New England Patriots
“With Romeo Dobbs coming in and the eventual deal with AJ Brown, teams believe he could be available at the right price.”
Kayshon Boutte was the deep threat to Drake Maye during the 2025 season. AP Photo/Greg M. Cooper
With rumors still swirling about AJ Brown’s seemingly inevitable arrival in New England later this summer, are the Patriots looking to clear some cap space in their wideout corps?
NFL insider Jordan Schultz sparked some of that speculation on Monday, noting that Patriots wide receiver Kayshawn Butte has received interest this offseason.
“A name that has come up in trade talks is #Patriots WR Kayshon Boutte, who is entering the final year of his contract, according to multiple league sources,” Schultz posted on X. “With the arrival of Romeo Dobbs and the eventual AJ Brown trade, teams believe he could be available at the right price.”
The Patriots parting ways with a talented 23-year-old receiver like Butte seems suspicious at first, especially considering the LSU product had a breakout run in 2025 as the deep threat to Drake May.
Butte — a sixth-round pick by the Patriots in 2023 — made 33 catches for 551 yards and six touchdowns over 14 regular season games. He added nine catches for 168 yards and a touchdown over four playoff games.
Butte could be a key component of New England’s offense for the foreseeable future. But there are some complications.
As Schultz noted, Butte is entering the final year of his rookie contract and is set to receive a significant raise in the future.
If the potential AJ Brown trade is anything but a lock once the Eagles can avoid a major blowout, it also further crowds out New England’s wide receiver room — which already added Romeo Dobbs in free agency.
To be sure, if New England also isn’t keen on giving up a Day 1 or Day 2 draft pick for Brown, the Eagles might also want to acquire a talented young receiver like Butte to complete the deal.
This isn’t the first time Butt has heard his name pop up in trade rumors.
“I’d heard about it, but I tried not to devote a lot of time to it,” Bout said last May after it was mentioned as a potential business chip. “You know, there’s a lot of people who sit behind phones and just type. It has nothing to do with me, really.”
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