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Patriots Reportedly Meet With Free Agents Demaryius Thomas, T.J. Yeldon

BOSTON (CBS) -- The Patriots are leaving no stone unturned as they look for help on the offensive side of the ball. New England reportedly had a pair of veteran offensive players in for a visit on Wednesday, meeting with free agents Demaryius Thomas and T.J. Yeldon.

Thomas is a nine-year veteran receiver who is coming off a torn Achilles that ended his 2018 season early. He played in 15 games between the Denver Broncos and Houston Texans, finishing his season with 59 receptions, 677 receiving yards and five touchdowns. In his seven games with Houston after being traded by the Broncos, Thomas had 23 receptions and two touchdowns.

The 22nd overall pick back in 2010, Thomas has 688 career receptions for 9,330 yards and 62 touchdowns. His best season came in 2014 when he was catching passes from Peyton Manning, hauling in 111 catches for 1,619 yards -- both career highs -- to go with 11 touchdowns. He caught a career-high 14 touchdowns in the 2013 season.

Thomas has an additional 53 receptions and six touchdowns in his 10 career playoff games, winning a Super Bowl with the Broncos in 2015.

The Patriots could certainly use some more veteran pass-catchers, with Julian Edelman, Phillip Dorsett, Bruce Ellington, Maurice Harris, Demoun Patterson and Braxton Berrios making up their wide receiver depth chart. But it's fair to wonder what the 31-year-old Thomas could bring in 2019 after tearing his Achilles late last year.

Yeldon, 25, has spent all four of his NFL seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and is a versatile back out of the backfield. He has 12 total touchdowns (six rushing, six receiving) in his career, with five of those coming last year as he filled in for the injured Leonard Fournette. Yeldon was a second-round pick by the Jaguars out of Alabama in 2015.

The Patriots currently have Sony Michel, James White, Rex Burkhead and Brandon Bolden on their running back depth chart.

 

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