The New England Patriots practiced against the Indianapolis Colts before their preseason game on Thursday, and several positions on the field warranted serious attention, including the quarterbacks, edge, tight end, and guard.
One that was always going to be a focus is the wide receivers. Bringing in two new ones to replace last year's top two will do that.
The wideout getting the most attention will always be No. 1 receiver, A.J. Brown. Yet following him is another newcomer, a free-agent signee who arrived with far less fanfare but could be a terrific asset. That's likely No. 2 receiver, Romeo Doubs.
Doubs is getting attention not only from the assembled media around Gillette Stadium but also from a very key teammate, star quarterback Drake Maye. He likes what he sees in Doubs, a former Green Bay Packer, and that's good news not only for the player but also for the offense.
Drake Maye had a lot of high praise for Romeo Doubs ahead of the preseason opener
Maye had some high words of praise for his new teammate recently. It must have been music to Doubs' ears, since he's been getting mixed reviews from some commentators for his performances at summer camp.
Maye, however, is highly positive on Doubs.
"I think he’s continuing to catch kind of a stride with how we do things, and how we want it to look, and the details. He’s just continuing to get better and better. I’m looking forward to seeing him go. I think he’s been a great addition and I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do.”
The wide receiver room is one of the Patriots' strongest positions on the field, along with the quarterback and defensive backfield. It's a position of serious depth, with Brown and Doubs joining 2025 players Mack Hollins, Kayshon Boutte, Pop Douglas, and Efton Chism III.
Hearing Maye talk glowingly of Doubs could have serious ramifications for the season in two ways.
The key one is Doubs outperforming the erstwhile No. 2 wideouts last season. He did just that with his 55 catches for 724 yards and six touchdowns last season in Green Bay. With Maye throwing him the rock, the expectations are that he'll improve on those numbers significantly.
In addition, Doubs' progress will allow the Patriots to trade one, or maybe even two, of their current receivers for help at other, more needy positions. Either Kayshon Boutte or Pop Douglas, or both, can (and should) be offloaded to shore up other positions of greater need.
These include the three mentioned: edge, tight end, and guard. Not doing so is inviting disaster.
The Patriots should read a lot into Maye's comment and expect Romeo Doubs to be flying by September 9, when the season begins in Seattle. Meanwhile, trading a wideout or two to bolster a weaker position(s) makes perfect sense.
That should be the course that Mike Vrabel and his personnel team adopt. Regardless, Doubs' progress is a major positive, and Maye will have more and better options on the end of his passes in 2026 than he did last season.
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