New England Patriots
The Patriots might pivot to different WR targets like Alec Pierce or A.J. Brown transferring ahead.
Two days after the Patriots’ 2025 season ended with a loss in Tremendous Bowl LX, Mike Vrabel provided up an ominous musing in regards to the state of New England’s roster.
“We’re searching for the higher, youthful, cheaper participant day by day, and the gamers that we’ve got try to not let that occur,” Vrabel stated. “And that’s the dynamic, and that’s the enterprise of the Nationwide Soccer League.”
Certain sufficient, New England is rolling the cube in relation to its offensive personnel for 2026.
The Patriots are reportedly releasing veteran receiver Stefon Diggs subsequent week, liberating up almost $17 million in cap house consequently.
New England wants all the fiscal flexibility it may possibly get this offseason, given the variety of deficiencies throughout the Patriots’ depth chart.
However, the Patriots are actually in determined want of a brand new WR1 to pair with Drake Maye, each in 2026 and within the coming years.
As explosive as New England’s offense was in 2025 with Maye on the helm, the Patriots are inviting loads of threat in the event that they decide to run it again with Kayshon Boutte, Mack Hollins, DeMario Douglas, and Kyle Williams as their high pass-catchers.
Right here’s a fast have a look at New England’s choices in relation to upgrading Maye’s arsenal following Diggs’ exit.
So far as pure asset administration, one of the best path for New England transferring ahead is to exchange Diggs’ manufacturing with a youthful, higher receiver out on the free-agent market.
By signing a gifted pass-catcher, New England might correctly make the most of the cap house freed up by slicing Diggs while not having to surrender helpful draft capital as a part of a commerce.
With $16.8 million freed up by transferring on from Diggs, New England is at the moment anticipated to have greater than $56 million in cap house this offseason, per OverTheCap. They may open up much more spending energy by restructuring different contracts or slicing extra gamers earlier than the league calendar flips to 2026.
Sadly for New England, this crop of free-agent wideouts might not precisely transfer the needle. Choices like Romeo Doubs, Wan’Dale Robinson, and Jauan Jennings have questions over sturdiness — and over their standing as true No. 1 wideouts in a brand new offensive system.
However, there may be one high goal who New England might flip to: Colts WR Alec Pierce.
The Colts’ determination to not apply a franchise tag on Pierce was a little bit of a head-scratcher. The 25-year-old wideout is now set to hit the open market subsequent week.
Pierce might command a contract with an annual payout of $25-30 million, close to the worth vary Diggs was set to rely towards the cap in 2026 ($26.8 million).
However, Pierce presents the next upside than Diggs in relation to his age (seven years youthful) and his profile as an explosive, big-play receiver.
Pierce would seemingly slot in seamlessly on a dynamic Patriots offense that led all NFL teams during regular-season action in explosive-play rate (8.1 percent).
He has led the NFL in yards per catch throughout each the 2024 (22.3) and 2025 (21.3) seasons with Indy — closing out final 12 months with 47 catches for 1,003 yards and 6 touchdowns.
After reeling in deep balls from Colts QBs like Daniel Jones, Anthony Richardson, Joe Flacco, and Philip Rivers, Pierce might take one other main step ahead as a featured participant on a staff led by Maye.
Commerce for a WR1
If Pierce is just too dear or opts to re-up in Indy, New England might pivot to the commerce market.
As painful because it could be for New England to surrender helpful draft picks to usher in a dynamic wideout, there are a number of interesting choices that the Patriots might hone in on fairly than put all of their eggs in a single basket with a free agent like Pierce.
Eagles star A.J. Brown nonetheless makes loads of sense for New England. Past Brown’s standing as an elite pass-catcher (six 1,000-yard seasons), he has loads of ties to Vrabel, having performed for New England’s head coach throughout their time along with the Titans.
“We attain out and textual content one another through the good issues that occur to one another,” Vrabel said of Brown at the NFL Scouting Combine. “Typically issues don’t go so nicely for the folks that you simply’re shut with, and also you textual content for these as nicely. It’s a two-way avenue of help and reminders of what received us to the place we’re right here right now.”
Brown, 28, might be a flexible and dynamic weapon in New England. However, the Eagles — who must eat a $43.4 million dead-cap cost in the event that they deal Brown earlier than June 1 — are reportedly asking for a steep worth for his or her WR1.
“Of their minds, it’s a Quinnen Williams-type deal,” NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo said of Philly’s asking price. “We’re speaking a possible first-round decide with a second-round sweetener on it. That’s type of the place it’s for the Eagles to begin to contemplate transferring A.J. Brown.”
New England might wait till after June 1 to see if the Eagles decrease their asking worth, when that dead-cap cost may be damaged up over a number of years.
However, ready till that stage of the NFL calendar to try to add a WR1 includes some threat for New England and severely limits their leverage in negotiations with the Eagles.
The Patriots might additionally try to make a push for Jaguars young wideout Brian Thomas Jr., whose inventory dipped in Jacksonville after a lackluster second season within the NFL ranks. Nonetheless, Thomas is a 12 months faraway from posting 87 catches for 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns as a rookie in 2024.
Chicago Bears WR DJ Moore is also an possibility, with CBS Sports activities’ Jonathan Jones deeming the Patriots a potential “landing spot” for Moore. The 28-year-old Moore is coming off a 2025 season the place he caught 50 balls for 682 yards and 5 touchdowns, however has 4 1,000-yard seasons on his ledger.
Draft a Diggs substitute
New England hasn’t precisely had one of the best luck in relation to including elite expertise at extensive receiver by way of the draft.
However, New England may not have the spending energy to focus on a WR like Pierce or Brown if it chooses to shore up different areas of the depth chart — together with the offensive line, edge rushers, security, and tight finish.
With the thirty first general decide within the 2026 NFL Draft, New England may hone in on an reasonably priced, blue-chip expertise in hopes of replicating a few of Diggs’ manufacturing.
Texas A&M’s KC Concepcion is an explosive athlete with sturdy yards-after-catch numbers throughout his time with the Aggies. He might be a viable Diggs substitute in relation to transferring the chains on crossers and lining up within the slot.
A giant-bodied WR like 6-foot-4 Denzel Boston out of the College of Washington is also a possible pivot if New England can’t land a confirmed boundary receiver like Pierce.
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