Why Patriots' Belichick took JuJu Smith-Schuster over Jakobi Meyers - New England Patriots Blog- ESPN

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Bill Belichick always seems to have a surprise or two up his hoodie sleeve in free agency, and thus far, the biggest of 2023 has been his receiver swap of JuJu Smith-Schuster for Jakobi Meyers.

Even longtime safety Devin McCourty didn’t see it coming. Fresh off announcing his retirement last week, he said on sports radio WEEI that he was shocked the team didn’t bring Meyers back on the three-year, $33 million contract he signed with the Las Vegas Raiders. Meyers had expressed an interest in returning to New England, but the team’s offers fell short compared to others on the market, according to a source with direct knowledge of the negotiations.

McCourty, who became a pillar of what the organization strives to represent over the past 13 years, saw Meyers as not only the team’s most productive pass-catcher, but also next in the line of great New England leaders.

“From a leadership standpoint going forward, he’s a guy that you say ‘Be like him.’ Undrafted guy. Earned it. Works his butt off every single day,” McCourty said in the radio interview. “So I think that’s a big loss. Very similar to Julian Edelman.”

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That’s a lofty comparison, and surely something Belichick didn’t give up without great thought.

Belichick often says every decision he makes is in what he believes is the best interest of the team; considering that Meyers and Smith-Schuster signed similar contracts, he appears to have made a clear-cut calculation that Smith-Schuster is an overall upgrade.

How so?

For one, the 6-foot-1, 215-pound Smith-Schuster is more of a threat after the catch. According to