Patriots

Eliot Wolf offers blunt reason why Patriots weren’t able to sign Calvin Ridley

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Calvin Ridley runs onto the field before a Dec. 31, 2023 game in Jacksonville, Fla. AP Photo/Doug Murray

By Conor Ryan

April 18, 2024

Patriots owner Robert Kraft offered up an … interesting explanation for why his team came up short in trying to sign star wideout Calvin Ridley last month.

Even though New England opened the offseason with over $100 million in cap space, it lost the bidding war for Ridley — who eventually signed with the Tennessee Titans on a four-year, $92 million contract.

“We pursued the people we wanted in free agency. There was one outstanding receiver that unfortunately we couldn’t close. It was not a because of finance,” Kraft claimed. “He made clear that his girlfriend wanted to be in the south, and we had a situation where the taxes were like almost 10-percent higher. We offered—or were willing—to keep going to add that premium, but he didn’t want to be in the northeast. Part of it might be the quarterback situation as well.”

It was a bizarre move by Kraft to chalk up Ridley’s decision to factors outside of money, while also throwing in at the very end that perhaps it’s New England’s talent deficiency on offense that might have held some sway over the pass-catcher’s call to sign elsewhere.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday at Gillette Stadium, Patriots de-facto GM Eliot Wolf offered up a far more straightforward response as to why New England wasn’t able to reel in Ridley on the open market.

“Another team offered more money, would be the main thing,” Wolf said.

The 29-year-old Ridley would have been a welcome pick-up for a Patriots team still short on proven offensive weapons. The former University of Alabama wideout put together a strong season in Jacksonville in 2023, reeling in 76 catches for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns.

Ridley has surpassed 800 receiving yards another three times in his NFL career, headlined by an impressive 2020 season where he caught 90 passes for 1,374 yards and nine touchdowns with the Falcons.

But Wolf pushed back on Thursday against the notion that New England’s offense is still severely lacking in terms of play-makers.

“We have NFL receivers, we have NFL tight ends, we have NFL running backs, we have NFL running backs. We feel good about where we are,” Wolf said, adding: “We feel through free agency – on the offensive side in particular – that we’ve been able to supplement our roster properly so we’re not having to draft or need as much offensively.”