Breer: Explaining Pats' decision to sign Smith-Schuster at ‘discount' originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
JuJu Smith-Schuster hasn't lived up to anyone's expectations early in his New England Patriots career. But it's also worth clarifying what those expectations were.
The Patriots signed the veteran wide receiver to a three-year contract in free agency worth roughly $25.5 million, with a cap hit of just $4.67 million for the 2023 season. That's a relative bargain considering Smith-Schuster racked up 933 receiving yards on 78 catches for the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in 2022 and made the Pro Bowl in 2018 with a monster 111-catch, 1,426-yard campaign for the Pittsburgh Steelers.