Patriots: What DeVante Parker contract means for DeAndre Hopkins pursuit

It’s the one true dead period in the NFL news cycle, so of course the New England Patriots’ mutual agreement to extend wide receiver DeVante Parker’s contract would make waves Wednesday afternoon.

The deal was reported as a three-year extension worth up to $33 million with $14 million in guarantees and per-game roster bonuses. That sounds like a lot. There’s also a whole lot of wiggle room in there and, most importantly, should not preclude New England from signing free-agent wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins.

What it does mean is that Parker will almost certainly not be the odd-man out if Hopkins does sign with New England. If the Patriots sign Hopkins and feel the need to move on from a moderately priced wide receiver, that would now logically be Kendrick Bourne. Trading or releasing Bourne would free up over $5.4 million in salary cap room.

At best, Bourne would be the fourth wide receiver behind Hopkins, Parker and JuJu Smith-Schuster in an offense that will also heavily utilize tight ends Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki. Tyquan Thornton could also pass Bourne on the depth chart. Paying a fourth or fifth wide receiver (and the sixth, seventh or eighth option in an offense) $5.4 million is a lot.

There’s a case to be made that wide receiver depth is important and that New England could fit Hopkins and Bourne under the cap. But it would be a lot of money to invest in a player that — barring multiple injuries — likely won’t contribute much in 2023. And moving on from Smith-Schuster, Parker, Henry, Gesicki or Thornton wouldn’t make any sense.

Let’s tackle that Parker deal now. We don’t know the details, but it very well could wind up lowering his 2023 salary cap hit. ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported Wednesday night that “Parker can earn up to $33 million if he achieves every per-game roster bonus, and hits all playing time and performance incentives that include All-Pro honors, according to a source.”

Parker is entering his ninth NFL season. He’s never earned Pro Bowl or All-Pro honors. He had a case in 2019 when he caught 72 passes for 1,202 yards with nine touchdowns. He hasn’t otherwise had an 800-yard or five-touchdown season.

If Parker suddenly becomes an All-Pro, then yeah, he’s worth $11 million per year. But it seems likely that the real numbers behind the extension will look much more team-friendly. We don’t know Parker’s signing bonus, and we also don’t know how real that $14 million in guarantees really is, because they weren’t called full guarantees. Some of that $14 million could only be guaranteed for injury and not performance or cap.

It was pretty surprising to see that Parker was extended Wednesday amid New England’s pursuit of Hopkins. But in all, the deal means more for Parker and Bourne than it does for a potential deal with Hopkins.

Now we wait to see if New England can invest more money at the position with a deal for Hopkins.

Featured image via JIM RASSOL/THE PALM BEACH POST / USA TODAY NETWORK