John Geliebter-USA TODAY Sports
The Philadelphia Eagles are now likely to cut wide receiver DeSean Jackson if the team cannot find a potential suitor for a trade, but this would allow the New England Patriots to find a way to sign Jackson.
The New York Jets currently have plenty of room within the salary cap to sign Jackson, and the Jets are currently predicated as the landing spot for the wide receiver. The Patriots, however, barely have any room to try and make a play for Jackson. The team would most likely give up several draft picks to sign him, and it will be difficult for New England to pay Jackson what he feels he deserves.
While there are many obstacles for Jackson to find his way to Bill Belichick, his fantasy football season would help take fantasy owners to the playoffs if he caught passes from Tom Brady. In terms of yardage, Jackson had the best year of his career with Nick Foles in 2013, and also tied his career high in touchdowns. Even though hiccups would occur initially with Brady, the wideout could easily top these numbers in 2014 with the Patriots.
To try and predict the type of season Jackson would have in New England, I reviewed former wide receivers for the Patriots who have benefited from catching passes from one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL.
Brandon Lloyd does not have the speed of Jackson, but he was still able to get behind defenders during his time in New England much like the wide receiver for the Eagles. Lloyd had played in the NFL since 2003 when he joined the Patriots in 2012, but he was still able to have a solid season with 911 receiving yards and four touchdown receptions. Jackson and Lloyd are also similar in their height with Jackson being listed as 5-foot-10 and Lloyd being listed as 6-foot, so receivers who are not 6-foot-5 can still be successful with Brady.
Jackson is known for his blazing speed, and a former wide receiver for the Patriots who was actually faster in his Pro Day than Jackson was in his NFL Combine performance was Randy Moss. The latter ran his 40-yard dash in an incredible 4.25 seconds, while Jackson ran his in an impressive 4.35 seconds. In three full seasons with the Patriots, Moss caught 47 touchdown passes between 2007 to 2009. Moss has a distinct height advantage over Jackson at 6-foot-4, but Jackson’s speed and ability to separate from defenders would quickly make him a favorite target of Brady.
While fantasy football players should be praying for Jackson to sign with the Patriots, don’t expect this move to happen. If it does, all you need to do is draft him and smile. You will have one of the best wide receivers in the 2014 season on your team.
Jack Delaney is fantasy football writer for www.Rantsports.com. Follow him on twitter @jackbmore13, “Like” him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.
