Patriots Need to Land Leonard Fournette Contract amid Dalvin Cook, NFL Rumors

The New England Patriots held a workout with free agent running back Leonard Fournette on Wednesday, though the Patriots did not sign the 28-year-old to a contract.

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, New England will instead monitor the former Jacksonville Jaguars and Tampa Bay Buccaneers starter.

"He visited and worked out for New England," Rapoport said on NFL Total Access (h/t NESN's Keagan Stiefel). "That was today, and my understanding is despite the fact they did not immediately sign him—certainly this is something they will keep tabs on in the future."

Perhaps, New England is waiting to see if they can land free agent and 2022 Pro Bowler Dalvin Cook before turning back to Fournette. Earlier this month, SPN's Jeremy Fowler reported (h/t Karen Guregian of MassLive) that the Patriots are "intrigued" by the idea of pairing Cook with presumed starter Rhamondre Stevenson.

If that's the case, however, New England should look past Cook and simply sign Fournette instead.

It would seem that the Patriots are seeking pass-catching help, which is understandable. Even after adding JuJu Smith-Schuster to help replace Jakobi Meyers, New England's receiving corps is the most underwhelming in the AFC East. It could still stand to get quarterback Mac Jones some receiving help.

The Patriots tried to sign DeAndre Hopkins but weren't willing to match the base salary the Tennessee Titans ultimately gave him, according to NESN's Jason Ounpraseuth. They were also "in the mix" for New York Jets receiver Denzel Mims, according to Heavy's Matt Lombardo and The Boston Globe's Christopher Price (h/t Ounpraseuth).

The Jets sent Mims to the Detroit Lions instead.

In the wake of missing out on both Hopkins and Mims, adding a quality pass-catcher to the backfield would be a smart move. Cook, who has 221 receptions in six seasons, would certainly qualify.

So would Fournette, though. In three seasons with former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and the Buccaneers, he caught 178 passes. That wasn't just a product of playing with Brady either. Fournette has played only six more regular-season games than Cook but had 91 more catches.

Fournette would be perfectly capable of serving as a pass-catching complement to Stevenson, who can catch balls himself (69 of them last season). Now, one can certainly argue that Cook is a more explosive runner—he averaged 0.9 more yards per carry than Fournette in 2022—but that deserves some context.

While Fournette averaged a mere 3.5 yards per carry this past season, he was limited by poor offensive line play in Tampa. As a team, the Buccaneers only averaged 3.4 yards per rush, dead-last in the NFL.

Fournette is pretty much the same player he always has been—a physical runner who can wear down a defense and provide an outlet in the passing game. He's also likely to sign on a much more team-friendly contract than Cook might.

When he first joined the Buccaneers in 2020, he was willing to accept a modest one-year, $2 million deal. He only made it through one year of the three-year, $21 million deal he signed last offseason, but he got $12 million guaranteed out of that contract—with $5 million of that counting as 2023 dead money for the Bucs.

Cook reportedly has an open offer from the Miami Dolphins but "isn't willing to accept" it, according to ESPN's Jeff Darlington (h/t Chris Schad of FanNation). The Jets also have some level of interest in Cook, according to Fowler, which New York head coach Robert Saleh hasn't denied.

If the Patriots weren't willing to match one offer to land Hopkins, they shouldn't be eager to outbid one or even two teams to land Cook—especially not with starting-caliber backs like Fournette and Ezekiel Elliott on the open market.

Cook, according to ESPN's Rich Cimini (h/t Paul A. Esden Jr. of Heavy), is looking to make around $8 million this season.

There could be some value in ensuring that Cook doesn't sign with the rival Dolphins or Jets, but that's not reason enough for the Patriots to go shelling out a contract with which they are not comfortable.

New England has $15.9 million in cap space remaining, but it would be wise to maintain some cap flexibility in case an intriguing wide receiver becomes available at or before preseason roster cuts.

Signing Fournette would allow the Patriots to do just that. He'd fill their need for an additional pass-catcher, he'd be a fantastic fit for offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien's system, and he'd likely come at a fraction of the cost of Cook.

If New England wastes too much time just keeping tabs on Fournette, he may eventually no longer be an option.

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*Cap and contract information via Spotrac.