Jakobi Meyers said he was ‘surprised’ by how free agency went down for him as he left the Patriots for the Raiders
Meyers signed a three-year deal with the Raiders over the offseason, ending his four-year tenure with the Patriots.
Jakobi Meyers secured a three-year deal with the Las Vegas Raiders this offseason, but he didn’t have an enjoyable free-agent experience.
The former Patriots receiver shared that he wasn’t expecting how fast things would go down as he reportedly came to terms on a deal with the Raiders less than 24 hours after the legal tampering window opened.
“I was surprised with how everything went down, but I was an open book — whatever happened, I was going to trust God, go with it and be excited,” Meyers told The Boston Globe’s Ben Volin.
Meyers earned the second-biggest contract for a wide receiver in free agency this past offseason. But it wasn’t as large of a contract that some other receivers have earned in the open in recent years, receiving a three-year, $33 million deal with $21 million guaranteed.
The relatively smaller salary that Meyers received led many to be surprised that the Patriots didn’t match that. A day after Meyers agreed to terms on his deal though, the Patriots gave JuJu Smith-Schuster a three-year, $25 million pact with $16 million guaranteed.
Meyers was caught surprised at the time by the Patriots signing Smith-Schuster, tweeting “Cold world lol” in reaction to the news. But what he was more disappointed about was how abrupt the ending to his time in New England was.
“It was more disappointing that I didn’t get to say goodbye to a lot of people that I really wanted to say bye to, or I didn’t get to say a full goodbye,” Meyers said. “That was probably the hardest part. But as far as the business side of it, I’m blessed to be here, and that’s all that matters.”
Meyers actually gave a similar comment when he explained his tweet to reporters back in March.
“I mean, I just like messing with people, honestly,” Meyers said. “I just like to get under people’s skin. Honestly, man, I appreciate them for everything that I’ve been through there. I never really got to tell them bye as I was leaving the building.
“So that was me just being childish, for real. I love them, but I’m also happy to be here.”
Meyers played the first four seasons of his career with the Patriots, joining the team as an undrafted free agent in 2019. Following a quiet rookie season, Meyers emerged as the Patriots’ slot receiver as he also became the team’s leading receiver in each of the past three seasons. He averaged nearly 70 receptions over the last three years as he recorded at least 800 receiving yards in each of the last two years.
The Patriots added Smith-Schuster to likely play a similar role as Meyers. The seventh-year vet has mostly operated out of the slot in his NFL career, recording a career-high 111 receptions in that role in 2018 with the Steelers. He had a strong season with the Chiefs in 2022, posting 78 receptions for 933 yards and three touchdowns in the regular season as he helped them win the Super Bowl.
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