The New England Patriots Offseason
2022 Dream Draft pick: Jahan Dotson
Although their are two better receiver prospects ahead of Jahan Dotson in Drake London and Treylon Burks, Dotson is the perfect player for Patriots offense as his style of play and skillset meshes with the current Patriots offense seamlessly. Dotson is a phenomenal route-runner with elite hands and has experience producing at high level in a run based offense like the Patriots run and you can be sure that with time and reps at the receiver position Dotson will be one of the best route-runners in the NFL.
The To-Do List
Get a playmaking wide receiver anyway you can
The Bill Belichicks one Achilles Heel in his head coaching career has been finding talented receivers for his quarterback to throw to and most of his success has come from free agent receivers, like Wes Welker and Danny Amendola, and the trade market, Randy Moss to be specific, but the NFL draft well for New England has been extremely dry for the Patriots. However, there is a receiver in free agency, the trade market, and the draft that could give the New England offense the playmaking receiver that they have been missing since Randy Moss left and any of the three could finally fill the void.
The New England Patriots need a playmaking receiver and their is no debate about it as they have a young quarterback in Mac Jones that can throw passes accurately and efficiently and all he needs is a receiver that can get open quickly and pick yards quickly and all three of the aforementioned receivers have a high chance of being productive receivers in New England's offense.
- Free Agency: The best free agent wide receiver available to me is Chris Godwin, assuming the Buccaneers don't resign him this offseason, and he would certainly give the Patriots the #1 receiver that they have been missing. Godwin is an elite route-runner with exceptional hands whose smart style of football at the position would mesh seamlessly with the Patriots offense and what they try to accomplish. Godwin is recovering from a torn ACL and he's one of the riskier players available to sign do his injury but their isn't a more reliable receiver in free agency and his skill set would certainly go well with Mac Jones's style of quarterbacking.
- Trade Market: The receiver trade market is spectacular but the one receiver that would make a huge difference for him is Calvin Ridley out of Atlanta whose all but said that he would like to the downward trending Falcons. Ridley, like Godwin, is an elite route-runner with tremendous hands but he's also one of the more versatile receivers in the game with his ability to line up anywhere and run any play as well as being a tremendous red zone weapon with his ability to separate in confined spaces and catch touchdowns. He had to leave the organization in 2021 due to mental health concerns and and with the Falcons about to be in a total rebuild in the next two season, shipping him off to garner draft picks might be their only option. The Patriots should be a very active trade partner for the Falcons as they are the most desirable of the bunch of potential buyers with them being in the AFC and their likelihood to give them a 2nd round pick if the Falcons do indeed need that. Ridley would get his fresh start in an organization that prides itself on winning and playing smart football and Mac Jones would get playmaker he needs to take his game to the next level.
- NFL Draft: The New England Patriots don't like going to the draft to fix their receiver troubles but this draft is full of excellent receivers in the first round and with teams likely to go in other directions, it could mean that the New Engel receiver draft curse could be broken and the perfect receiver for them in the draft is Penn State's Jahan Dotson. Dotson is one of the top 2 route-runners in the draft with elite hands and athleticism and is regarded as the best deep threat availble in draft. He's also had success on a run-based offense, like the Patriots run, and consistently makes the most out of his opportunities and won't clamoring to get 15 targets in a game to be productive. He's the perfect receiver in the draft to go with Mac Jones and is one often most surefire receiver prospects available.
The New England Patriots need a playmaking receiver and their is no debate about it as they have a young quarterback in Mac Jones that can throw passes accurately and efficiently and all he needs is a receiver that can get open quickly and pick yards quickly and all three of the aforementioned receivers have a high chance of being productive receivers in New England's offense.
Resign J.C. Jackson
The New England Patriots have always been a defensive oriented team with Bill Belichick at the helm and one of the most underrated things that the Patriots do is they develop talent in their very own system and when those talent players leave in free agency if they want more money Belichick simply replaces the cog and they go off and often fail which forces the other members of the team to reconsider demanding credit and massive contracts from the Belichick regime, but one player that Belichick may need to open up his check book for is J.C. Jackson who many believe was the best cornerback in football in 2021 and this defensive unit probably will take a huge step back if the Patriots let him walk an sign with another team. J.C. Jackson isn't just some cornerback with elite hands, which he does have, but he proved himself to be a lockdown cornerback in 2021 and blanketed a teams top receiver all year long and cornerbacks with his level of play get the bank bag in free agency. He's had elite production in his four year patriot career which shows me that not just a product of the system and I don't think that the Belichick defense can thrive as much as they did without him. He'll probably cost around $20,000,00 a year to retain and with the Patriots only having around just over $7,000,000 in cap room they'll have to clear space for him but their are plenty of players on the roster that can go for them to get him paid. Belichick can certainly sit tight and give him a deal that is very team friendly and hope that he takes a hometown discount but considering that he's a undrafted free agent who has never been paid to his level of play, I highly doubt he takes their offer.
Address the offensive tackle position in the draft
The New England Patriots are on the verge of being in cap hell but not in 2022 and if they sign J.C. Jackson to his mega deal that means that impending free agent Trenton Brown won't be retained which leaves the offensive tackle position and unless the Patriots have a back up peice that can take the reigns in New England, they'll have to to address this position in the draft. I have the Patriots going receiver in the draft as I think Jahan Dotson is a much better prospect than any of the offensive lineman available and obviously if Dotson is gone and an offensive tackle like Charles Cross or Nicholas Petit-Frere are available I would go in that direction but they likely will have a chance at a decent prospect in Day 2. If I am Belichick, I am looking into a Trevor Penning, Bernhard Raimann, or Daniel Faalele is they fit the New England Patriot offensive lien mold to a "T". They are all immense from a size perspective, they are extremely powerful, and they are all excellent run blockers. Trenton Brown is one of the biggest offensive lineman to ever play the game of football and even he is rivaled by some these guys coming, especially Faalele, and the Patriots are going to need replace him if they want chance in making and competing in the playoffs.