The New England Patriots are ready to welcome some new faces to town as the next stage of the NFL offseason begins. May is here, which means the Patriots' annual rookie minicamp is around the corner, and this iteration of the annual event will kick off on Friday, May 9.
Fans are excited to see the incoming crop of rookies after the Patriots' strong 2025 NFL draft performance, which saw them land names like LSU's Will Campbell, Ohio State's TreVeyon Henderson, and Georgia's Jared Wilson.
The Patriots also used a third-round pick on Washington State wideout Kyle Williams, whose presence could spell bad news for a recent draft bust.
Patriots WR Javon Baker Could Be Cut After May's Rookie Minicamp
One returning Patriot whose future with the team is less than certain is wideout Javon Baker. After drafting Drake Maye to be their franchise quarterback last year, the Patriots attempted to bolster his arsenal by selecting the ex-UCF receiver with the 110th overall pick, two rounds after taking former Washington WR Ja'Lynn Polk.
Expectations surrounding Baker were high after he had paced the Big 12 with 1,139 receiving yards in 2023, having also scored seven touchdowns on his 52 receptions. Unfortunately, he only posted 56 yards on five catches across his three Patriots preseason appearances, culminating in his role being limited once the regular season began.
Much to his dismay, Baker never got out of ex-head coach Jerod Mayo's doghouse. The Atlanta native only played 90 offensive snaps across the 11 appearances he made, hauling in just one of his four targets for 12 yards. Unsurprisingly, the forgettable performance led to underwhelming Pro Football Focus grades regarding receiving (53.8) and overall offense (52.5).
Even if New Patriots HC Mike Vrabel is willing to give Baker another shot, it's hard to like the second-year WR's outlook. He's going to have to compete for playing time against returning names like Demario Douglas, Kendrick Bourne, Kayshon Boutte, and Ja'Lynn Polk. That's on top of incoming veteran free agents Stefon Diggs and Mack Hollins, as well as the aforementioned Kyle Williams.
Williams, 22, oozes potential after posting 70 catches for a whopping 1,198 yards and 14 TDs in 13 games with Washington State last season. If he has a smoother transition to the NFL than Baker, it might not be long before the latter playmaker is out of a job.
Spotrac has the Patriots saving just over $500,000 by cutting Baker before the end of May, for what it's worth. In other words, the clock is ticking for the former UCF Knight to prove he belongs in New England.