Patriots trade 2nd-round WR after one season to get a 6th-round pick in return from Saints

Billy Heyen

Patriots trade 2nd-round WR after one season to get a 6th-round pick in return from Saints image

The New England Patriots didn't take long to cut their losses.

On Saturday, they traded away a player they picked in the 2024 second round, and in return, they got just a sixth-round pick.

Here are the full details of the Patriots' trade with the New Orleans Saints, reported by ESPN's Adam Schefter:

  • Saints get: WR Ja'Lynn Polk, 2028 7th-round pick
  • Patriots get: 2027 6th-round pick

Polk is currently on the Injured Reserve list, so he won't suit up for the Saints right away. It's a bet on his potential by New Orleans.

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For New England, it's a shockingly quick cut of their losses.

Polk was the No. 37 overall pick in 2024 out of Washington, where he'd been a star alongside Michael Penix Jr. and Rome Odunze.

At just 23 years old, Polk has been moved before almost any second-round pick ever is.

As a rookie, he appeared in 15 games, starting seven.

Polk was targeted 33 times last season by Drake Maye, but he only caught 12 of those, for 87 yards and two touchdowns.

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His final college season was prolific, when he went for 69 catches, 1,159 yards and nine touchdowns.

But at least so far, that hasn't translated to the professional ranks.

It seems the Pats must think that it won't anytime soon, either. Otherwise this is a reckless trade to make as you build a team around a young quarterback.

It ends up being a serious whiff by New England.

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Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle