New England Patriots second-year wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk refuses to let a disappointing rookie season ruin his expectations for the future.
The deck is stacked against him with Mike Vrabel taking over as the new head coach and de facto decision-maker for the Patriots. There are no ties to the 2024 second-round draft pick for Vrabel, like there would have been for former Patriots coach Jerod Mayo.
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The team currently has 12 receivers on the roster, and there’s a real possibility that they’ll only keep six players at the position. Polk has been recovering from shoulder surgery, which limited his availability in the spring practices. The deck is stacked against him, but he appears to be embracing the challenge of proving doubters wrong at training camp.
“Count me out,” Polk dared doubters in an Instagram story.
There was hope that Polk would serve as a top receiving target for quarterback Drake Maye last season, but he only mustered 12 receptions for 87 yards and two touchdowns.
His talent popped at times on the practice field, but he was never able to put it together in games. There are plenty of players ahead of him currently on the roster, including Stefon Diggs, Kyle Williams, Demario Douglas, Kendrick Bourne, Mack Hollins, Kayshon Boutte and even Efton Chism III.
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Polk has some serious work to do to change the lingering narrative from his disappointing rookie season.
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This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Forgotten Patriots wide receiver issues strong statement to doubters