New England ‘All In’ on Upcoming Free Agent Star Wideout

The New England Patriots have their quarterback in Drake Maye and really need to find some consistent, explosive weapons for him.

There are capable pass catchers in DeMario Douglas and Kendrick Bourne in New England, but the Patriots haven’t had a true No. 1 goal for several years at this point. That needs to change in the near future to truly maximize Maye’s potential.

The Athletic’s Chad Graff threw in his assessment of what the Patriots could do this offseason to finally meet that need.

“Here’s an easy guess just by reading the tea leaves: The Patriots will be all in on Tee Higgins,” Graff wrote. “They’ve shown interest in established receivers and Higgins is the best free agent. I expect them to offer him the moon. The question is whether he says yes or no.”

Higgins made sense for the Patriots entering the 2020 NFL Draft out of Clemson and makes even more sense now. He is no. 1 on most other teams when he’s not playing alongside a special talent like Ja’Marr Chase. The Cincinnati Bengals wideout has 29 career touchdowns, found the end zone twice in Super Bowl LVI and posted a pair of 1,000-yard seasons so far in his career.

Higgins takes the field on Monday Night Football to round out Week 14 when the Bengals visit the Dallas Cowboys. The Patriots return from their bye week to visit the Arizona Cardinals in Week 15.