New England Patriots receiver Jakobi Meyers and guard Ted Karras are headed toward free agency. But they expressed that they’re open to a return.
Meyers is a restricted free agent, which means the Patriots can place a tender on him, forcing teams to give New England a draft pick if they want to sign the receiver away. Because of that, he’s likely to return to New England.
Karras’ future is less certain. He earned the starting role after the Patriots demoted guard Michael Onwenu. Karras joined the Patriots in 2016 and had held both backup and starting roles at center and guard until he left New England for Miami in 2020. He started at center, only to return to the Patriots for 2021.
“I would always love to come back,” Karras told reporters on Monday. “I know this isn’t the time to make any of those decisions, and I know that the organization is going to look at everything. … Whatever happens, happens. I understand it’s a business. Obviously, [I] love being here and love the people here. I feel I fit in well, but that’s a long way off for now.”
The Patriots’ decision on Karras may depend upon how much they trust Onwenu to be as consistent as they need him to be in 2022. And even if they do trust Ownenu, the Patriots may still retain Karras in an effort to build depth, much like they did in 2021 when Ownenu was the slated starter.
For Meyers, it’s not necessarily a question of whether the Patriots will place a tender on him. It’s a matter of whether they’ll use a first-round tender or a later round. He finished the season with team-highs in receptions (83) and receiving yards (866). He also had two receiving touchdowns.
“At the end of the day, all I can do is control what I can control,” Meyers told reporters on Monday. “I felt like I did that to the best of my ability this season, just trying to go out there and play hard and play tough. The rest of that is in somebody else’s hands. There’s nothing that I can really stress about right now. I’m just excited about whatever opportunity comes my way. I’m going to attack it head on.”
