Patriots sign Kendrick Bourne to a three-year deal worth $22.5 million

Kyle’s update, 3:49 p.m.: The Patriots have reached a deal with Kendrick Bourne that’ll pay him $22.5 million over three years.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that the New England Patriots and Kendrick Bourne are working on a potential deal. Fowler said that Bourne has received multiple offers and is still talking with other teams, but a deal could get done with New England.

As far as the fit, it’d be difficult to find a better pairing for Bourne than the Patriots. The 25-year-old has evolved as a receiver as far as route running and improving after the catch. It’s easy to remember Bourne’s drops, but you’d be ignoring all of the clutch third-down conversions Bourne had. He’s a hyper-efficient target that has gotten better each year.

Nothing is finalized yet, but if Bourne is receiving multiple offers, he could be out of San Francisco’s price range. Let’s see what the market is willing to pay Bourne compared to what a potential offer from the 49ers may have looked like.

Let’s say, hypothetically, that Bourne isn’t on the 49ers next season. Who becomes WR3? Emmanuel Sanders? JuJu Smith-Schuster? Jalen Hurd hasn’t been healthy in two seasons. It feels like fools gold to count on him moving forward.

Kyle Shanahan has drafted a receiver every year. This draft class is deep enough at the wide receiver position where San Francisco could fill Bourne’s spot on the second day of the draft. That’s the cheap, cost-controlled route that makes sense financially.