New England Patriots
The Patriots, who boasted one of the league’s top passing attacks last year, are betting that A.J. Brown can make them even better.
A.J. Brown had another productive practice on Wednesday in New England. Danielle Parhizkaran/The Boston Globe
Welcome to Boston.com’s Patriots position preview series. As we count down the days heading into training camp, we’ll take a look at where the Patriots stand at each position using key stats and observations from spring workouts. You can find our preview on the Patriots’ quarterbacks and defensive backs here.
Stefon Diggs is out, and A.J. Brown is in.
Drake Maye finally has an elite No. 1 wide receiver in his 20s to throw to. Patriot great Julian Edelman said Brown’s arrival should make everyone in the receiver room better.
New England already boasted one of the top passing attacks in the league last season. They’ve invested in adding new weapons by bringing on Brown and Romeo Doubs.
They’ll return the bulk of last year’s starters as well, creating a somewhat crowded wide receiver room ripe for competition heading into training camp.
Here’s a look at where they stand.
Players: A.J. Brown, Romeo Doubs, Mack Hollins, Kayshon Boutte, DeMario Douglas, Kyle Williams, Efton Chism III, Nick DeGennaro, Cameron Dorner, Jimmy Kibble, Jeremiah Webb.
Key Stats:
- Brown has gained at least 1,000 receiving yards in six of the last seven seasons
- The Patriots’ receivers finished second in the league in big plays (gains of 20 yards or more). They were also second in yards per reception (12.4)
- Diggs played in just 54.66 percent of New England’s offensive snaps, which was third on the team behind Hollins and Boutte.
- Diggs hauled in a team-high 85 catches which was nearly twice as many as Hollins who was second in catches.
- Boutte finished fifth among qualified NFL receivers in yards per catch (16.7)
Strengths: Last season, Maye showed that he’s capable of throwing deep balls with elite accuracy. He led the league in both completion percentage (72) and intended air yards per passing attempt (average depth of target) at 9.1 yards per attempt. So, on average, he was the most accurate quarterback in the league while taking the longest throws.
This offseason, the Patriots added Brown, who has a reputation as one of the best deep threat receivers in the league. Last season was the first time in Brown’s career that he did not catch a touchdown that was longer than 50 yards, but a fresh start with a new team and a new quarterback may work wonders. Especially when their skill-sets mesh so well on paper.
With DeMario Douglas and Kyle Williams, the Patriots have plenty of speed at receiver. Boutte isn’t their fastest guy, but he has a knack for making deep catches. Mack Hollins is a big target at 6-foot-4. Doubs, who was Jordan Love’s favorite target in Green Bay last season, could be a wild card.
Weaknesses: Brown is coming off of a bit of a down year, by his standards. His 1,003 receiving yards were his fewest since 2021. He didn’t have any catches longer than 45 yards. Plus, he has a degenerative knee condition which hasn’t been much of a problem yet, but may affect him more as he ages.
With Brown and Doubs added to the mix, it may take Maye some time to build a connection with two of his primary receivers as they learn the playbook and get acclimated to the Patriots’ way of doing things.
Boutte has been the subject of trade rumors following the addition of Brown, and it’s not yet clear how that situation will play out.
Observations from OTA/Minicamp:
- Brown told reporters that his knee is fine and that’s he’s ready to go. I haven’t seen anything that would suggest the contrary. The Patriots eased him into drills during minicamp, but during that time his footwork looked fluid, his movements looked explosive, and he pulled down several highlight-reel catches.
- Boutte is heading into the final year of his rookie deal, and he has a $3.7 million cap hit for this season. The 24-year-old will be a free agent next year, but said he is open to returning to New England and would like to stay if possible.
- Kyle Williams put on some muscle during the offseason, which could be key as the speedster looks to round out his game.
- Doubs has been a bit of a mixed bag so far. His size and leaping ability flashed a couple times in red zone drills, but his playmaking hasn’t been as consistent as it could be.
2026-27 outlook: Maye should be more than capable of making this receiver group look good in 2026-27.
Brown is bigger, stronger, and more of a deep threat than Diggs is at this stage of their careers, which should change the way the Patriots can play offensively. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said the closest player he has coached in terms of sheer physical ability to Brown is Rob Gronkowski.
Doubs could be an intriguing piece as well, based on his physical attributes and production in Green Bay.
Boutte, Douglas, and Hollins played well in their roles last season. With Brown demanding attention for opposing defenses there should be even more open looks for them.
The quarterback was a big part of the receiver room’s success last year, and it shouldn’t be much different this season.
Khari A. Thompson
Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.
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