Dream Patriots FA Target is Officially Off the Market

The New England Patriots will surely be one of the most active teams in the offseason, with the No. 3 overall pick and the fourth-largest available cap space in the NFL. New head coach Jerod Mayo pointed out their desire to spend a lot of money in free agency, signaling some potential high-end acquisitions.

One of the biggest needs for the Patriots heading into the offseason is wide receiver. New England didn't have any reliable weapons in the wide receiver room and will certainly look to address that issue. Unfortunately for them, the best available free agent is no longer on the market.

Patriots Dream WR Target is No Longer Available

Tee Higgins, the star wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals, was set to hit free agency after his rookie contract expired. In his four seasons with the team, Higgins had 3,684 receiving yards and 24 touchdowns, making him the best wide receiver to potentially hit the market this offseason.

However, the Bengals chose to put the franchise tag on their 25-year-old star, taking him off the market.

Now, the Patriots have to find another target. This could either be via the draft, where they will have a chance to draft Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr, or via free agency where blue-chip options like Mike Evans or Calvin Ridley are still available.

Regardless of who will be the quarterback for the Patriots next season, New England has to do a better job of providing him with real threats. New England had one of the worst offenses in franchise history last season and has to do a lot of work in the offseason to fix that.

The favorite to be the Patriots' selection at No. 3 is currently Jayden Daniels of LSU (+160) according to FanDuel Sportsbook. Head over to FanDuel and take advantage of their sign-up bonus of $150 if you have an idea of who the Pats will select with their pick.

More Patriots news and rumors:

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.