Patriots Linked To Backup Option if They Dont Land AJ Brown

The New England Patriots are still being tied to A.J. Brown, but the longer that situation drags, the more another name keeps floating into the picture. 

If the Philadelphia Eagles do not move Brown, or if the price gets too messy, Tyreek Hill is starting to look like the potential fallback swing.

It's not a perfect fit, but New England still needs another real weapon for Drake Maye even after adding Romeo Doubs.

Patriots could pivot to Tyreek Hill if A.J. Brown stays put

The Brown angle is easy enough to understand. He is younger, he's a better fit from a roster-building standpoint, and is still a true No. 1 alpha receiver. 

The problem is that trading for him is not simple, especially before June 1, when the Eagles would be staring at a massive dead-cap hit. 

Tyreek Hill will likely never look like the receiver you’re used to seeing.

He suffered a knee injury similar to Tank Dell, possibly worse if the nerve injury lingered.

He might be able to get back his straight line speed, but cutting is going to be really challenging at the…

— Jesse Morse, M.D. (@DrJesseMorse) March 22, 2026

If Philadelphia keeps dragging this into the summer, New England may have to stop waiting around and look at the veteran sitting there in free agency. 

Tyreek Hill gives Patriots a risky but explosive fallback

Hill is coming off a major knee injury suffered early in 2025, and that alone is enough to make teams nervous given how much of his game depends on speed. 

He was released by the Miami Dolphins in February, and while the market has not exactly exploded for him, the resume still jumps off the page. 

Hill has more than 11,000 career receiving yards, 90 touchdowns, eight Pro Bowls, and a Super Bowl ring, and he led the NFL in receiving yards in 2023. 

Even if he is no longer at his absolute peak, the ceiling is still higher than what most teams can find this late in the cycle without giving up draft capital.

𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚: The Chiefs are now the FAVORITES to sign superstar WR Tyreek Hill this offseason on Polymarket.

Chiefs - 28%
Bills - 12%
Patriots - 11%

Kansas City would be UNSTOPPABLE with Hill 👀 pic.twitter.com/g40J7SLzSu

— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) February 18, 2026

The real question is whether the Patriots would be comfortable with the risk package that comes with him. The injury is one part of it. 

The other part is the baggage and noise that tend to follow him, which is undeniably a big deal for a team that is still trying to build a stable offense around a young quarterback. 

But from a pure football standpoint, Hill would give Maye a field-tilting target that this roster still lacks, and unlike a Brown trade, signing him would not cost New England any assets.

Photo Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images