A true No. 1 receiver would alter New England Patriots' fantasy relevance
The New England Patriots had their moments in the 2021 NFL season. They made it to the wild-card round and nearly won the AFC East. The defense was feisty game in and game out. Mac Jones didn't look like the big stage was, well, too big for him, for the most part. The offensive line was as advertised and the run game was potent.
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But we all know the biggest problem the Patriots had was in the passing game — specifically, their receiving corps. The Pats rolled out a regular rotation of Kendrick Bourne, Jakobi Meyers, N'Keal Harry and Nelson Agholor at points during the season.
Not exactly a who's who of receivers. Taking it a step further, it was clear to see that the group was a weakness of this team, especially when the Patriots were forced to throw. Their receiving corps was essentially a group of fantasy WR3-4s, with the occasional WR2-level performance thrown. Still, none of the receivers were trustworthy throughout the season for fantasy players in small and midsize leagues.
Andy Behrens and Matt Harmon discuss this major hole in the Patriots' offense in the video above. They discuss how the team spent so much money on their receiving corps in the offseason and … for what? Bourne was admirable finishing as the WR30, and Hunter Henry had a lot of red-zone touchdowns, but it seems their biggest weakness — maybe the team's only weakness — is the receiving game. Meyers proved to be a great safety blanket and slot receiver, but the team just doesn’t have THAT guy. You can’t rely on Agholor to be your deep threat; that won't cut it.
The Patriots must do something this offseason, whether in the draft or free agency to go from, as Matt put it, just competent to actually competitive with their receiving corps.
