Continued punishment of Patriots rookie makes little sense after solid showing

Throughout training camp and the preseason, Patriots rookie receivers Javon Baker and Ja'Lynn Polk alternated who was the current standout projected to have a stellar 2024 season. It was a welcomed problem for the team to have, as they needed improvement in their wide receiver room, and it became even more crucial with the addition of quarterback Drake Maye.

The possibility of the new regime hitting it out of the park on two draft picks would be an incredible start to their tenures, and it looked like they were well on their way to that being true.

But since the regular season began, Baker and Polk have been underwhelmed by the opportunities they were given, especially Polk. His rookie teammate has seemingly been in the doghouse since the season began, being a healthy scratch to start the year and being relegated to special teams in recent weeks.

With the release of Tyquan Thornton, Baker was given a shot to make an impact in Week 11 against the Rams, starting as the kick returner. He impressed early with a 46-yard return on the opening play and added another solid effort with a 16-yard return later in the game, only to be benched for the rest of the game.

Jerod Mayo's explanation for that decision makes little to no sense.

Javon Baker remaining in the Patriots doghouse is starting to not add up

While speaking to reporters on Monday morning, Mayo was asked about what happened after Baker's two returns, to which he revealed disappointment with Baker's performance.

“On the kick returns, he was back there on the first couple snaps and he didn’t execute the way we all had hoped he would. I know it was a big return, even on that big return it was one of those situations, ‘Is he coming out? Is he not coming out?' And same thing with the second kickoff return.”

While Baker did muff the second kickoff before recovering it himself, only giving him two chances to show he could be a solid option in the role doesn't seem like enough to outright bench him for what they deemed to be an underwhelming performance.

His first return gave the Patriots offense excellent field positioning and immediately started the game with excitement among the players. All of that is much-needed in the middle of a rough rebuilding season. Not to mention, a rookie deserves to be given a shot more than once during the season, which Baker hasn't been given.

This just adds more confusion to what's going on behind the scenes with the Patriots wide receivers and the concerns regarding the development of the rookies they chose to double-dip on in this year's draft. Something isn't adding up, and both are being labeled as busts, which is not a great look for the team, especially since they haven't been given a fair shake.

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