Bill Belichick insists Patriots did prioritize Jakobi Meyers in free agency

BOSTON -- As far as roster decisions go for the 2023 Patriots, the signing of JuJu Smith-Schuster instead of Jakobi Meyers at slot receiver figures to be a major talking point this week.

Considering Meyers was, in many ways, a perfect Patriot from 2019-22, it remains a bit befuddling that the team let him leave in free agency. So head coach Bill Belichick was asked Wednesday why the team didn't prioritize the receiver last spring. Belichick didn't agree with that assessment of the situation.

"Yeah he was a priority," Belichick replied. "We talked to him."

When asked if the Patriots and Meyers ever got close on a deal, Belichick said, "Uh relatively, yeah. But free agency is free agency."

The Patriots had ample time to sign Meyers, but the two sides apparently never got close to the three-year, $33 million deal with $21 million guaranteed that Meyers got from Las Vegas. The Patriots instead signed Smith-Schuster to a three-year, $25.5 million contract with $16 million guaranteed.

After Smith-Schuster signed his contract in New England, Meyers tweeted his reaction:

That tweet might require some interpretation, but many on the outside saw it as a reaction to the Patriots giving Smith-Schuster the contract that Meyers wanted.

Belichick's comments on Wednesday, though, indicated his belief that Meyers left on his own accord.

"Yeah, well, I mean, he was a free agent, and he signed with the Raiders," Belichick said. "There's a lot of guys who leave and change teams in free agency. But yeah, Jakobi looks like he looked here."

Though Smith-Schuster is unlikely to play after suffering a concussion in Sunday's game, his production prior to suffering the injury had been quite underwhelming. The seventh-year receiver has caught 14 passes for just 86 yards this season and has yet to catch a touchdown, while often displaying a lack of confidence and conviction in his route running and run blocking.

Meyers, meanwhile, has been a reliable chain mover for the Raiders, catching 25 passes for 274 yards, with 14 of those receptions resulting in first downs and three more resulting in touchdowns.

His departure from New England surprised many, including his former teammates. Julian Edelman said this week that he remains "shook" by that decision, while Devin McCourty expressed some shock during the offseason that the Patriots let Meyers go. While one receiver -- who was, as a reminder, part of the woeful 2022 offense in New England -- would not solve all or even many of their issues, McCourty spoke to the type of culture shift that can happen when the team lets a player like Meyers walk out the door.

"I thought from a leadership standpoint going forward, he's like that guy if I'm a coach, I'm saying, 'Be like Jakobi. Undrafted guy, earned it, works his butt off every single day. Everything we said was a weakness for him, he continues to work at it. And the things that we say are his strengths, he just continues to master. Like, be like him.' So I think that's a big loss," McCourty said. "Not a very vocal guy, but he's a guy that you say, be like him. Very similar in the mold of Edelman. Like, be like him. Come down and crack the safety, which I know you don't like doing, but we're gonna make you crack 10 times in this game, because it's key to winning. Jakobi did that. So I think that was a big loss." 

Meyers caught seven passes for 75 yards and a touchdown in a nationally televised victory for the Raiders on Monday night. If he can replicate that success in a winning effort against his former team on Sunday, then the sting in New England is sure to intensify even more.