4. Jakobi Meyers, New England Patriots
The Patriots’ lack of weapons (or severe lack thereof) was a big storyline in New England last year. Damiere Byrd, N’Keal Harry and Julian Edelman all struggled for one reason or another. But the one receiver who bucked that trend was Jakobi Meyers, even if he wasn’t a superstar in his own right.
Meyers went undrafted in 2019 and, given the scouting report on him, it wasn’t difficult to ascertain why. He had good hands and body control but many attributes were lacking. The Patriots saw something in him and, after some rookie flashes, he put himself on the map in 2020. Meyers displayed good chemsitry with Cam Newton and produced at a respectable clip.
This offseason, the Patriots clearly recognized how bad their weapons were and made moves to improve that. Their free agency haul included wide receivers Kendrick Bourne and Nelson Agholor while they also inked tight ends Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry to lucrative deals.
While the New England pass-catching corps is much improved, Meyers is just as good as anyone else in that group. He should be poised for a breakout year as the newcomers on the Patriots offense should take pressure off of him and ultimately allow him to have more open looks.