The Patriots Need A Better Week Two Of Free Agency To Compete
Updated: Jun 29, 2023
No word summarizes last week in sports more than madness. No, I am not referring to that college basketball nonsense. NFL free agency has a chokehold on my attention. I can’t stop refreshing my page.
After seven days, the league looks a bit different. The Bears look like playoff contenders. Aaron Rodgers plagiarizing Brett Favre’s career path makes my blood boil. Oh, and the New England Patriots refuse to do the one job asked of them before the floodgates opened.
New England’s football team signed a few talented players, but they are not who the champ wants. They are not who the peeps want. But most importantly, they are not who the Patriots need. They are not DeAndre Hopkins.
Patriots Tight End Mike Gesicki Is Not DeAndre Hopkins.
On St. Paddy’s Day, the Patriots signed former Dolphins tight end Mike Gesicki. The acquisition comes a week after the team traded Jonnu Smith to the Falcons. It seems like a head-scratching move to most of Patriots Nation; I completely understand it.
Gesicki fits into the offense better than Smith. What he lacks in athleticism, he makes up for in height. Bill wants to recreate the Gronk/Hernandez duo that revolutionized the tight-end position. Last season does not represent how truly impactful a player he can be. He finished with five or more touchdowns in three of his four seasons. Mac needs a red-zone threat like him.
However, Gesicki does not have the best hands in the league. He cannot run routes on a dime, leaving defenders’ ankles in the rearview. Unfortunately, he is not DeAndre Hopkins. Therefore, the signing means nothing to me—
The Patriots Sign JuJu Smith-Schuster Instead Of A Future Hall Of Famer.
Over the past season, one of the biggest complaints from Patriots Nation was that Mac Jones did not have the weapons to improve the offense. There is some truth to that. Kendrick Bourne snapped out of this reality while Jakobi Meyers defaulted into the best chance of moving the ball through the air. He decided to sign with the triple-A Patriots in Vegas, leaving a vacancy at the pass-catching position.
The news of JuJu Smith-Schuster becoming a Patriot shocked me. I did not think in a million years that the NFL’s most viral sensation would whip his corvette to Foxboro, especially after tweeting his dislike for the organization years ago. People change, and so do opinions.
Smith may not become the true WR1, but he almost slides into Meyers’s role. Their stats from a season ago are eerily similar.
Here's where Jakobi Meyers' and JuJu Smith-Schuster's seasons rank relative to each other: pic.twitter.com/1igPcoqStR — Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) March 15, 2023
He’s a very talented receiver that will improve the offense immensely. But he is not DeAndre Hopkins. It is a great move, but I cannot join in the happiness until another receiver makes his way to 1 Patriot Place.
Patriots Add Another RB Instead Of An X-Factor Receiver
It seems like everywhere you look in Foxboro, there’s a running back staring at you. The Patriots add another ball carrier to the mix with the signing of James Robinson. Robinson made a splash as an undrafted free agent with the Jags. He rushed for 1000+ yards in his first season, but the team’s direction lowered his ceiling eventually forcing him to finish the season as a Jet.
Robinson adds a pass-catching element to the backfield, with Stevenson projected to be the bell cow. His 344 receiving yards in his rookie campaign show signs of an opportunity in the Patriots’ offense.
Do you know who racks up 344 receiving yards in a five-game span? You guessed it! I sound like a broken record player, but I do not care. With the departure of Harris, the signing makes more sense. It is not what the fans wanted, but at the end of the day, it will be what we need.
These offensive moves are great, but it is not what the Patriots need. It hurts having to spend that extra dollar to get the better quality. So what if a potential breakout star must ship to the desert to bring Hopkins to New England? Send them three draft picks too! Keep the 14th pick and send everything else. Ditka did it!
I will not stop until DeAndre Hopkins wears a Patriot uniform next season. You cannot separate soulmates; it’s a fact of life.
Deandre Hopkins 🤝 Bill Belichick pic.twitter.com/bWGDkyIC2i — Savage (@SavageSports_) March 8, 2023
Comments