It's That Time of Year Where Every Unhappy WR is Linked to the Patriots. First Up: Tee Higgins, Whom They're Reportedly 'All In' On

The circumstances changed drastically after Tom Brady Irish Exited out of New England on St. Patrick's Day 2020, but the overall dynamic has stayed the same. Any time a 1,000-plus yard NFL wide receiver appears to be unhappy with his current situation, he's automatically rumored to be coming to Foxboro. 

For 20 years, the reason was obvious. It was naturally assumed that everybody who fits the criteria was going to pull a Randy Moss (prayers to him and his loved ones for whatever challenges they're facing), because they're desperate to come here, chase a ring, and catch passes from Brady. Even if that means taking a massive pay cut, the way Moss did. 

Now that power dynamic has shifted, and the desperation is on the other foot. But the expectations have strangely remained the same. So that when it's become clear Tee Higgins is looking for a way out of Cincinnati, to the point of refusing to negotiate, even as his teammates are pleading with him to stay:

… it's inevitable that he's linked to the Patriots. Let the speculation, the photoshopping:

… and the "NFL Insider" reports begin.

The Athletic - Here’s an easy guess simply from reading the tea leaves: The Patriots are going to be all in on Tee Higgins. They’ve shown an 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.

Now if this were 10 years ago, I'd be skeptical of this. Actually, I'd be offering to buy out half of Portnoy's ownership of this company, selling short on Gawker, and then be skeptical of this. Because then, the Pats were dealing from a position of strength. They were always capable of finding another Danny Amendola or whomever. And it was important then to manage the cap in a fiscally and footbally responsible way. That was the core philosophical belief they'd built an empire on. No one was indispensable except the quarterback and coach. So if Larry Fitzgerald or Calvin Johnson was content to stay put and win five games a year, so be it. We didn't need them. 

But the last I checked, this wasn't 2014. Not by the calendar, and not by the AFC standings. Now we do need Larry Fitzgerald or Calvin Johnson of their primes. But they're in short supply. And looking at the wideout free agent market, it's fair to say the most reasonable facsimile available is Higgins. They'd have to "offer him the moon," and some satellites and an asteroid or two, because that's our reality at the moment. 

The Pats really only offer two selling points to a Higgins. One is the potential Drake Maye has shown. Which, while a plus, hardly provides the sort of gravitational pull that the Kansas Citys, Buffalos and Detroits possess. Hell, as high as I am on Maye, Burrow is a more attractive option. 

The other is that once Higgins arrives at OTAs, he's unquestionably The Man. The Alpha. Which presumably is what he's looking for. So there'll be no more of this:

We can have a healthy debate about whether Higgins can be a legit WR1. Though it's a small sample size, his past performances would suggest that's a big yes:

Even this season, in which he's missed some games with injuries and supposedly hasn't played his best, he's averaging 72.6 yards per game, which is the second most in his career. To put that in Patriots terms, he's averaging almost as much as team leaders Hunter Henry (46.9) and Pop Douglas (38.2) combined. Guys with his abilities don't hit the open market at the age of 26 every day.

More importantly, all Higgins will cost is money. To borrow a phrase from Terrance Mann in Field of Dreams, for it is cap space the Patriots have. And targets for Drake Maye that they lack. After the last few seasons, my fear is that Higgins will come here, cost a ton of money, and just end up being the next De’Vante Nelson Smith-Gordon. But my much greater fear is that they'll gamble yet another high draft pick who produces the way Ja'Lynn Baker (87 yards on the season) or Javon Baker (zero receptionns) did. And my greatest fear of all is they don't spend money, don't draft anyone, and just roll up into training camp with this same wide receiver room. And there's no way they can let that happen. 

Sign Tee Higgins at any cost. We don't need the moon anyway.