The New England Patriots had their fair share of issues selecting wide receivers in the NFL Draft through the years, but they found a pair of diamonds in the rough in the sixth round in 2023. We already spoke about DeMario Douglas, a fascinating role player, earlier in our Patriots scouting report series. Now, the focus shifts to fellow fourth-year man Kayshon Boutte.
The Patriots’ most reliable field stretcher in each of the past two years, Boutte once again is the subject of considerable speculation this offseason. What will come of it remains to be seen. For now, let’s focus on the player and see how he could help New England after all in 2026.
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Hard facts
Name: Kayshon Boutte
Position: Wide receiver
Jersey number: 9
Opening day age: 24 (5/7/2002)
Measurements: 5’11 1/4”, 197 lbs, 31 3/8” arm length, 9 1/2” hand size, 4.50s 40-yard dash, 7.14s 3-cone drill, 4.25s short shuttle, 29” vertical jump, 9’10” broad jump, 11 bench press reps, 4.99 Relative Athletic Score
Experience
NFL: New England Patriots (2023-) | College: LSU (2020-22)
Boutte was a highly-regarded player coming out of Westgate High School in New Iberia, LA, and one of the top wide receiver recruits in the nation. He consequently drew interest from some of the top schools in the country, before ultimately deciding to stay close to home: the five-star recruit committed to LSU to play college ball just 50 miles from his hometown.
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Boutte immediately burst onto the scene in Baton Rouge and earned Freshman All-SEC honors in his first season with the team. However, he never managed to build on the 45-catch, 735-yard, five-touchdown season he had in 2020. While he was still productive and ended up starting 21 of his 27 career games as a Tiger, his final stat-line — 131-1781-16 — as well as his overall stint at LSU fell short of initial expectations.
Despite uneven success, Boutte decided to leave college early and entered the NFL Draft in 2023. He was selected 187th overall in the sixth round by the Patriots.
After a quiet rookie season with the team that saw him mostly relegated to healthy inactivity, he showed some significant progress as a sophomore and under a new coaching staff. His success as a part-time starter continued in Year 3. In total, he has so far seen action in 38 combined regular season and playoff games and caught 87 passes for 1,327 yards and 10 touchdowns. Averaging 15.3 yards per catch, he has developed into a regular big play weapon.
Scouting report
Strengths: Boutte has a natural talent for catching the football with his hands rather than his body. He shows good concentration, hand-eye coordination and body control, successfully extending his frame to widen his catch radius. He is physical at the catch point and able to outmuscle defensive backs for the ball, while simultaneously keeping drops at a minimum. He also has some superb ball tracking skills, which helped him become a proven vertical threat in the NFL despite lacking elite speed, and earned the trust of quarterback Drake Maye in their two seasons together.
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He additionally has had some good moments releasing off the line versus press, combining solid acceleration and speed with the ability to create separation at the top of his routes. Boutte also has looked competitive as a run blocker and is willing to get his hands dirty or meet contact.
Weaknesses: Boutte is only an average athlete, lacking any standout traits that would point toward consistent NFL success. He is not a true speedster but also lacks the agility and suddenness in his movements to shake defenders on a down-to-down basis. His route running and feel for coverage remain areas for improvement as well; there is too much wasted movement, inconsistency in terms of pacing and urgency, and uneven awareness of route manipulation relative to defenders’ alignments. In general, he continues to run hot and cold.
2025 review
Stats: 18 games (11 starts) | 787 offensive snaps (58.0%), 1 special teams snap (0.2%) | 65 targets, 42 catches (64.6%), 719 receiving yards (17.1/catch), 7 TDs, 1 drop | 3 penalties (incl. 0 declined/offsetting)
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Season recap: Even though he had led his team in yards per catch and touchdown receptions in 2024, Boutte found himself in an uncertain situation during the 2025 offseason. The Patriots hired a new coaching staff, changing their offensive scheme and verbiage along the way, and made some significant investments at the wide receiver position in the form of free agency signings Stefon Diggs and Mack Hollins as well as third-round pick Kyle Williams.
Given that context, Boutte being mentioned as a trade or even a cut candidate during the offseason came as no particular surprise. Speculation about his future and increased competition notwithstanding, he managed to defy the odds yet again and earn a role as a part-time starter and the team’s top X-receiver.
