Getty

New England Patriots insider Mike Reiss shared his thoughts on WR Kayshon Boutte being absent from the team.

It’s been an offseason full of rumors for the New England Patriots. In particular, the wide receiver position has become the focus, with the hopes for a trade involving A.J. Brown, but on the flipside of that, there have also been rumors that the Patriots will move Kayshon Boutte as a result.

The logic is pretty simple. Once Brown is with the Patriots, they’ll need to make room for him on the roster. Given where Boutte is in his rookie contract, it makes sense to move him and get something instead of letting him walk in free agency. Still, in return, Boutte has been away from team activities this offseason.

Recently, Patriots insider Mike Reiss appeared on 98.5 The Sports Hub. There, Fred Toucher asked him about the Boutte situation.

“I know but you’re insinuating something, the insinuation is that Boutte would be moved because of AJ Brown there would be a redundancy and Boutte’s not coming because he knows he’s being moved. The implication,” Toucher said.

For Reiss, it makes sense that the insinuation is that Boutte will be moved to make room for Brown. He just doesn’t know if that’s the right thing for the Patriots to do, given how well Boutte has developed over the years.

“I think that would be something that wouldn’t surprise me,” Reiss said. “I don’t know if that’s what’s going to happen. I don’t know if it should happen. He played really well for them last year.”

Kayshon Boutte Developed into an Excellent Wide Receiver for the New England Patriots

Coming out of college at LSU, Kayshon Boutte had all the talent in the world. There were concerns, though. In particular, he had dealt with injuries and inconsistent play. So, he slipped to the sixth-round of the 2023 NFL Draft, where the New England Patriots selected him.

As a rookie in 2023, Boutte only played in five games and made just 2 catches. Then, in the offseason before the 2024 season, Boutte’s issues with online gambling while at LSU came to light. He would explain the addiction he battled in an emotional Players’ Tribune article, before taking a massive step forward on the field as he and Drake Maye developed a quick bond.

Over the last two regular seasons, when Maye has been with the Patriots, Boutte has 76 receptions for 1,140 yards and 9 touchdowns. He also had 9 receptions for 168 yards and 1 touchdown in last year’s playoff run.

In short, Boutte is a great success story for the Patriots. He’s developed into an excellent receiver who gels with Maye and the way he likes to attack downfield. He is also now entering the final season of his rookie contract.

Insider Shares What Patriots Could Get in a Boutte Trade

If the Patriots do make the decision to move on from Boutte, the question then becomes, What can they get for him?

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated recently dove into that question. He came out believing that Boutte would be worth a Day 3 NFL Draft pick, probably a fifth or sixth-round selection.

“Patriots WR Kayshon Boutte, I think, could be had for a fifth- or sixth-round draft pick right now, if anyone has an interest in him,” Breer wrote.

There is also the option that Boutte gets sent in a package to the Philadelphia Eagles for Brown. If that’s the case, it would probably be in the hopes of sending less than a first-round pick for Brown. Of course, for the time being, that’s all speculation.