- 0 Shares
- Updated
Getty
Wide receiver Kayshon Boutte of the New England Patriots.
The Kansas City Chiefs have a shortage of pass-catchers and if the team wants to avoid a batch of free agent candidates who are either aged, have recently dealt with off-field issues or both, a few good options potentially exist on the trade market.
One such player is wide receiver Kayshon Boutte of the New England Patriots, who that franchise has bumped down the roster after executing a blockbuster trade of its own with the Philadelphia Eagles for superstar AJ Brown and signing a formidable No. 2 option in Romeo Doubs away from the Green Bay Packers for $68 million.
New England’s moves have piqued interest in Boutte from around the NFL, and Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated reported earlier this spring that the team is hunting a third-round draft asset.
Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report on Monday, June 22 floated a trade pitch in which the Patriots flip Boutte to the Chiefs for a fifth-rounder.
“Boutte is entering the final year of his rookie deal, and it feels increasingly unlikely that his future will be in New England,” Knox wrote. “The LSU product has topped 500 receiving yards in each of the last two seasons, and at just 24 years old, he may not be close to reaching his NFL ceiling.”
Kayshon Boutte Proven Better Than NFL Draft Position, Outpaced Mediocre Athletic Testing
GettyNew England Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte.
If Kansas City can nab Boutte for a mid-Day 3 pick as Knox suggested, that is a deal the Chiefs will probably jump on quickly without a concern of overthinking.
Boutte was a sixth-round pick of the Patriots in 2023 and has outperformed his draft position significantly since. Not only has he gone over 500 receiving yards in each of the past two campaigns, as Knox mentioned, but Boutte has found the end zone a total of nine times.
Despite a lack of straight-line speed (4.5-second 40-yard dash) and ranking 48th among receivers in his own draft class with a meager athleticism score of just 54, Boutte has developed himself into a legitimate deep threat. And that just so happens to be a key element Kansas City’s pass game and QB Patrick Mahomes are missing.
Kayshon Boutte’s Stats on Deep Balls Among Best in NFL Last Season
GettyWide receiver Kayshon Boutte of the New England Patriots.
Boutte’s average depth of target (aDOT) last season was 17.5 yards, a full five yards greater than Xavier Worthy who led the Chiefs in that category — save for Tyquan Thornton who didn’t play enough snaps to qualify but registered a whopping 27.8 aDOT. Boutte’s average depth of reception was 16.7 yards, which ranked fourth in the entire NFL.
Knox also mentioned that the QB passer rating when targeting Boutte last season was 133.2, which was the best figure in the league.
“I love this guy Kayshon Boutte,” ESPN’s Mina Kimes said before the Super Bowl in February, which the Patriots lost to the Seattle Seahawks. “He’s a receiver, a big-play machine. He was not a high draft pick, but he has really been important for [quarterback] Drake Maye.”
Max Dible covers the NFL, NBA and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns. He covered local and statewide news as a reporter for West Hawaii Today and served as news director for BigIslandNow.com and Pacific Media Group's family of Big Island radio stations before joining Heavy. More about Max Dible