Jakobi Meyers is glad to be starting a new chapter in his NFL career with the Las Vegas Raiders, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t wish things turned out differently with the New England Patriots.
It was with the Patriots that the former undrafted rookie out of NC State scratched and clawed his way to becoming one of the better slot wide receivers in the league. He went from being a training camp hopeful to the best receiver on the entire football team.
Through that journey, he built a strong bond with players, coaches, fans and various staff members throughout the entire Patriots organization. For Meyers, it was hard leaving all of that behind.
“Just the business side of things took over. You know how it goes. Of course, I definitely wanted to stay there,” said Meyers, during an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show. “I’ve got a lot of family on that team. It would have been a cool opportunity, but I can’t sit here and act like I’m not excited to be a Raider now. When I went out there, it was all smiles. It was all sunshine. I definitely had a good time. I wish the best of luck to my family that’s still there because they seen me through a lot those last four years. I appreciate them.”
On his #Patriots days, what he learned from @TomBrady and Bill Belichick and his relationship with @CameronNewton — great chat today with new #RaiderNation WR @jkbmyrs5:#NFL #NFLFreeAgency #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/EpHuTPWpcG
— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) March 29, 2023
There have been mixed opinions on the Patriots offering JuJu Smith-Schuster a three-year, $33 million contract after Meyers signed with the Raiders for the same deal.
Even though the incentives and everything don’t break down exactly the same, it still seems like the Patriots could have kept Meyers if they really wanted him.
Now, he’ll have an opportunity to prove himself as a member of the Josh McDaniels-coached Raiders, while the Patriots try to do the same with Smith-Schuster.