Despite coming off an ACL tear, Kendrick Bourne has a deal in place before free agency. The Patriots still have the veteran wide receiver in their plans, agreeing to terms on a three-year deal, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Bourne, 28, has impressed in spurts with the Patriots; although his first contract produced an inconsistent tenure, the team still values the former 49er. The deal could pay up to $33MM. It is likely incentives comprise a sizable part of that number. Indeed, the Boston Herald’s Andrew Callahan reports Bourne is staying with the Pats for $19.5MM. Although it is not known how much of the deal is guaranteed, Callahan adds Bourne will receive a $4.2MM signing bonus.
It is a bit interesting Bourne’s October ACL tear did not result in a one-year deal — potentially so he could reset his market for 2025. Bourne signed a three-year, $15MM deal with the Patriots in 2021, and he has another three-year pact in place to build on what he accomplished. Bourne will be playing for a fourth Pats OC in four years, with Alex Van Pelt taking over. Even with this turnover, the organization continues to prioritize Bourne.
[RELATED: Patriots Re-Sign TE Hunter Henry]
As of late February, Bourne had not engaged in talks with the Pats. But the sides huddled up recently and hammered out a deal. The Pats had wanted to bring back Bourne and Henry; they accomplished both goals without needing to compete with other suitors on the open market. Henry fetched a bigger contract, but that should not surprise given this year’s tight end market and Bourne’s injury. Still, this represents a decent consolation prize for Bourne, who was playing well before his knee setback.
Known as a solid blocker in San Francisco, Bourne totaled 800 receiving yards in his first Patriots season. The Pats’ offense deteriorated swiftly after Josh McDaniels‘ 2022 exit, and Bourne appeared to fall out of favor with the team later that year. Bourne came up in trade rumors at each of the past two deadlines, as the Patriots tumbled into the rare position of potential seller. The team did not bite, keeping the likes of Kyle Dugger, Michael Onwenu and Josh Uche. The latter two are on track for free agency, but Dugger received the transition tag this week.
The Patriots still appear to be hunting for a bigger name to anchor their receiving corps. They are expected to pursue Calvin Ridley, who joins Marquise Brown and Gabriel Davis as the top WRs available following the tags of Tee Higgins and Michael Pittman Jr. and Mike Evans‘ re-signing. The Pats signed JuJu Smith-Schuster for $16MM guaranteed last year, making it less likely he is moved this offseason. DeVante Parker, however, may be jettisoned via trade or release. But Bourne, who averaged a career-high 50.8 yards per game during a four-TD 2023 season, is staying put as a likely auxiliary weapon.
Not bad.
Patriots overpaying to bring back mediocre 30 year old receivers with injury histories. What a novel approach to rebuilding a franchise.
Is there any part of that first sentence that could remotely be considered true?