The New England Patriots continue to seek success in the post-Tom Brady era, as they placed third in the AFC East last season with an 8-9 record. With Mac Jones struggling in his sophomore season, the Patriots added Bill O’Brien to helm the offense, given his familiarity with Jones. It remains to be seen whether such a move will have a positive impact on the fantasy potential of receivers such as DeVante Parker.
2023 Fantasy Football: DeVante Parker Profile
Recap of 2022 season
Parker appeared in 13 games for the Patriots last season, catching 31 passes for 539 yards with three receiving touchdowns. He averaged 7.9 PPR fantasy points per game in 2022, marking a fourth straight year-over-year decrease. He finished as WR70 with 102.9 fantasy points accumulated for the entire season.
Updated Patriots outlook
New England ranked 20th in passing last year (208.0 YPG) and 21st in pass attempts per game (31.8) as a team, highlighting their emphasis on running the ball. On paper that doesn’t bode well for the fantasy upside of receivers like Parker, however, it’s keen to note that the Patriots have O’Brien as offensive coordinator. He was Mac Jones’ OC at Alabama, so there is some promising upside given that both have familiarity working with each other.
Best case scenario
New England doesn’t completely abandon the run game, which means the odds of Parker finishing with a 1,000+ yard receiving season is slim (also, he’s done so just once in his eight-year career). Realistically, a best-case scenario would be Jones displaying much more confidence and ease in O’Brien’s system, setting up for an efficient season with Parker hovering closer to the 800-yard receiving range.
Worst case scenario
The 2023 season, and arguably the long-term future of the franchise, hinges on Jones’ cementing his status as a franchise quarterback. If he regresses in any way or once again struggles with a new OC, it leaves Parker’s fantasy irrelevant for another season. For context, the Patriots’ receiver was rostered in just 2.8 percent of leagues in 2022.
Prediction
We’ll hold out breath on the Jones-O’Brien pairing and will wait to see the results before placing confidence in Parker as a receiver. There is simply too much uncertainty in that area, and it’s no secret that the run game will never go away in a Belichek-coached team. Parker should finish with just over 500 receiving yards with under five receiving touchdowns, setting up an average of around 7.0 PPR fantasy points per game.