The New England Patriots have been unable to land one of the top wide receivers in free agency and have instead turned their focus towards the more veteran band-aid options.
While the Patriots were trying to land one of Marvin Jones, Travis Benjamin, Mohamed Sanu, or Rishard Matthews, the first three are no longer options and there has been little information about Matthews.
Jones signed a 5-year, $40 million deal with the Detroit Lions; Benjamin signed a 4-year, $24 million deal with the San Diego Chargers; Sanu is looking at an offer of $7 million per season from the Falcons. All too rich for the Patriots who rightly walked away.
CSNNE's Mike Giardi notes that the Patriots have changed targets with wide receivers.
Still on the wide receiver hunt, Pats have spoken with Anquan Boldin's people and James Jones (formerly of the Packers)
— Michael Giardi (@MikeGiardi) March 9, 2016
While Matthews is still an option, he'll likely pull in over $6 million per season, which is more than what Julian Edelman makes- and which is too expensive for the Patriots and their limited cap space.
Instead, the veterans would provide immediate value and could point towards the Patriots intention of drafting a player this season.
Boldin wants to play for a contender and Jones has consistently been a valuable target for Aaron Rodgers.