Besides first-round quarterback Drake Maye, the New England Patriots' rookie class was among their biggest disappointments of the 2024 season.
Second-round wide receiver Ja'Lynn Polk was the worst letdown of all. After catching a touchdown pass in his second NFL game, the Washington product was a non-factor the rest of the season. He finished his debut campaign with 12 catches for 87 yards and two touchdowns with four drops on 33 targets.
After the Patriots parted ways with longtime head coach and de facto general manager Bill Belichick, Eliot Wolf was put in charge of personnel decisions during the 2024 offseason. On Wednesday, he shared his take on the 37th overall pick's rough rookie year.
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"I hate to use this analogy, but like, you know in 'The Dark Knight' when it's like, 'The hero you need isn't the hero you have'? He was a young player that came in and he's mature, he's smart," Wolf said at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis.
"I think organizationally, we maybe put too much on his plate early, and I think that really kind of stunted his growth a little bit. He's aware of that and we've talked about it, and he's going to continue to work hard and rehab and do the things that are necessary to improve."
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Wolf's selection of Polk looks even worse when considering who the Los Angeles Chargers took three slots ahead of him at No. 34 overall. New England traded the 34th and 137th overall picks in the draft to L.A. for the 37th and 110th picks. The Chargers used the 34th pick on Georgia wideout Ladd McConkey, who caught 82 passes for 1,149 yards and seven touchdowns.
The rest of New England's 2024 draft class left plenty to be desired. Maye lived up to his billing as the third overall pick, but third-round tackle Caedan Wallace appeared in only six games and fourth-round receiver Javon Baker tallied only one catch on four targets. Fourth-round guard Layden Robinson played in 11 games, but the rest of the group was forgettable.
"The draft class, it's too soon to tell, but we were expecting a bigger impact from some of those guys, and we're still hopeful that they'll get to that point," Wolf added.
Ultimately, Wolf took ownership for the Patriots' poor roster construction in 2024. He's expected to be aggressive in his efforts to improve the roster this offseason, though confusion remains regarding whether it'll be him or new head coach Mike Vrabel making the final say on personnel decisions.
NFL free agency is scheduled to begin when March 12 at 4 p.m. ET. The 2025 NFL Draft will begin with the Tennessee Titans on the clock on April 24.