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The Patriots agreed to a new three-year contract with veteran wide receiver DeVante Parker on Tuesday worth up to $33 million. The deal has $14 million in guaranteed money, and keeps Parker in Foxborough through the 2025 season.
When New England traded for Parker from the Miami Dolphins ahead of last season, they took on the remainder of his contract, which called for two more seasons at a base salary of $5.7 million per year. The new deal, according to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, is expected to lower said base salary.
So what does the agreement mean for New England? Does it help them in their quest for pass catcher DeAndre Hopkins?
From a pessimist’s perspective, no it doesn't.
According to Reiss, the deal “doesn't appear to be related to the team's decision-making process on Hopkins.” Essentially saying that it wasn’t done exclusively to free up money for a Hopkins signing.
However, as an optimist, it doesn’t rule them out of the running either. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, who broke the news of Parker’s new deal, reported this for NFL Network on Tuesday:
“The new deal for Parker will immediately cause a hubbub regarding the Patriots potentially signing DeAndre Hopkins, who visited with the team earlier in June. However... Parker's new contract will not dampen any optimism of bringing in Hopkins, who's not expected to sign with a club until just before training camps kick off in late July.”
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Rapoport also wrote on Tuesday that Parker’s decision to re-sign with New England had to do with his desire to “help bring a championship back to New England.”
Parker caught 31 passes for 539 yards and three touchdowns in his debut season with the Patriots in 2022 and, when healthy, provided a big-bodied, possession receiver for quarterback Mac Jones (and Bailey Zappe) to target.
Long story short, Parker’s new deal does nothing to either help or hurt the Patriots' chances of adding veteran Hopkins to the mix. What it does do, however, is finally keep some consistency around Mac Jones as he enters a crucial third season in New England.
Make sure to follow Mike on Twitter @mikekadlick, and follow @WEEI for the latest up-to-date Patriots and Boston sports news!
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