By Ty Anderson, 985TheSportsHub.com
To the surprise of some, the New England Patriots opted not to draft a wide receiver with a single one of their 10 picks in the 2020 NFL Draft. But they did make it their first priority in the undrafted free agent market with the signing of Auburn’s Will Hastings, as first reported by NESN.com’s Doug Kyed.
A 5-foot-10 slot receiver, Hastings hauled in 19 catches for 222 yards and a score in 13 games for the Tigers last year after a torn ACL forced the Arkansas-born wideout to redshirt with an eye towards 2019. That injury forced Hastings to miss current Patriots quarterback Jarrett Stidham’s final season at Auburn, but the duo was certainly on the same page in 2017, as Hastings put up the best numbers of his collegiate career in receptions (26), yards (525), and touchdowns (four) with Stidham throwing him the ball.
That just feels like the latest piece of good news in a weekend that’s pretty much come up all Stidham, as the Patriots opted not to spend a draft pick of any sort on a quarterback, leaving the second-year pro to compete with just Brian Hoyer for the club’s vacant starting quarterback gig.
Hastings joins a New England wideout group that currently features Julian Edelman, N’Keal Harry, Mohamed Sanu, Jakobi Meyers, Marqise Lee, Gunner Olszewski, Damiere Byrd, Quincy Adeboyejo, and Devin Ross.
