Patriots would have interest in top free-agent receiver, if he gets there
The Patriots know they need playmakers at receiver, and it sounds like they’d make a run at the best free agent available.
A new nugget from the NFL's top insider suggests that a big-time receiver addition is still on the table for the New England Patriots.
The nugget in question comes from ESPN's Adam Schefter, who talked NFL free agency during a new appearance on "Pardon My Take." Schefter name-dropped the Patriots as the first team on the list that would have interest in Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce if he were to become an unrestricted free agent.
Related report: Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports believes that if the Colts place the franchise tag on quarterback Daniel Jones, that would likely mean Pierce decides to test free agency. Pierce would be widely considered the best available wide receiver in free agency, after setting new career-highs in catches and yards (47-1,003) for the Colts in 2025.
Pierce, 25, has been arguably the NFL's best big-play receiver over the past two seasons. He's led the league in yards per catch for two years in a row, most recently with a 21.3-yard average. He has the size (6-foot-3, 211 pounds) and long speed to separate down the field and win 1-on-1 contested catch situations. That would of course make him an outstanding fit for Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, who emerged as one of the most efficient and accurate deep ball throwers in the NFL in his second season.
The question for the Patriots is whether they'll be willing to pay up. Spotrac estimates Pierce's market value at $20.2 million per season. That may be a conservative number, since that would make Pierce only the 24th-highest-paid receiver in the league, barely more than the Jaguars' Jakobi Meyers.
That's not to say that Pierce would command a deal with an AAV closer to that of Ja'Marr Chase ($40.3M) or Justin Jefferson ($35M). But could the asking price be closer to the $30M that the 49ers paid to retain Brandon Aiyuk?
In terms of player profile and production, the best comps for Pierce are the Lions' Jameson Williams and the Eagles' DeVonta Smith. They are on the books for AAVs of $26.7 million and $25 million, respectively. So the Patriots could be looking at a floor of around $27M to land Pierce on the open market.
Not to mention, Schefter also mentioned the Bills and Browns as teams that would have interest in Pierce in free agency, so the competition for Pierce could come within the Pats' own division. But the Bills are already on track for $281.5 million in cash spending for 2026 (via Over The Cap), sixth-most in the league, so it's fair to wonder how far they're willing to extend themselves to get Josh Allen a pricey new weapon. The Patriots, meanwhile, are currently 16th in 2026 cash spending ($229.4M), and are in much better shape to maneuver their cap however they see fit.
Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel sounded resigned to the idea that the team would have to keep investing in draft picks to find a long-term answer for a No. 1 receiver, and a big-name free agent or trade just wasn't feasbile.
“Well, yeah, I mean, they’re not going to be there in free agency. But you have to try to draft them,” Vrabel said last week at the Combine, per MassLive's Mark Daniels. “I think that’s where a lot of them are. You develop them. Some of them develop and guys, the transition in that position from year one to year two, can be pretty special.”
The Patriots may yet have to take that route in their attempts to improve the wide receiver depth chart. But the idea that they would make a run at Pierce in free agency is a signal that they understand their need for playmaking talent at that position, and Vrabel's recent quip about buying stuff he likes could be a sign that they'd be competitive in Pierce's market.
