One of the many hallmarks of Bill Belichick’s tenure as head coach and de facto general manager of the Patriots was his propensity to trade down during the NFL Draft.
Whether it was trading out of his pick in the late-first round for an extra pick on day three, or moving down only a few spots for more bites at the apple the following season, it always felt like Belichick was playing chess against himself when it came to his draft day maneuvering.
We’re not doing a deep-dive into Belichick’s draft record right now - that’s a different column for a different day (preferably during draft season). But one thing we can definitively say without a full-on breakdown is Belichick struggled to draft talent at the receiver position throughout his entire tenure.
So when New England traded down with the Los Angeles Chargers from 34th to 37th overall in the second round of this spring’s NFL Draft, the Spider-Man memes were warranted.
And when it turned out that the Chargers were taking Georgia wide receiver Ladd McConkey at 34, and the Patriots were taking Washington wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk at 37, a collective bout with PTSD was felt by the fanbase, hoping and praying the organization hadn’t just N’Keal Harry’d themselves yet again.
Unfortunately for the Foxborough Faithful, the early returns are trending in that exact same direction.
Change the coach. Change the draft-day decision makers. Get the same result.
You truly can’t make this stuff up.
Serving in the Harry role in this situation is Polk, who has been wholly disappointing in year one after a promising training camp and preseason.
Appearing in 14 of his team’s 15 games this season, Polk has a mere 12 catches on 32 targets for 87 yards and 2 touchdowns.
In the month of December alone, Polk has 0 catches on 2 targets. And in Week 16’s loss up in Buffalo, he played a season-low three snaps on offense.
Make no mistake about it - Polk’s rookie season has been an unmitigated disaster.
Despite his follies, Patriots offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt told the media before practice on Thursday that he still believes in the 22-year-old receiver moving forward.
“Yeah it’s tough,” said Van Pelt. “Like I’ve said before with [Polk], you know, coming in as a rookie, you don’t always light it up in your first year. It takes some time to adjust to the pro game.
“You know, again - tons of confidence in Polk, [Javon] Baker as well. Excited to get those guys going. If we’re getting them along this year, great. If not, you know, an offseason in-hand will help them learn this system. You know, sometimes things don’t go your way, you just gotta pull yourself out of it, and that’s what we’ll continue to encourage with Polk. But I’m not down on him at all.”
Later in the press conference, Van Pelt was asked if Polk and fellow rookie Javon Baker should look to second-year receiver Kayshon Boutte as an example of what a year two leap can look like, considering where Boutte was after his rookie season and where he is now.
“Absolutely,” said Van Pelt. “And that’s what it’s all about. I mean, these guys - you know, I don’t see them as one-year, one-and-done players at all. I mean, they’re here to grow and develop within our system, and I expect those guys to come out and help us a ton next year.”
For more context on the Boutte comp - after falling all the way to the sixth round in the 2023 NFL Draft, the former LSU standout only managed 2 catches on 7 targets during five appearances in his rookie season. Many questioned if Boutte would even make the roster during training camp heading into this season, with a receiver room, at the time, that seemed over-crowded.
The 22-year-old not only made the team, but is now second among Patriots receivers this season in catches, targets, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, and leads the team in yards per catch (13.9 YPC).
His yards per catch mark is actually good for 18th-best in the entire NFL, tied with Packers wide receiver Romeo Doubs, and….
…McConkey.
If I can go back to the N’Keal Harry analogy for a minute - McConkey is currently serving in the Deebo Samuel/A.J. Brown/D.K. Metcalf/Terry McLaurin role (what a disastrous pick that was in 2019).
The Chargers rookie led his team with 6 catches for 87 yards in Los Angeles' Thursday night-win over the Broncos in Week 16, giving him at least 50 receiving yards in eight-straight games. That's the longest such streak by a rookie since Odell Beckham Jr. in 2014.
In 14 games of action, McConkey has 69 catches on 94 targets for 960 yards and 5 touchdowns, ranking ninth among all NFL pass-catchers and second among rookie pass-catchers behind Raiders tight end Brock Bowers.
Worst of all, Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo told the media before practice on Thursday that the team “did some work on him” ahead of the draft.
Despite the team doing their due diligence on McConkey, they opted for trading down to take Polk - Washington’s No. 2 receiver during their National Championship runner-up season in 2023.
As of now, it’s looking like 2019 all over again.
“[McConkey is] a guy that can get open versus man-to-man coverage,” said Mayo. “And look, he’s playing well right now. He also does a good job finding the space in the zone coverages, and he’s definitely a player here to keep an eye on.”
When asked if the team opted to pass on drafting McConkey because they didn’t have a specific need at the slot receiver position, Mayo said, “As a whole, I would say we’re always looking to improve our roster. Now, what position that happens to be could change on a daily basis, you know, during those times.
“Look - we got the guys that we have here, and our focus is just on this game.”
While this might be an understandable sentiment from Mayo, you can’t blame Patriots fans for looking in their rearview mirror on Saturday, wondering if their favorite team - yet again - got the wrong guy at wideout.
New England is currently a 4-point underdog against Los Angeles, with kickoff set for 1:00 p.m. ET at Gillette Stadium.