Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
What Mike Vrabel said of Patriots’ decision to trade Ja’Lynn Polk
"We felt like what was best was to kind of give him a fresh start.”
It didn’t take long for the Patriots to move on from wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk.
New England dealt away the 2024 second-round pick (No. 37 overall) after just one season in the NFL, with the Patriots trading the injured wideout to the New Orleans Saints (along with a 2028 seventh-round pick) on Saturday in exchange for a 2027 sixth-rounder.
It marks the end of a disastrous tenure for Polk in New England, and a brutal draft whiff for Eliot Wolf — given both where Polk was selected as a high second-round pick, as well as the several other game-changing talents who were still available at that stage of the draft, headlined by wideout Ladd McConkey (82 catches, 1,149 yards, seven touchdowns in 2024).
Advertisement:
Speaking on Sunday ahead of New England’s eventual 33-27 win over the Dolphins, Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel was asked by 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Scott Zolak about the decision to move on from Polk in such short order.
“I just think it was a good start for him somewhere else,” Vrabel said. “We wish him the best. He worked extremely hard to get back and then was reinjured. We were going to be without Ja’Lynn this year anyway, and we felt like what was best was to kind of give him a fresh start.”
Polk didn’t make much of an impact during the 2024 season in New England, reeling in just 12 catches for 87 yards and two touchdowns while being plagued with several drops.
Advertisement:
New England opted to place him on IR ahead of roster cutdown day after suffering a shoulder injury during preseason action — ending his 2025 season before it could begin in earnest.
Speaking on NBC Sports Boston during “Patriots Pregame Live” on Sunday, Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated said that it became apparent that Polk and the Patriots were not going to be a good fit.
“This just got to the point where they were hopeful that he would come back in a better place than he had been in 2024, and they still saw a backup player out there on the practice field even before he got hurt,” Breer said of Polk.
“I think where they feel like they really missed — this isn’t a bad guy, so it’s not a personal character thing. I want to make sure I emphasize that,” Breer addded. “But the football character wasn’t exactly what they thought it would be.”
With New England trading away Polk, New England only has two players left from their 2024 draft class who are on the 53-man roster: Drake Maye and offensive lineman Caedan Wallace, who was inactive on Sunday against Miami.
New England does have another two 2024 picks — CB Marcellas Dial and OL Layden Robinson — who are on the injured reserve list.
Advertisement:
“A lot of people in the NFL viewed Ja’Lynn Polk the same way the Patriots did — tough, smart, high football IQ, a guy that maybe doesn’t have the highest ceiling in the world but was going to be able to play right way and be a role player for a long, long time to come in the NFL,” Breer said of Polk. “Obviously, it did not play out that way.”
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com