Entering Year 8, New England Patriots receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster is battling for a job.
"I feel like every training camp I have something to prove -- that's part of my nature, part of my game," Smith-Schuster said this week, via the Boston Globe.
It's the mentality most players take, but this year, it takes on a different meaning for the 27-year-old. Coming off a disappointing 2023 campaign, Smith-Schuster isn't guaranteed a roster spot.
"It's always been in me, that dog, that competitiveness," he said. "I've been in a lot of situations where I've been making those hard catches and being able to convert and move the sticks. For sure, got that dog in me, for sure."
The Patriots inked Smith-Schuster to a three-year, $25.5 million contract last year. It wasn't worth the cost in Year 1. JuJu caught just 29 passes for 260 yards and one touchdown in 11 games. He was sixth on the club in receiving yards and tied for seventh in catches.
Under a new régime, New England inked veteran K.J. Osborn and drafted Ja'Lynn Polk and Javon Baker. Add in Kendrick Bourne, eventually returning from the PUP list, Demario Douglas, Tyquan Thornton, Kayshon Boutte and Jalen Reagor, and it's a crowded back-end of the corps. Smith-Schuster is likely anywhere from sixth to eighth on the roster (clubs usually keep five or six WRs, likely deepening on special teams availability).
"I would say that the competition level is very, very high," Smith-Schuster said. "I feel like for myself, it's something that coming out here and got to prove to compete with these guys."
Smith-Schuster has $7 million guaranteed on his salary. While that money could play a role if the battle is close, it's unlikely to cause the front office to keep the wideout around if he is outplayed by younger talent. It's a sunk cost the Pats would just eat if JuJu doesn't climb up the depth chart over the next five weeks.
