Kayshon Boutte

From 19-yard rookie season to 6 TDs in Year 3 — the Maye effect.

A 6th-round pick out of LSU, Boutte caught 2 passes for 19 yards as a rookie. Three years later his yards-per-catch has nearly doubled to 16.7, and his TD count tripled despite *fewer* targets than 2024. The efficiency arc is the story — fewer looks, more juice per look.

Why it matters. Boutte's per-touch value nearly doubled across three years (Y/R 9.5 -> 13.7 -> 16.7) and his TD count climbed from 0 to 6 even as 2025 targets dipped below his 2024 mark. The arc is efficiency, not volume.

Pre-Maye era to Maye era: yards per target jumped from 8.0 to 12.0 on the same volume.

Through his first two regular seasons Boutte saw 76 targets for 609 yards and 3 TDs -- an 8.0 yard-per-target receiver. In 2025 with Drake Maye full-time he produced 551 yards and 6 TDs on just 46 targets, jumping to 12.0 yards per target while doubling his career TD count.

Maye threw 44 of those 46 targets himself -- 100% of Boutte's 2025 receiving yards and all 6 TDs came from Maye.

Why it matters. Same player, drastically different efficiency. Boutte's yards-per-target jumped 50% (8.0 to 12.0) without an uptick in volume, and 100% of his 2025 production came from Maye throws.

Four 90+ yard games -- all packed into a 10-month stretch from late 2024.

His first career 90+ yard game came in Week 16 of 2024 at Buffalo (5-96-1), and he capped that season with his first 100-yard game two weeks later vs. the Bills (7-117-1). He opened 2025 with another 100-yard outing vs. Las Vegas, then went for 93 yards and 2 TDs on just 5 catches at New Orleans -- his only career multi-TD game.

Four 90+ yard games in 10 months, after going 0-for-18 across his first 18 career games.

Why it matters. Boutte had zero 90+ yard games through his first 18 career appearances, then stacked four of them in a 10-month window starting Week 16 of 2024. The breakout is recent and concentrated.

On the Patriots target hierarchy, he's the deep-ball complement to Diggs and Henry.

Diggs absorbed the volume (102 targets) and Hunter Henry inherited the red-zone work. Boutte sits at the same target count as Douglas (46) — but he doubled Douglas's TD output (6 to 3) on the same number of looks. The pecking order isn't 1–52–3–4; it's *Diggs and Henry get the targets, Boutte gets the chunks*.

Why it matters. Boutte matched DeMario Douglas's exact target count (46) but doubled his TD output (6 to 3) and added 100+ yards. Same chances, very different return -- and Diggs/Henry absorbed the volume so Boutte didn't need it.