The New England Patriots entered the NFL Draft with a definitive need at the wide receiver position. They invested in two prospects in the hope of addressing it, with the first of those selections coming at No. 37 overall in the second round: Ja’Lynn Polk from the University of Washington was brought aboard as a potential future weapon for first-round quarterback Drake Maye.
Will he develop into that? And what is his outlook heading into his rookie campaign? Let’s assess Polk in the latest installment of our player profile series. Name: Ja’Lynn Polk Position: Wide receiver Opening day age: 22 (4/11/2002) Size: 6’1”, 203 lbs Jersey number: 1 Contract status: Unsigned draft pick A three-star recruit coming out of Lufkin High School in his Texas hometown, Polk decided to stay in his home state to start his college career. He committed to Texas Tech, where he appeared in 10 games with seven starts during his 2021 freshman campaign.
Despite catching 28 passes for 264 yards and a pair of touchdowns, Polk transferred to Washington the following spring. He was limited to just three games in his first season as a Husky, eventually redshirting due to a collarbone injury. From 2022 on, however, he became a heavily-featured member of the school’s wide receiver rotation: after catching 41 passes for 694 yards and six scores that year, he set career highs in receptions (69), receiving yards (1,159) and touchdowns (9) as a junior in 2023.
Even though he still had a year of eligi.
