A Contender Wanted Him, Patriots Said No
Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer reported that a contending team reached out roughly four or five weeks before the season, specifically asking about Mack Hollins' availability.
When Breer suggested the team consider Kayshon Boutte instead, the response made clear Hollins was the actual target, not a consolation option. The Patriots declined to move him.
It's a telling detail given what happened next. New England ultimately did trade Boutte away before the season, keeping its congested receiver room mostly intact around Hollins, A.J. Brown, Romeo Doubs and DeMario Douglas.
The #Patriots renegotiated WR Mack Hollins' incentive package for 2026 in order to make them not likely to be earned.
— Spotrac (@spotrac) September 16, 2026
Reception Incentives
was 30, now 47: $300k
was 40, now 50: $300k
was 50, now 55: $400k
Hollins caught 46 passes last season.
Hollins had put together arguably his best season as a Patriot in 2025, catching 46 passes for 550 yards and two touchdowns, production solid enough that at least one rival evaluator apparently viewed him as more valuable than New England did internally.
Then New England Nearly Cut Him Anyway
According to Spotrac's Michael Ginnitti, the Patriots and Hollins agreed to a contract revision on September 1 that made his 2026 incentive thresholds significantly harder to reach, pushing the reception counts needed to unlock $300,000, $300,000 and $400,000 bonuses from 30, 40 and 50 catches up to 47, 50 and 55.
Hollins caught exactly 46 passes last year, meaning the original numbers were realistically in play again. The move shifts that money off this year's cap and onto next year's, but only if he actually reaches the new, tougher marks.
Multiple reports indicated the restructuring came with leverage behind it. Hollins was asked by the Boston Herald's Doug Kyed whether the Patriots explicitly threatened to release him if he didn't agree, and while he stopped short of confirming an outright threat, he basically said the outcome was implied.
"That's an unfortunate sign of the business, but I'm happy to be here," Hollins said, adding that the new numbers do provide extra motivation, "not any harder than I already work."
#Patriots WR Mack Hollins, who recently had his contract altered, says he was at risk of being cut if he did not renegotiate his incentives, per @DougKyed.
— Carlos A. Lopez (@LosTalksPats) September 16, 2026
“That’s kind of how it works. That’s the risk that you run. It’s like, ‘Hey, you could take this offer, or we could… pic.twitter.com/TQHx3C5tEZ
A.J. Brown suffered an ankle injury in Week 1 against Seattle that's expected to sideline him for weeks, and it was Hollins who stepped into the void, leading the Patriots with four catches for 51 yards on just five targets.
Quarterback Drake Maye praised him afterward, saying "that's what he does, that's Mack Hollins' career, stepping up and being in the right spot."
In the span of about six weeks, Mack Hollins went from a trade candidate a contender wanted enough to call about, to a player New England pressured into harder contract terms under the threat of release, to the Patriots' leading receiver in Week 1.
