Patriots Wide Receiver Sends Not-So-Subtle Social Media Message

The Patriots haven’t quite been able to nip that “wide receivers complaining on social media” thing in the bud.

It’s been a persistent problem throughout the season.

Ja’Lynn Polk shared a since-deleted post after he failed to catch any of his three targets from Drake Maye in a Week 7 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, which opened the floodgates for a few of his teammates. K.J. Osborn reposted a screenshot that depicted his own frustrations. Kayshon Boutte admitted he started demanding the ball, which actually led to more opportunities later on.

DeMario Douglas, Tyquan Thornton and Javon Baker all took exception with their usage at different points prior. New England clearly tried to stop those complaints but hasn’t quite gotten those guys to ignore social posts altogether.

Polk is back posting.

Polk, who saw his usage diminished in Saturday’s loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, posted a photo to Instagram with the caption, “The most hated.”

You can see the post here.

It’s been a tough season for the 22-year-old, who has caught just 12 of his 33 targets and can’t quite seem to find his way onto the field consistently. New Englanders haven’t been happy with that production, so it’s safe to say the caption wasn’t far off.

The Patriots will almost certainly give the youngster another opportunity to carve out a role in the offense next season, but if things keep going the way they are it probably won’t be long before they cut bait.