Arbella Early Edition

Which receivers would work well in McDaniels' Patriots offense?

Several high-profile wideouts could be available this offseason.

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Phil Perry reveals his first mock draft for the New England Patriots ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft. Phil explains why he thinks the team will ‘eat their vegetables’ by drafting an offensive tackle with the fourth overall pick in the first round.

The New England Patriots have a new head coach and new coordinators. Now, they just need new players.

The Patriots had one of the NFL's least talented rosters in 2024, particularly at wide receiver, where their most productive player, DeMario Douglas, ranked 61st in the NFL with 621 receiving yards. So, while the pairing of talented quarterback Drake Maye and veteran OC Josh McDaniels has tantalizing potential, New England still needs to make massive upgrades at the receiver position (among others) to set Maye up for success.

The good news is the Patriots have a league-leading $120 million in cap space and a wealth of draft assets that they can use to pursue a wide receiver via free agency and/or the trade market. During Thursday's Arbella Edition, Patriots Insiders Phil Perry and Tom E. Curran discussed which wideouts should be on the Patriots' radar from the perspective of how they'd work with an OC like McDaniels.

The first name Perry mentioned is Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who has a potential out in his contract for 2025 and could be a cap casualty for Los Angeles.

"When you talk about McDaniels' offense, that's where I go first," Perry said. "(McDaniels) is on the ground floor in terms of the development of that slot position with Wes Welker -- obviously Troy Brown before that -- but Welker and (Julian) Edelman and (Danny) Amendola.

"So if it's Kupp, great -- that could be your Julian Edelman moving forward, because not only is he going to be able to operate between the numbers the way did against the Patriots in the middle of the season, but he's going to be able to block too, which I think Josh McDaniels really values."

Kupp might be past his prime at age 31 and has seen his production dip in three consecutive seasons down to 67 receptions for 710 yards and six touchdowns in 2024. But he still could serve as a valuable security blanket for Maye while acting as the "adult in the room" for a very young group of Patriots wideouts.

Perry then brought up a familiar name in Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Jakobi Meyers, who spent his first three NFL seasons in New England with McDaniels and increased his production every year. Meyers would be a trade candidate but is entering the final year of his contract with the Raiders with a $15 million cap hit.

"You'd have to trade for him. He's under contract," Perry said. "But that's just another one where obviously he'd have some familiarity there. He appreciates the guy, respects the guy I'm sure, so that'd be an interesting one."

Curran identified a wideout who has history with Mike Vrabel in DeAndre Hopkins, who racked up 1,057 yards and seven touchdowns on Vrabel's Tennessee Titans in 2023.

"They need smart guys who understand where to go and what to do, and to me, I look at DeAndre Hopkins," Curran said. "Has history with Vrabel at Tennessee had a very good year in Tennessee with Vrabel (in 2023)."

As for the No. 1 receiver set to hit free agency? Perry and Curran both believed it's possible that the Cincinnati Bengals end up re-signing Tee Higgins, but Perry still thinks the 26-year-old would be a no-brainer fit for New England if he's available.

"There's a possibility," Perry said. "We talked about it on the (Patriots Talk) Podcast; I put it at a 4 out of 10 (that Higgins could join the Patriots). ... Higgins is a No. 1, and there are not many names we just mentioned that are still No. 1s."

Check out the YouTube video below for Perry and Curran's full discussion with co-hosts Trenni Casey and Adam Jones.

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