Who Should I Start? Hunter Henry or JuJu Smith-Schuster

Friday, March 8, 12:06 PM

New England Patriots tight end Hunter Henry was scheduled to be a free agent next week, but the organization signed him to a three-year, $27 million deal on Friday. Henry signed with the Patriots on a three-year deal during the 2021 offseason after five years with the Los Angeles/San Diego Chargers. He's hauled in 143 passes for 1,531 yards and 17 touchdowns in his three years with New England despite poor quarterback play from Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe. Unless New England's next quarterback is a vast improvement, Henry will remain a touchdown-dependent fantasy option with limited upside.

Thursday, May 2, 2:33 PM

Starting next month, the New England Patriots could cut wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster at a cost of $9.6 million in dead money and no salary cap relief, per Over the Cap, while releasing him before then would incur $2.6 million more in dead money and take a small chunk out of their league-leading $54 million cap room. If the Pats traded Smith-Schuster after June 1, they'd save almost $7 million in cap space and clear room for their young receivers to see more playing time. New England could prioritize playing time for rookies Ja'Lynn Polk and Javon Baker, plus 2023 sixth-rounder Demario Douglas. It all means that Smith-Schuster may no longer be the team's No. 2 receiver, especially with Kendrick Bourne and K.J. Osborn also on the roster.