Bill Belichick: No Regret for Jakobi Meyers' New England Patriots Departure
Divorces are often defined by regret and wondering what might or could have been.
Leave it to Bill Belichick to go the colder, less-traveled road.
Homecoming weekend awaits Belichick's reeling New England Patriots (1-4), who will look for some semblance of a clue on Sunday afternoon against the Las Vegas Raiders after consecutive 30-plus point defeats (4:05 p.m. ET, CBS). Several familiar Foxborough faces reside on the Raiders' roster, none more prominent ... or, in the modern Patriots' case, glaring ... among that group than Jakobi Meyers.
As Meyers Bowl I looms, Belichick expressed no regrets for letting him walk, though he mostly stuck to the most basic facts of the case when addressing the departure.
“He was a free agent and signed with the Raiders,” Belichick bluntly declared in video from NBC Sports Boston. “A lot of guys leave and change teams in free agency. But Jakobi looks like he looked here.”
Meyers would be the leading statistical receiver on the Patriots if he stuck around
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Pressed for the particulars of the negotiations, namely over whether a deal was close, Belichick only disclosed that Meyers was "relatively" close to returning and that "free agency is free agency.”
Meyers' move raised eyebrows in New England circles, as he was far and away the Patriots' most prominent and consistent aerial playmaker over the last two seasons (1,670 yards, 8 touchdowns). With Mac Jones facing a potential make-or-break season under center, letting his favorite receiver go in favor of long-established slot man JuJu Smith-Schuster seemed all the more curious.
In four games with the Raiders (2-3), Meyers has amassed 274 yards on 25 receptions, three of which have gone for scores. Even though Meyers missed a Week 2 loss to Buffalo due to injury, each of those numbers would be tops on the current Patriots, who have scored a combined three points over the last two weeks.
