Who Should I Start? Kayshon Boutte or Luther Burden III

Wednesday, June 3, 1:32 PM

The New England Patriots acquired Pro Bowl wide receiver A.J. Brown in a trade from the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday and signed former Green Bay Packers wideout Romeo Doubs in free agency back in March, which leaves Kayshon Boutte, Mack Hollins, DeMario Douglas, and Kyle Williams competing for snaps in three-receiver sets in 2026, according to Evan Lazar of the team's official website. Lazar writes that Brown's route tree will likely be similar to the Patriots' deployment of Boutte last year as the primary X receiver. The Patriots' beat writer suggests that Boutte might be "redundant on the roster" because of how his role overlaps with the newly-acquired Brown. The 24-year-old Boutte has played his way into being a top-three WR on the depth chart, but the addition of Brown has firmly put the former sixth-rounder on the trade radar as the offseason progresses. In his third year in the NFL in 2025, Boutte had just 33 grabs for 551 yards and a career-high six touchdowns on 46 targets over 14 regular-season games (10 starts). Unless he's dealt to another team with a better shot for consistent snaps, Boutte will likely be avoidable in standard 12-team leagues this fall.