Did the Patriots Pick the Wrong Guy?
Written by Joseph Medeiros
The Patriots came into last week’s matchup against the Rams with hopes of trying to win back-to-back games, unsurprisingly, the Patriots lost 28-22 after the defense collapsed. Drake Maye dazzled once again, but one of his wide receivers has come under pressure after his recent performances.
The Patriots drafted Jaylyn Polk with their second-round pick, trading down with the Los Angeles Chargers to select him as the 37th pick in the draft. Polk was second fiddle to Rome Odunze but showed promise in Washington’s elite passing attack headed by Micheal Penix.
Polk seemingly had a good training camp, with many highlights of his catch radius and plays being spoken about. The hype has not carried over as Polk has had one of the most sporadic rookie campaigns.
The most recent incident that has frustrated fans with the Washington wide receiver came in one of the most crucial moments in this week’s game. The Patriots were fourth and one in a nine-point game and Polk jumped early for a costly false start.
That play led to a Patriots Field Goal, killing the drive’s momentum. Polk finished the game with no targets or catches.
This event would not be the only instance where the receiver has caught flack as earlier in the season he stated, “I believe I have the best hands in the league.” The following game against the Jaguars he would fail to catch any of his three targets, energizing the negative media attention surrounding him.
Through 11 weeks in the season, Polk has only accumulated 80 yards on 11 catches, the only upside in his stat line is the 2 Touchdowns he has caught. NFL Next Gen Stats has him as the receiver with the lowest separation with 1.8 yards on average.
Although Polk has struggled early on does not mean that he should be discarded, he is only a rookie but has a long way to go before he shows his value. Due to just how poorly he has been it is fair to look at who the Patriots could have had.
The First “What if”
When the Patriots elected to trade down, they gave the Chargers their pick and their GM Tom Telesco decided to draft Ladd McConkey out of Georgia. This means the Patriots effectively passed on McConkey.
Ladd McConkey has been the safety valve of Justin Herbert and had 6 catches for 123 yards this week against the Bengals. This is his second 100-yard game, the other coming against the Saints in Week 7. This is alongside having 615 yards and an average separation of 2.9 yards.
The Other Option
Another wide receiver prospect that the Patriots passed on was Texas standout Adonai Mitchell. Mitchell gained traction after his 2-touchdown game against Alabama last season.
Adonai Mitchell was drafted 52nd overall by the Indianapolis Colts where he has gotten the chance to learn from Micheal Pittman Jr and Alec Pierce.
Mitchell is the third wide receiver in this offense but has still managed 244 yards on 19 catches this season. While these are not stellar numbers, he still triples Polk’s numbers with only 8 more catches, while averaging 2.7 yards of separation.
The Less Likely Receiver
The Patriots organization has claimed to be taking a different approach when it comes to both coaching and drafting. Especially after they drafted their guy in Maye, what better way to help him than to trade up for a wide receiver to help him.
Keon Colemen was the guy at Florida State and despite them losing star quarterback Jordan Travis he still managed to accumulate 658 yards and an astonishing 11 touchdowns.
Coleman was drafted by Buffalo with the 33rd pick, but the Patriots could have easily traded up to get the wideout. Coleman was the clear number-one guy for FSU and could have played on the boundary alongside Kayshon Boutte.
Coleman currently has 417 yards on 22 catches and 3 touchdowns for the Josh Allen-led Bills. He also has an average separation of 2.3 yards on 36 targets.
Hopefully, Jaylyn Polk can turn his performances around either this season or next, but as of now when looking at the guys taken around him he has not been up to par for the 34th pick in the NFL Draft.
Other Content Written by Me:
Comparing Drake Maye to past Patriots Qbs
MLB Odds for Big Ticket Free Agents
What History Tells Us About First-Year NFL Coaches
Worst 1-Year Boston Head Coaches: Ranked
Payton Pritchard’s Case for 6th Man of the Year
