Former Pro Bowl WR In Danger Of Being Cut By Patriots

Once upon a time, JuJu Smith-Schuster was the vaunted successor to Antonio Brown. In 2024, his status of making an NFL roster is in jeopardy. According to Pro Football Network’s Dakota Randall, the New England Patriots wide receiver and former Pittsburgh Steelers star might not survive training camp.

Here’s how he put it:

“The veteran receiver made a couple of catches but also dropped one and spent a lot of time with the second-team offense. JuJu Smith-Schuster just doesn’t have much juice, and it’s hard to make a strong case for him to earn a roster spot,” Randall wrote.

This is especially worrying considering the status of the Patriots wide receiver room. According to ESPN’s depth chart , the team’s top receiver coming into training camp is Kendrick Bourne. While he has proven to be a solid Patriots veteran at points, he is underqualified to have the top spot on the team clinched with both hands.

JuJu Smith-Schuster’s career potentially in trouble

If that’s the case at the top, the depth is equally concerning, especially with Smith-Schuster struggling. The wide receiver can turn it around as it is still early. However, the pattern of his struggle with the system continues to show.

With the Chiefs, the wide receiver earned 933 yards and three touchdowns in 2023, per Pro Football Reference . Then, with the Patriots last year, he earned just roughly 230 yards and a touchdown while dealing with injuries. With him struggling again, there is potential to believe the system simply isn’t a fit for him and that his body may be failing him.

At 27 years old, you wouldn’t think age would be a factor, but Smith-Schuster has been dealing with a knee injury since last year that has given him some significant problems. Hopefully, Smith-Schuster can get healthy. At that point, it will be up to Smith-Schuster to figure it out, as getting cut from a rebuilding wide receiver room could be a career-wrapping setback.

Of course, if this is the final stop for the wide receiver, he can rest assured he had a robust NFL career. It was far from perfect, but he made more money than many college graduates, became a nationally recognized name, and won a Super Bowl while with the Chiefs. At this point, he has seen and done it all.

Will the Patriots move on from the former Steelers Pro Bowler? If they do, will Smith-Schuster get one last shot with another team?

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