Mac Jones and the Patriots really don’t want to be without top receiver Jakobi Meyers (out, concussion) heading into the biggest game of their season Monday night. (Honestly, every game they play from here on out is their biggest game of the year.)
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But Meyers doesn’t have to mean no hope for the Patriots’ offense. In fact, that hasn’t been the case any of the times Meyers was out for extended time this season.
The addition of DeVante Parker, as uninspiring as it seems, has been a big reason for that.
The veteran receiver dropped his best game of the season by far (156 yards on five catches) in Week 3 against the Ravens and scored his lone touchdown of 2022 against the Packers the following week with Meyers sitting out those games.
Then, with Meyers battling a shoulder injury in Week 12 against Minnesota, Parker put up 80 yards on four catches, including another big downfield shot from Jones.
The Patriots will need another such game from Parker, who’s currently the second-leading receiver on the team with 436 yards. In particular, it’d be great if the offense could finally get the big-bodied receiver some red-zone production.
Parker was billed as a player who could go get 50-50 balls and post receivers up down the field, but his one “50-50” throw into the end zone we all remember was picked off on a misfire from Jones in Week 3. The Cardinals own the worst red-zone defense in the league and give up the most passing touchdowns in football. It’s time to toss some of those back-shoulder fades and slants Jones and Parker have been working on when it matters most.
Beyond that, it’s time for another pass-catcher not named Hunter Henry or Rhamondre Stevenson to get into the act as well. Since the Patriots don’t seem that interested in playing Kendrick Bourne or getting Tyquan Thornton the football, that probably means Nelson Agholor by default. Force-feeding Parker the ball has already proven to have diminishing returns on multiple occasions.
Nonetheless, the Patriots probably don’t win on Monday night unless Parker has a No. 1 receiver-type performance.