The New England Patriots’ wide receiver room is absolutely stacked right now, with seven players already on the depth chart bringing NFL experience and production. Honestly, it’s getting so crowded something’s gotta give by roster cutdown day next week. Executive Vice President of Player Personnel Eliot Wolf isn’t complaining, though, telling WBZ during Saturday’s preseason game, “It’s funny to listen to it, because a couple of years ago everybody was saying that we didn’t have anything and now we have too many, so it’s a good problem to have.” You gotta love it when your biggest headache is having too much talent.
The Veteran Wall and the Youth Movement
The Patriots weren’t messing around this offseason, beefing up their receiving corps big time. They went out and snagged A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs, adding serious firepower. These guys joined an already solid group with DeMario Douglas, Mack Hollins, and Kayshon Boutte. That’s a ton of proven talent, and it sets a high bar. But here’s where it gets interesting, especially for second-year guys Kyle Williams and Efton Chism III. With all those veterans chilling out and sitting Saturday’s preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Williams and Chism got a massive shot to show what they got, and boy, did they take advantage.
Williams and Chism Lay It All Out
Williams and Chism absolutely went off against the Eagles, proving this wide receiver room isn’t just deep, it’s bursting with raw talent. Kyle Williams’ night wasn’t perfect, reeling in just 2-of-6 targets, but that dude can fly. He torched Philadelphia’s defense in the second quarter, getting way behind the secondary for a jaw-dropping 69-yard touchdown from Tommy DeVito. Seriously, he hit over 20 mph on that play! Head coach Mike Vrabel clearly sees it too, saying, “I love [Kyle’s] ability outside the numbers to be able to stretch the field. And we wanted to give him some more opportunities to be able to do that as well as work on some of the stuff that Todd [Downing] and Josh [McDaniels] have him trying to improve on.”
Efton Chism III was just as impressive, snagging every single one of his four targets for a clean 45 yards. He even hauled in a clutch 24-yard catch on third down, on one of Josh McDaniels’ signature plays. Vrabel was hyped about Chism too, noting, “And it was good to see Chiz come out tonight and do some things and just try to be able to evaluate everybody as we look to build this roster.” These young guns aren’t backing down from the competition, either. Chism summed it up perfectly: “I think anytime there’s competition, as a competitor, you rise up, you take that challenge on, and you just go out there and compete every day… The room we have, it’s so special. It’s so awesome to be a p”
With roster cutdown day looming next week, Coach Vrabel and EVP Wolf have some seriously tough calls ahead. These performances from Williams and Chism just made those decisions even harder, but man, for Patriots fans, what an exciting problem to have. You gotta wonder who makes the final roster, and what incredible plays they’ll bring to the field this year.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pats Pulpit.
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