It is With a Heavy Heart That Patriots Fans Bid Farewell to Kendrick Bourne
I am saddened, not gladdened, at the announcement that Kendrick Bourne has reached the end of the line with the team that signed him in that almost magical offseason of 2021. The one that won GM Bill the EOTY as he broke the bank in free agency and turned a 7-9 season into 10-7 and Wild Card berth. Among the very best of that free agent haul was Bourne, who produced a career bests in receptions with 55, receiving yards with 800 exactly, touchdown catches with 5, and a passer rating when targeted of 135.1, which was good for THIRD best in the league.
My first impression of Bourne came during spring practices. There was a punt drill going on not far from where I was watching. Bourne was lined up at gunner, a position he was never going to play and it was clear he was just there as a body for the return team to work on directional blocking and so on. That was made clear by the fact Bourne was having a ball with it. Doing what he was supposed to for sure - he understood the assignment - but talking and laughing in between reps. Just showing that enthusiasm that can make an otherwise tedious task months before the start of the season damned near enjoyable. From then on, I was sold.
That energy was evident on the field and off. He was the guy who'd post video of workouts or Mac Jones Draft Party. The ill-fated one that began with a trade down to select Cole Strange and left us with nothing to show for it right now but Marcus Jones. Then came a bad stretch for him as he was sent to Matt Patricia's Maison de la Chien for long stretches and for reasons that remain a mystery to this day. And he's ever recovered from that period of exile.
All this said, Bourne's release is far from shocking. He's had a hard time staying in the lineup the past couple of years. At age 30, he's been passed on the depth chart by younger guys like Pop Douglas, Kayshon Boutte, and likely Kyle Williams and possibly even Efton Chism III. More to the point, Stefon Diggs and Mack Hollins are the starters in a crowded wide receiver room, making Bourne the odd man out. Which is a shame for a guy who would be perfectly suited to be a WR3 on a good team, but was forced into the role of a WR2 and even a WR1 at times on some terrible rosters here.
Still, we'll have memories. Like this catch he made against the Cowboys, the very next play from scrimmage after Mac Jones threw a pick-6:
Or this one, that convinced Pats fans we had a QB/WR hookup that was going to bring back the former glory of Brady-to-[Insert Receiver's Name Here]:
But it wasn't meant to be. In the end, Bourne will be remembered as a guy who made it easy to root for him on some teams in which finding reasons to root were in short supply. The best we can hope for is that he plays well somewhere else that doesn't affect us. And that by letting him go, it signals that the problems at wide receiver have been addressed, and solved, at long last.
