The New England Patriots were after a No. 1 wide receiver for months.
They tried to land Calvin Ridley in the offseason but failed in that pursuit with him deciding to join the Tennessee Titans — it seems Ridley might be regretting that decision. The Patriots were also in on Brandon Aiyuk and reportedly had a trade framework worked out for the San Francisco 49ers star. Aiyuk apparently didn’t want to come to New England, though, and re-signed with the 49ers.
Two more standout receivers were traded this week: the New York Jets obtained Davante Adams from the Las Vegas Raiders, and the Buffalo Bills acquired Amari Cooper from the Cleveland Browns. Rumors about the Patriots trying to trade for Adams or Cooper were surprisingly absent.
They both seemed like fits for the Patriots, especially if they wanted to give rookie quarterback Drake Maye a pass-catching weapon. But first-year head coach Jerod Mayo explained why the Patriots didn’t really make an effort on either Adams or Cooper.
“Those are conversations that we, when I say we, the scouting department, Eliot (Wolf) and his staff, and the coaches talk about,” Mayo told reporters Wednesday, per MassLive’s Karen Guregian. “I would say those teams that you’re mentioning are at different points in that cycle. We weren’t really in on that stuff.”
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The Patriots are clearly rebuilding and looking to the future, but it didn’t take much draft capital to acquire Adams or Cooper. The Jets gave up a conditional third-round pick for Adams, who reportedly wanted to reunite with Aaron Rodgers. The Browns fetched a 2025 third-round pick and a 2026 seventh-round selection from the Bills while also sending Buffalo a 2025 sixth-round pick alongside Cooper.
New England certainly could have parted with those picks but chose not to. At 1-5, the Patriots are battling more for the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft than a playoff spot.
But Wolf could have expedited the rebuild and filled a huge area of need by going after Adams or Cooper. And it seems to suggest the Patriots might continue to stand on the sidelines with the NFL trade deadline less than three weeks away.
Featured image via Ron Chenoy/Imagn Images
