For the second year in a row, the New England Patriots’ wide receiver position saw some major offseason change thanks due the free agency departures of what is essentially half of last year’s group: Cordarrelle Patterson signed with the Chicago Bears, while Chris Hogan joined the Carolina Panthers — two players that saw considerable action lining up split out wide on the perimeter playing the X-receiver role.
Basically speaking, the X-receiver is primarily a split end lining up on the weak/non-tight end side of the formation. This role is oftentimes shared by a group of wideouts in New England, but the team generally has players fitting the X-profile on its roster: from Chris Hogan and to a lesser extent Cordarrelle Patterson to Brandin Cooks to Randy Moss.