Ex-NFL QB Laments Patriots’ DeAndre Hopkins Decision After Week 1

After the Patriots fell short against the Eagles on Sunday, Dan Orlovsky couldn’t help but think about who could have been out there for New England.

Save for Kendrick Bourne (six catches, 64 yards, two touchdowns), the Patriots didn’t receive much from their wideout group in Week 1 at Gillette Stadium. The rest of New England’s receivers — if you included hybrid Ty Montgomery — combined for only 10 catches for 82 yards with no touchdowns. To put that into perspective, Tyreek Hill himself logged 11 catches for 215 yards with a pair of scores in the Miami Dolphins’ road win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.

New England had a chance to alleviate its wideout concerns over the offseason. DeAndre Hopkins was available in free agency and even made a trip to Foxboro, but the Patriots let the veteran receiver sign with the Tennessee Titans. So when New England’s receivers collectively had a quiet night against Philly, “Nuk” was front of mind for Orlovsky.

“That’s my takeaway for New England. I wish you would’ve gotten DeAndre Hopkins,” Orlovsky said Monday on ESPN’s “Get Up,” as transcribed by Boston.com.

Hopkins probably isn’t bemoaning how things shook out, at least not at this juncture. Although Tennessee lost its season opener in New Orleans, the 31-year-old was targeted 13 times and came up with seven catches for 65 yards.

Barring an in-season trade, these are the receivers Mac Jones and company will need to work with for the remainder of the season. If New England wants to contend for a playoff spot, it’s going to need more from the majority of the group, most notably JuJu Smith-Schuster.