Three more free agents the Patriots should sign in 2023
Free agency is the most exciting time of the year. Let’s look at some more free agents the New England Patriots should consider signing.
With the amount of free agents that are available, we could write hundreds of articles about who the Patriots should sign. It’s good to keep a solid perspective on these things as while it’s fun to predict what could happen, it’s still smart to take a more conservative approach so disappointment doesn’t set in.
Let’s highlight three more free agents the Patriots should sign in 2023
Jerick McKinnon, RB
The Patriots could use someone reliable behind Rhamondre Stevenson, who will take over the lead back role in 2023. I think Stevenson is going to explode in year three, but he can’t get all of the carries, which is where Jerick McKinnon comes into play.
McKinnon has spent the past two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs and missed all of the 2018 and 2019 seasons with injuries.
However, his 2022 season was solid. He rushed for 291 yards on a 4.0 yards per carry average and also added 512 receiving yards on 56 catches. He’s someone who can have some threatening moments as a runner and can do some damage as a pass catcher. The Patriots could certainly use McKinnon in both ways.
Blake Gillikin, P
The Patriots should consider replacing Jake Bailey at punter in the future. Blake Gillikin makes some sense. He’s only 25 years old and averaged 47.7 yards per punt in his first season and 46.4 yards per punt in his second year in 2022.
He’s been reliable in both campaigns and seems to be someone the Pats could rely on more than Jake Bailey. A whopping 41.6% of his punts in 2022 landed inside the opponents 20 yard line and has a long of 68 yards, coming in 2022.
He’s played in every game of his career and has not had a punt blocked, either.
Jermaine Eluemunor, RT
How about bringing back an old friend who just had a career year? Jermaine Eluemunor was with the Patriots in the 2019 and 2020 seasons, starting eight games and playing in 2022.
He was a 17 game starter for the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022 and had his best year by far at right tackle. Depending on what happens with Trent Brown and in the NFL Draft, the Pats might benefit from adding a right tackle in free agency.
If they slide Trent Brown back to right tackle and focus more on left tackle, I wouldn’t be surprised, but my thinking is they’ll simply try to add as much talent as possible to this unit.
Eluemunor would be a nice addition on the cheap.