5 wide receivers the Patriots should avoid in free agency 

Jamal Agnew 

Agnew is quite a good punt returner, but he’s never caught more than 24 passes in a single season. The Patriots don’t really need a punt returner when they already have Marcus Jones. JuJu Smith Schuster will be the slot receiver in the foreseeable future, so pursuing an older, less experienced option is unnecessary. 

Agnew is going to cost around $5 million, too. That’s a lot of money for someone who has only scored 12 touchdowns in seven years! 

Laviska Shenault 

Shenault has to be one of the most disappointing players in the NFL. He was labeled as the new Deebo Samuel early in his career, but he’s only started 15 games in his last three seasons. While he has a very impressive 71.5% catch rate throughout his career, he only averages 8.7 yards per touch. He's scored just seven touchdowns in four years and only two in his last two seasons.

Injuries have been a big reason for Shenault’s underperformance (and he’s been on some pretty bad teams), and that’s also a reason to avoid him in free agency. His previous contract was worth less than $2 million last season. And he is just 25, so he’ll be looking for a long-term deal. But it would be a very risky investment.