New England Patriots - NESN.com
A former New England Patriots receiver is reuniting with his former team. According to Adam Schefter, Kendrick Bourne is signing a one-year, $5 million deal with the San Francisco 49ers.
Bourne was on the Patriots’ initial 53-man roster, but was released after the team failed to find a trade partner for the veteran receiver. In four seasons in New England, Bourne amassed 1945 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns on 155 receptions. His first year with the team was his most productive, as he recorded 800 yards and played in all 17 games.
He’s returning to the Bay Area, where he spent the first four seasons of his career. He had 11 touchdowns and 1769 yards in 58 games.
The receiver was nursing a foot injury in training camp, but Schefter reported that he’s since recovered and could play for the 49ers as soon as this week.
San Francisco is coming off a week one victory over the Seattle Seahawks, in which they got very little production from their wide receivers. Ricky Pearsall led the group with four catches for 108 yards, while Jauan Jennings left the game early with a shoulder injury. Tight end George Kittle also exited the game with a hamstring injury, leaving quarterback Brock Purdy without many established targets.
Bourne played primarily on the outside for the Patriots, but he has experience playing from the slot as well. When he last played for San Francisco in 2020, he lined up on the inside about 40% of the time.
The Patriots didn’t get a ton of production from their receivers, either, but Bourne’s absence wasn’t noticeable. Kayshon Boutte worked as the primary receiver on the outside and succeeded at getting open down the field. The offense only scored 13 points, but releasing Bourne isn’t the reason for the lack of consistent positive plays.
