Who Should I Start? Kendrick Bourne or Roman Wilson

Saturday, February 22, 12:03 PM

The Athletic's Chad Graff suggests that it could be time for the New England Patriots to move on from wide receiver Kendrick Bourne this offseason, even if he's their top player at their biggest position of need. Bourne missed the start of the 2024 season while recovering from a torn right ACL and caught only 28 passes on 38 targets for 305 yards and one touchdown in 12 games (nine starts) once he returned. With a new coaching regime in town, the Patriots could move on from Bourne, who will be heading into his age-30 season in 2025. New England would save $4.9 million in salary cap space if they cut him before June 1 or $6.3 million if they cut him with a post-June 1 designation. Bourne is under contract with the Patriots through the 2026 season, but it wouldn't be a huge surprise to see this rebuilding organization go in another direction as they completely rebuild their receiving corps.

Wednesday, May 7, 1:14 PM

The Pittsburgh Steelers are counting on wide receiver Roman Wilson to take a Year 2 jump after trading George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys on Wednesday, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. Wilson has looked like a different player this offseason than what he looked like in his injury-riddled rookie campaign in 2024. Pittsburgh selected the 23-year-old in the third round (84th overall) last year out of Michigan, but he played in just one game due to ankle and hamstring injuries and didn't record a single catch. In his final season with the Wolverines in college, Wilson produced 49 catches for 789 yards and 12 touchdowns. If he can get past the injuries that plagued him in his first NFL season, Wilson is fully expected to be the No. 2 wideout behind DK Metcalf, albeit in a run-first offense that currently has Mason Rudolph as the projected starting quarterback.