Patriots’ Ja’Lynn Polk posts and deletes cryptic Instagram story after latest struggles
Patriots rookie wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk had a weird, wild day in London for the Patriots.
It’s been a strange, concerning turn of events for Patriots rookie wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk.
Given a chance to redeem himself on the field after struggling with drops in Week 6 against the Texans, Polk had an even worse game on Sunday at Wembley Stadium, going catchless on three targets, including two potential passes off his hands and once slipping while being targeted on a failed 2-point conversion.
That ugly performance came after Polk expressed confidence in himself, perhaps excessively so, earlier in the week, when he declared to MassLive’s Mark Daniels: “I believe I have the best hands in the league. So, I feel like my drops, that’s not an issue at all.”
MORE: Jerod Mayo calls out Patriots players postgame following Jaguars loss
After Sunday’s game, Polk took to Instagram and posted one of the more cryptic stories by a Patriot in recent memory, just a black screen with a peace sign emoji:
Polk ostensibly deleted the story, which was gone from his Instagram page within hours after the game. Instagram stories typically stay up for 24 hours.
Asked during his Monday morning video conference whether he has any reason to question Polk’s commitment level at the moment, Mayo replied: “I have not spoken [to Polk] about that, and I do not question his devotion to the team, no.”
So, it’s still unclear what Polk meant by the post in the first place, but it appears that whatever he was saying, he took it back or didn’t want to leave it out there.
Ultimately, it’s on Polk to play better, especially when he talks a big game during the week. It was a tough look for him to play even worse than he did last week after claiming to have the best hands in the NFL.
It’s especially surprising for Ja’Lynn Polk to act this way after carrying himself like a mature veteran during training camp. He’s a 22-year-old rookie, so perhaps it shouldn’t be so surprising to see him act like one when things aren’t going well.
Despite rookie quarterback Drake Maye being installed as the Patriots’ new starting quarterback over the past two games, and the offense starting to move the ball and score more, the team overall is playing even worse. And the receivers aren’t handling it great at the moment.
Matt Dolloff is a writer and digital content producer for 98.5 The Sports Hub. Read all of his articles here.
Patriots Ups & Downs: Who stood out in a loss to the Jaguars in London?
The New England Patriots are 1-6 after a 32-16 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium in London. Here’s who was graded UP or DOWN based on their performance on the field…
DOWN: DT Davon Godchaux
We have to start with a DOWN after a game like that, and we’re pointing the first finger at a veteran of the team that was literally in the middle of their biggest struggles of the day. Godchaux played 50 defensive snaps (via Pro Football Focus) and finished with just one tackle, as the Patriots repeatedly got gashed up the middle in the run game. He had been one of the few Patriots defenders to show up in recent weeks, but in London he did not. If the Pats have any hope of defending the run and showing toughness on defense, they need more from Godchaux on Sundays.
DOWN: WR Ja’Lynn Polk
The rookie receiver’s season went from bad to worse on Sunday, as he caught none of his three targets, despite getting his hands on two of those pass attempts. This comes after Polk declared his hands the best in the league during the week. Polk posted a strange Instagram story after the game, and this was after he was ruled out with a head injury. So, it’s been a rough few weeks for the rookie.
DOWN: RT Mike Onwenu
The Patriots certainly couldn’t stop the run on Sunday, but they couldn’t run the ball themselves, either, and that falls on poor run-blocking up front. We’re singling out Onwenu, however, because he committed a false start penalty at right tackle on top of his blocking struggles. Left tackle Demontrey Jacobs also committed a penalty (holding), but Onwenu is supposed to be the Pats’ best offensive lineman and is one of the highest-paid players on the team, and he hasn’t nearly performed up to the standard expected of him this season.
DOWN: DB Dell Pettus
It’s not totally fair to single out Pettus for the Patriots’ punt coverage unit allowing a 96-yard touchdown to the Jaguars’ Parker Washington, but Pettus was the one guy who was able to shed a block, yet looked like a traffic cone when his chance came to make the tackle. It was an inexcusable breakdown by the whole unit, and that play had to be represented on this list somewhere.
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 20: Parker Washington of Jacksonville Jaguars celebrates scoring a touch down with teammates during the NFL match between New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium on October 20, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
UP: QB Drake Maye
Drake Maye (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
OK, we’ll get to an UP now. The rookie could have had a worse day than his stats indicated, because the Jaguars couldn’t come down with two possible interceptions that were merely incomplete passes. But Maye finished 26-of-37 for 276 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions. He mostly looked good when the Patriots decided to actually drop him back and push the ball down the field.
It’s not Maye’s fault that offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt moved away from the passing game in the middle two quarters. It was his fault, however, that he scrambled right into pressure on a few plays. Those are correctable mistakes for the rookie to work on going forward. At the end of the day, Maye was the only reason the Patriots even got to 16 points offensively.
DOWN: CB Christian Gonzalez
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 20: Brian Thomas Jr of Jacksonville Jaguars makes a 58-yard catch against Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez during the game at Wembley Stadium. (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Gonzalez mostly covered Jaguars wideout Brian Thomas Jr., and Thomas finished with 5-of-5 catches for 89 yards and a touchdown, including a catch for a 2-point conversion that he caught with Gonzalez on him. Gonzalez’ coverage on Thomas’ 58-yard catch wasn’t exactly bad, but he did get beat. Thomas is for sure talented, but if the Patriots have any hope of winning games, Gonzalez needs to lock down his assignments and be one of the best players on the field. He wasn’t that on Sunday.
UP: S Kyle Dugger
Kyle Dugger (Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)
Dugger finished with a team-high 11 tackles and also broke up one pass attempt. The Patriots have plenty of issues on defense and had more problems than ever on Sunday, but Dugger wasn’t one of them. He’ll need to keep showing up and making plays for the Pats to be competitive in games going forward.
DOWN: DE Keion White
Trevor Lawrence (Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)
The Patriots generated no sacks or QB hits on 21 pass attempts by Trevor Lawrence. If White isn’t getting pressure on the quarterback, what is he doing out there, exactly? White did make four tackles, but the Patriots need him to be an effective pass-rusher and he was virtually invisible in that regard. He’s regressed lately, after a strong start to his second season.
UP: RB JaMycal Hasty
Oct 20, 2024; London, United Kingdom; New England Patriots running back JaMycal Hasty (39) reacts after a touchdown with New England Patriots tight end Hunter Henry (85) in the first half during an NFL International Series game at Wembley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter van den Berg-Imagn Images
Hasty earned himself a bigger workload going forward after a solid game on Sunday, particularly as a pass-catcher. He was one of the few Patriots to make an impact play, taking a short dump-off pass for a touchdown catch-and-run, and he was a perfect 5-for-5 on his targets. Hasty is looking like a reliable third-down back for Maye. It’s not enough to make fans feel much better about the season, but it’s at least one positive development.
