Patriots: 3 wide receivers Pats should draft in 2021

2. Ja’Marr Chase

LSU stud Ja’Marr Chase is widely considered the top WR prospect in the nation.

A prominent contributor to LSU’s record-setting campaign last year, Ja’Marr Chase informed the program in August that he would opt out of the 2020 season not due to concerns about the ongoing pandemic, but to focus on his professional career.

While choosing not to play has allowed other receivers to enter the national spotlight, Chase did more than enough as a sophomore in 2019 to remain the consensus top WR prospect in the nation, when he racked up 84 receptions for 1,780 yards and 20 touchdowns.

For those wondering, the latter two marks led the country in their respective categories and his 21.2 yards per reception ranked second among all receivers with at least 50 catches. That’s sensational when you consider that Chase was competing with Justin Jefferson, who’s currently lighting up the NFL as a rookie, for targets.

Chase has proven capable of beating press coverage in a variety of different ways and he, despite not being the tallest wideout in the world at 6-foot, has a remarkable tendency to out-jump his defenders and come down with 50/50 balls. To put it simply, the LSU star is about as safe of a prospect as any player in the 2020 class and we wouldn’t fault the Patriots for drafting him with their first-round pick.