Much has been made of Mike Evans's demands that include a desire to play for a Super Bowl contender, but another Tampa Bay Buccaneers pass-catching free agent could be headed to a Super Bowl team; the New England Patriots are interested in signing Cade Otton.
According to a report from the Boston Herald, [via Joe Bucs Fan](https://www.joebucsfan.com/2026/03/boston-herald-reports-patriots-interest-in-cade-otton/), the Patriots are expected to sign another pass-catching tight end to replace Austin Hooper, who is likely to leave via free agency. Instead of Isaiah Likely, Otton is expected to be one of the players that interests the Pats.
It looks like the Patriots want to go for the secondary market for options behind clear star man Hunter Henry, and the Pats situation is a reminder that Otton is going to be very attractive to teams in the free agent market who already have a top tight end but play a tight end-heavy offense in terms of their personnel.
The Patriots want to sign Cade Otton
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That's because Otton is going to be cheaper than the primary tight ends on the market, but he has enough speculated untapped potential that the big boys in free agency like the Patriots are going to see him as a potential high upside flier.
The Buccaneers seem to have some interest in keeping Otton, but given they have spent more of their efforts convincing Mike Evans and Lavonte David to avoid retirment, keeping ahold of a receiving tight end who struggles to surpass 700 receving yards in a season does not appear to be a priority for them.
So clubs like the Patriots will likely price Otton out of the Bucs internal cap, and while the Bucs would like to consider themselves as Super Bowl contenders, there is no doubt that the Drake Maye led Patriots are a more enticing landing spot for players, especially someone like Otton.
The Patriots are the first suitor by name to be linked to Otton, but there will undoubtedly be at least a handful of other notable teams with an interest in taking a free agency flier on an athletic tight end who is yet to hit his peak years. As for the Buccaneers, they will need to take a long look at the tight ends in the draft class on Day 2 and 3, and the good news is that beyond first round prospect Kenyon Sadiq, there were several players who tested well at the NFL Combine.