New England Patriots
“He’s a much more complete player than people give him credit for.”
Pierce led the NFL in yards per catch the past two years. AP Photo/Charlie Riedel
The Patriots have several avenues available to them when it comes to upgrading their arsenal of pass-catching weapons Drake May.
They could try trading for Eagles star wide receiver AJ Brown — who is already an established star He has a lot of relationships with Mike Vrabel.
They could use a first or second round pick to add another promising talent like Texas A&M’s KC Concepcion, Washington’s Denzel Boston, or Oregon State’s Kenyon Sadiq to their depth chart.
New England could also utilize some of its cap space at a free agent option, though potential targets like Green Bay’s Romeo Dobbs may serve more as a WR2 option than a true option.
Of course, the Patriots can also stand up and maintain that Stefon Diggs on his current contract, and restart with the same receiver determination that flourished during Maye’s second season in Foxborough.
But there may be another option available for New England — Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce.
Entering the offseason, it looked as if Pierce would be a legitimate candidate for Indianapolis’ franchise-branded franchise — keeping him off the free agent market and on the Colts’ roster through at least the 2026 season.
But Indianapolis changed direction on Tuesday, opting to apply a transition tag to QB Daniel Jones. This transfer tag guarantees the Colts the right of first refusal for Jones — allowing them to match any competing offer sheet he might sign with another team in free agency.
With the Colts tagging Jones, the door is now open for Pierce to hit free agency next week.
Pierce’s potential availability should raise a lot of eyebrows in New England, given his age, skill set and big-play ability.
The 25-year-old Pierce would be the wide receiver’s top option in free agency if he goes to the market, especially after a season in which he tallied 47 catches for 1,003 yards and six touchdowns.
Pierce would be a useful target for a quarterback who excels on the deep ball in Maye. Pierce led the NFL in yards per catch during the 2024 (22.3) and 2025 (21.3) seasons with Indy.
“He averaged 21 yards last year.” ESPN NFL writer Mina Kimes said about Pierce last month. “The difference between him and No. 2, which was Christian Watson, was the same difference between Christian Watson and No. 26. You can’t overstate in the NFL how much teams value explosive players.”
“He’s not just a speed burner, he’s a separator. He wins with volume, too,” Kimes added. “Some of those catches are contested catches. He has good focus on the field. He’s a much more complete player than people give him credit for.”
After working alongside QBs like Jones, Anthony Richardson, Joe Flacco, and Philip Rivers in Indianapolis, a case could be made that Pierce has more to offer if combined with a legitimate MVP candidate like Maye moving forward.
Maye was the leader of one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL last season, as the Patriots led all NFL teams during regular season games in explosive play rate (8.1 percent).
“I look up to teams like New England and Tennessee,” Kimes said. “There are a lot of teams that, if you have a big-armed quarterback, I feel like he’s very attractive as a free agent.
A player like Pierce — who could be used in a variety of ways in New England if they wanted to pair him with another
But the 6-foot-3-inch receiver won’t be cheap. He could easily make $25-$30 million per year on a new deal this spring.
The Patriots can afford Pierce, since they currently have $39.2 million in cap space (per Overthecap). However, New England needs as much purchasing power as possible, as several other areas of Boston’s roster must also be addressed this spring.
Furthermore, New England may have to carve out a significant portion of cap space moving forward if the team gives Christian Gonzalez a significant contract extension.
If New England realistically wanted to enter a bidding war to acquire Pierce, it would likely have to restructure Diggs’ contract or opt to cut him.
By cutting Diggs — who is due a $6 million bonus on March 13 — New England will save $16.3 million against the cap at this point in the offseason.
Pierce could be an expensive addition. But signing him would allow New England to seemingly upgrade its receiving corps without having to give up the draft capital it would take to pry a player like Brown out of Philadelphia.
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