The New England Patriots made their first two major moves in free agency on Wednesday. New England signed wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and running back James Robinson to multiple year contracts.
Smith-Schuster, formerly a five year standout with the Pittsburgh Steelers, spent this past season with the Kansas City Chiefs. In 16 regular season games this past year, he had 78 receptions for 933 yards and three touchdowns and also added 10 catches for 89 yards during the Chiefs postseason run that ended in a Super Bowl Title. The deal is reported to be three years, 33 million the same contract that wide receiver Jakobi Meyers signed when he left New England to sign with Josh McDaniels and the Las Vegas Raiders earlier this week. Overall in his six year career, Smith-Schuster has 401 catches for 4,788 yards and 29 touchdowns.
The Patriots also added more running back depth with the signing of Robinson, the former Jacksonville Jaguar and New York Jet. Robinson played his first two seasons in full with Jacksonville, and then played seven games with the Jags before being traded to the Jets where he appeared in four contests last season. His rookie campaign was his best in 2020, rushing for 1,070 yards with seven touchdowns and also adding 49 receptions for 344 yards and three scores. In 2022 between Jacksonville and New York, he amassed 476 rushing yards and five TDs. New England has always liked running backs who can catch the ball out of the backfield, as Robinson is expected to fight for a backup spot behind top rusher Rhamondre Stevenson. Damien Harris is a free agent this season after four years in Foxborough. Terms of the deal reported is two years, up to 8 million dollars. In his 39 game career, the former draft pick out of Illinois State has 2,262 yards rushing with 23 total touchdowns (18 rushing, 5 receiving).
Story by Chris Lessner