As such, he quickly showed off his capabilities: Boutte caught six passes for 103 yards in the Patriots’ first game of the season. However, both would remain season highs for the third-year wideout.
That does not mean that Boutte didn’t keep producing, but his output and usage very much fluctuated throughout the year. Some of it was his overall position in the offensive structure, some of it his own inconsistency, and some might have been time missed due to injury (two games in November with a hamstring injury, plus another in late December due to a concussion).
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At the end of the day, you therefore got a player who kept flashing his abilities as a playmaker.
He finished the year ranked second among the team’s regular pass catchers with a 17.1-yard average per catch and also hauled in the second most touchdowns on the roster. He also made one of the team’s most memorable plays of the season when he beat All-Pro cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. for a 32-yard touchdown in the divisional playoffs against the Houston Texans.
However, for all of those highs, Boutte also had some quiet stretches despite regularly ranking among the most-used receivers on a week-to-week basis. For example, he failed to catch more than one pass in seven of his 18 games, including in both the AFC Championship Game and the Super Bowl: despite being targeted a combined 10 times during those two games, he came away with only two catches for 27 yards.
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So, while Boutte did have plenty of positive moments and again was one of the more reliable pass catchers on the team, he also was unable to elevate his game when needed the most. In a way, therefore, his 2025 season was a microcosm of his career dating back to his days at LSU.
2026 preview
Position: X/Z-receiver | Ability: Fringe starter/Role player | Contract: Signed through 2026 (2027 UFA)
What will be his role? Boutte was the Patriots’ top X-receiver in 2025 and a part-time starter on offense. However, his outlook for 2026 remains murky for a multitude of reasons including the expected A.J. Brown trade. If Brown is indeed acquired, he will be inserted as the top X, which would either move Boutte into a more marginal role or off the team altogether, possibly via trade. Assuming he does stay on, he might actually benefit from no longer being used in a WR1-like capacity; his profile suggests that he could find success as a hybrid X/Z and with more favorable coverage matchups coming his way.
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What is his growth potential? Even though he is entering his fourth year in the league, there are plenty of areas Boutte can work on to reach the potential he kept flashing throughout his career so far. The key will be consistency in all areas — from route-running, to technical prowess, to his chemistry with Drake Maye. His lack of top-tier athletic traits might prevent him from ever reaching Pro Bowl-caliber status, but he has the natural hands and craftiness to serve as an NFL starter.
Does he have positional versatility? Boutte’s versatility is limited, partially due to his skillset and partially because of his route tree. Right now, he primarily remains an outside option who played 90.3% of his snaps in 2025 split out. He also showed his most promise running slants and go routes and working his way back toward the ball on curls and hitches, with other branches yet to fully grow on his tree. Outside of the offense, he is a virtual non-factor on special teams, playing only one snap as a member of the kickoff return unit in 2026.
What is his salary cap situation? Entering the fourth and final season of his rookie contract, Boutte received a pay bump due to the NFL’s proven performance escalator. As a result, his cap number is $3.72 million and consisting of a $3.67 million base salary and $46,816 signing bonus proration. That proration is the only guarantee in his pact, meaning the rest of it would be removed from the Patriots’ books in case of a trade or release.
How safe is his roster spot? Based on his exposure and production in 2025, one would assume Boutte would be a fairly safe bet to make the Patriots’ roster in 2026. However, his case is much more complex than that and appears to largely be dependent on factors beyond his control. Frankly, if A.J. Brown is acquired, he suddenly would find himself in a crowded competition behind him and fellow projected starter Romeo Doubs — one he very well can win, unless the team sees more value in him as a trade chip than an actual member of its wide receiver room.
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Summary: Besides A.J. Brown, who remains with the Eagles at this point, Boutte might be the most intriguing veteran on the Patriots roster at the moment. He also might be the toughest to project entering 2026. He could be traded or simply cut, he could make the roster as a role player, or he could even continue playing a prominent if modified role depending on the circumstances.
What do you think about Kayshon Boutte heading into the 2026 season? Will he be part of the team? And if so, what will be his role? Please head down to the comment section to share your thoughts.
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