Patriots offered $30 million to star WR, who turned them down for less money

The New England Patriots spent much of this offseason looking to give Drake Maye better pass catchers.

They came away with free agents Stefon Diggs and Mack Hollins, along with talented third-round pick Kyle Williams.

But there could've been more.

In a new story by The Athletic's Dan Pompei on Monday, he writes that the Patriots offered $30 million per year to Tampa Bay's Chris Godwin.

Godwin eventually signed a three-year, $66 million ($22M AAV) to stay with the Buccaneers.

Coming off a serious injury, Godwin clearly valued what he already knew was a good place to be in Tampa Bay.

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It's a tough break for New England, though, which would've gotten one of the NFL's most successful wideouts at simply getting open.

Maye has a better group to throw to than he did before, but a team would never turn down more help to allow its young quarterback to reach his full potential.

Godwin would've gone a long way toward building Maye up, and the Patriots were prepared to invest.

In the end, Godwin's availability was clearly determined by factors other than money, and it meant New England lost out.

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