Over the past year, nearly every member of the vaunted 2019 wide receiver draft class signed a contract extension.
Jakobi Meyers now stands to benefit from those deals.
With players like Deebo Samuel, D.K. Metcalf, A.J. Brown, Terry McLaurin, Diontae Johnson and Hunter Renfrow already locked up by their current teams, Meyers will arguably be the top wideout available in free agency this offseason.
ESPN's Matt Bowen has the New England Patriots standout at the very top of that list, pegging Meyers as the No. 1 receiver in his ranking of the top 50 impending free agents. Here was his writeup:
A nuanced route runner with strong hands and a 6-foot-2 frame, Meyers caught 47 of his 67 targets on throws inside the numbers this season, setting a career high with six touchdowns. He's an intermediate target in the pass game with outside flex, and he has the ability to stretch defenses on seams and deep over routes. A former undrafted free agent, Meyers emerged as New England's No. 1 option over the past two seasons. He could get a chance to cash in this spring.
Meyers ranks 21st overall, ahead of fellow wideouts JuJu Smith-Schuster (27th) and D.J. Chark (36th). He's the only Patriots free agent to crack the top 50, with teammates Jonathan Jones, Damien Harris, Devin McCourty, Nelson Agholor and others left off.
Meyers is not an elite, Pro Bowl-caliber receiver, but he's been the Patriots' WR1 for the last three seasons, maintaining that status even after New England imported Agholor and Kendrick Bourne in 2021 and DeVante Parker and second-round pick Tyquan Thornton last offseason.
The 26-year-old has said he would like to re-sign. But with this year's free agent market hurting for pass-catching talent, it's entirely possible he'll receive a lucrative, Christian Kirk-type contract offer from another team that New England would be unwilling to match.
Kirk signed with Jacksonville for four years and $72 million last offseason despite never topping 1,000 receiving yards in any of his first four NFL seasons. Meyers' per-game reception and yardage averages this season (4.8 and 57.4) were similar to the marks Kirk posted for Arizona in 2021 (4.5 and 57.8).
NFL free agency opens March 15.
