The New England Patriots are actively looking for a trade partner for wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell, according to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network.
It may seem somewhat surprising given Mitchell’s fit within the Patriot offense (and his rapport with Tom Brady) and the fact that the Patriots will be without suspended wide receiver Julian Edelman for the first four weeks of the regular season, But it’s been a trying year-plus for the ultra-talented receiver out of Georgia, as he missed all of last season due to a knee injury.
“This entire season I missed, it was a very adverse situation,” Mitchell told ESPN’s Mike Reiss earlier this year. “That obviously wasn’t something I wanted. It happens in football, just like situations happen in life that you have no control over.”
A fourth-round pick by the club in 2016, Mitchell had a fantastic rookie year and emerged as a true weapon for the Pats, with 32 receptions for 401 yards and four touchdowns in 12 games. The 6-foot-1 Mitchell saved some of his best work for Super Bowl LI, where he caught six of his seven targets for 70 yards in New England’s stunning comeback win over the Falcons.
In addition to his limited usage at June’s minicamp, Mitchell’s inclusion on the trade block may also have something to do with the addition of Kenny Britt, Jordan Matthews, and Cordarrelle Patterson to a now-crowded Patriot receiving corps.
Per Pelissero, the Patriots also re-signed wideout Devin Lucien. The 6-foot-2 Lucien was a seventh-round pick of the Patriots in 2016, and spent last year bouncing around practice squads of the Colts to the Chiefs to the Texans and to the Bucs.