As is always the case when there’s a notable name on the free agent market, the Patriots have been named as a potential landing spot for Reggie Wayne.
Player agents know the best way to turn up interest on a player is to say the Patriots are interested in them, but that doesn’t always make it true. Still, Bill Belichick’s respect for Reggie Wayne is well-known and the Pats did have interest in him a couple seasons ago when he was a free agent.
But is there really a fit for New England? The Pats didn’t think enough of him in the AFC Championship to give him much of any attention. Whether or not Wayne has enough left in the tank to contribute in a meaningful way in New England is questionable.
Julian Edelman and Brandon LaFell are locked in at the top of the depth chart, and Danny Amendola is a near-lock as a slot receiver and returner.
Then there’s one of the better camp battles for the last couple spots between Aaron Dobson and Brian Tyms with Josh Boyce hoping to get lucky or for an injury. Brandon Gibson showed promise under Josh McDaniels in St. Louis and is already the wild card of the bunch.
Dobson and Tyms are young players who could blossom with more game snaps. At least Tyms plays special teams, that’s a huge benefit for a receiver who’s down the depth chart.
What’s the value of adding Wayne to the roster? Can he pick up the Patriots’ offense without any time in OTAs or mini camp? He’s a smart player for sure, but we saw Chad Ochocinco play all of 2011 as a non-factor on a team that really needed him to be a factor.
The question is how much would Reggie Wayne improve the Patriots offense and at this point, it’s hard to say much, if at all. If Danny Amendola were to go down, that could open the door. But Wayne would still have stiff competition for that third receiving spot, the only place he’d get any playing time.
Dobson and Tyms aren’t slot guys, but sliding Edelman inside to utilize them on the outside would be a solution without Amendola that still might be better than Wayne.
Everyone gets excited when rumors of (formerly) big names are linked to the Pats, but I’d still consider Wayne-to-the-Patriots to be a long shot.
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