Reggie Wayne is a Patriot. Will he be any good?
Reggie Wayne is a player Patriots fans should know well.
Wayne is the Colts’ all-time leader in games played and the leader among active players in receptions (1,070) and receiving yards (14,345). And, after 14 years in Indy, he’s now a New England Patriot.
The 36-year-old (who turns 37 in November) had been on the market since his final contract with the Colts expired in March, and despite reports of interest from a handful of teams in July, Wayne remained unsigned until Monday. With veteran wideout Brandon Gibson now on IR, fourth-year undrafted free agent Brian Tyms waived with an injury and Brandon LaFell, Aaron Dobson and Julian Edelman still sidelined with injury, the Patriots’ hand was forced — but Wayne could be an asset this season nonetheless.
Make no mistake, Wayne’s best years are behind him: He last eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in 2012, when he had 1,355 yards and 5 touchdowns with a rookie Andrew Luck. He was on pace to hit the mark in 2013 had he not gone on IR with a torn ACL in Week 7, and he labored to just 779 yards and a pair of touchdowns in 15 games last season. His recent stats paint a picture of receiver in steep decline, and yet it’s somewhat a deceiving one.
While 2014 was Wayne’s worst overall statistical season in a dozen years, injury-shortened 2013 aside, he was more than adequate on a per-catch basis. At 12.2 yards per reception last year, Wayne would have slotted third among Patriots pass-catchers with more than 20 targets last year, behind just Rob Gronkowski (13.7) and LaFell (12.9) and well ahead of Danny Amendola’s 7.4 mark.
He caught just 64 of 116 targets for a 55.1 percent catch rate, far below his 62.4 career rate, but he wasn’t that far off the 56.9 percent he grabbed in his first two years with Luck. Tom Brady (64.1 cmp% in 2014) is unqestionably a more accurate quarterback than Luck (61.7) at this stage in their careers, and so could bring an improvement there.
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The Patriots’ home before Gillette
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Wayne’s 2014 should also be looked at through the lens of his injuries. A torn ACL is a tough injury to bounce back from for a sophomore, let alone a 35-year-old wideout in his 14th season. On top of that, Reggie Wayne played with a torn triceps suffered in Week 7 and claims to have played injured from day 1. If his decline is even in part attributable to his injuries rather than age, there’s hope for the now-healthy Wayne bouncing back.
With Boyce, Chris Harper, Jonathan Krause and Danny Amendola about it as far as healthy Patriots receivers go, Wayne slots in as the second-best player at the position. And even when LaFell, Edelman and Dobson return, there’s room for Wayne on the roster, especially if any of them falter.
Second-year Patriot Brandon LaFell was a revelation with the finesse-passing Brady after three years with the notoriously touch-deficient Cam Newton (and one with the impotent Jimmy Clausen), nearly topping the 1,000-yard mark and catching with 7 touchdowns. Entering his age-29 season, LaFell can and should be even better in his second season with the Patriots, but his breakout could prove a fluke.
Slot receiver Julian Edelman is likewise poised for top numbers, but is an injury risk. Edelman has been mostly healthy the last two seasons, but missed 16 games over his first four. Edelman has missed much of training camp with a lower-body injury, so his continued absence from camp is something to monitor.
Danny Amendola was as valuable as any Patriots pass-catcher not named Gronkowski in the playoffs, with 137 yards and 3 touchdowns on 11 receptions, but he was anything but an asset before then. And the oft-injured Dobson, limited to just 40 receptions in 16 games his first two seasons, is far from proven.
After 14 years with the Colts, Wayne barely has that many days to pick up a playbook that has previously baffled veteran imports such as Chad Ochocinco, Torry Holt and Joey Galloway. But he’s up for the challenge.
“I’ve got so much work ahead of me. I’m sitting at my locker now cramming,’’ Wayne said in a press conference on Tuesday. “It’s been some years since I had to cram, so this is something new for me. I’m looking forward to the journey.’’
He also said the Patriots’ playbook is far different from the one he worked with in Indianapolis, which brings us to possibly the most compelling argument for Wayne’s signing, at least from the fan’s perspective: The second-most prolific wideout in the history of Deflategate accuser Indianapolis is now in New England. Just ask Green Bay Packers fans how it feels to see your favorite player in your rival’s uniform.
After all the frustration Patriots fans have endured this offseason over Deflategate, it would be nothing short of cathartic to watch Wayne tear up his former team – especially when that matchup coincides with the return of Tom Brady.
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