Monday, according to a report from ESPN's Adam Schefter.
The tender is a one-year, $3.99 million contract for the upcoming season, more than doubling the overall value of the three-year, $1.77 million deal Meyers signed as an undrafted rookie in 2019.
Meyers' representatives remain in talks with the Patriots about a potential long-term contract, per Schefter's report. His tender sets him up to hit unrestricted free agency next spring.
Meyers led all Patriots in catches and receiving yards in each of the last two seasons. In 2021, he set career highs in all three receiving categories (83-866-2) and played 84.2% of offensive snaps, fourth-most on the team behind quarterback Mac Jones, center David Andrews and right guard Shaq Mason.
Speaking with reporters after last week's mandatory Patriots minicamp, Meyers said he "definitely" wants to sign a contract that would keep him in New England long-term.
"Who wouldn't, honestly?" the 25-year-old said. "It's a great place to be. The guys in the locker room -- I've learned more about being a man just from them than probably my whole life. It's just been great to be around those guys. It's a great city to be in. I'm happy here. God blessed me with that opportunity, and how could you not jump at it?"
Asked why he had not yet signed his tender, Meyers explained that he's "not too great at multitasking" and wanted to focus on football.
"It was more so just me trying to be able to focus on what was going on," he said last Thursday. "We had a lot of new changes this year, so I just really wanted to be locked in."
An undisclosed injury limited Meyers in minicamp, keeping him out of competitive 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills. He downplayed its severity.
"Just normal things, honestly," he said. "The coaches talked to me. They just had a game plan laid out. ... So I put my faith in what they had laid out for me and just followed the plan."
Meyers is part of a Patriots receiving corps that added veterans DeVante Parker and Ty Montgomery and second-round rookie Tyquan Thornton this offseason. Kendrick Bourne, Nelson Agholor, minicamp standout Tre Nixon, N'Keal Harry, Kristian Wilkerson and Malcolm Perry also return from last year's squad.
