Why NFL Writer Believes Jakobi Meyers Should Leave Patriots

Jakobi Meyers previously expressed a desire to stay with the Patriots, the team that signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2019.

One NFL writer, however, believes the talented wide receiver should look to leave New England in the coming weeks.

Meyers isn’t an upper-echelon wideout, but he’s about to hit the open market at an ideal time. The 2023 free-agent class of receivers is pretty weak, and Meyers arguably is the best of the bunch. This could result in the 26-year-old driving up his price tag, which has been increasing ever since Meyers started to break out a few seasons ago.

NFL.com’s Adam Rank doesn’t believe the Patriots will provide this payday, so the league scribe is advising Meyers to fetch a deal outside of Foxboro.

“Christian Kirk signed a huge four-year, $72 million deal with the Jaguars in free agency last year, and it set off a spending spree for the position,” Rank wrote. “And with so many wide receivers switching teams last offseason, there aren’t a ton of big-name wideouts available this time around. The best thing for Meyers to do is leave New England and go get his own bag. His value has been projected at $15 million to $18 million annually. I’m not so sure the Patriots will pay him that. But some team will.”

Perhaps that team will be the Detroit Lions, who Rank believes would be an ideal fit for Meyers. The potentially upstart Houston Texans also have been suggested as a potential landing spot for the North Carolina State product.

Meyers and his fellow free agents will be free to start signing the dotted line March 15 when the new league year opens.