Patriots Dangerously Close To Failing Offseason Goal They Made

Eliot Wolf attracted the attention of Patriots fans in his first press conference after becoming New England's decision-maker in the personnel department. Wolf did so with one simple, yet eyebrow-raising, remark.

"We need to weaponize the offense," Wolf told reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine.

It lured Patriots fans in, many of those fans having spent years blaming Bill Belichick for New England not having exciting playmakers on offense. It's been a difficult product to watch the last few seasons.

But the reality is Wolf and the Patriots' new regime is dangerously close to failing the goal they set for themselves. Because while there remain options in free agency and in the draft, they don't qualify under the "weapon" criteria first-year head coach Jerod Mayo established himself.

"It just looks like putting people on the offensive side of the ball that the defensive side has to prepare for," Mayo told reporters during the NFL Scouting Combine. "Whether that's double teaming or anything like that. That's what he means by that."

Free-agent wideouts like Mike Williams, Hunter Renfrow, Tyler Boyd and others don't stand out as players who keep defensive coordinators up at night. And given the Patriots likely will be targeting a quarterback with their top draft pick and a receiver in the second or third round, it wouldn't be fair to put that level of pressure on a rookie.

Instead, it feels like the Patriots will have to settle for more depth pieces. Maybe they sign a player who falls into the WR2 or WR3 bucket. With Kendrick Bourne and Demario Douglas already headlining the depth chart, New England has those sorts of players. They don't have a WR1. They don't have a game-changer who dictates how defenses defend.

Calvin Ridley would have fit Mayo's definition. He at least could have served as a low-end WR1. But after reportedly offering $22 million per year, the Patriots lost Ridley to the Tennessee Titans.

The Patriots could get creative to address the void. Tee Higgins, who reportedly has requested a trade from the Cincinnati Bengals, surely would fit the billing. As would a receiver like Brandon Aiyuk, who remains in trade speculation despite the San Francisco 49ers wanting to keep him in the Bay Area. Perhaps the Patriots make an offer too good to pass up?

That would accomplish Wolf's goal, no doubt.

Or perhaps the Patriots pull off a stunner and land one of the top wideouts in the draft class. That surely would come at a steep cost, too. But it's possible.

The more likely outcome, though, is a veteran still available in a bad free-agent class and a Day 2 selection that could take a season or two to develop.

Chances are that's not exactly what Wolf had in mind when he made the weapon comment. It's surely not what excited Patriots fans.