By Matt Geagan
March 11, 2025 / 8:20 AM EDT / CBS Boston
After focusing mostly on the defensive side of the ball after NFL free agency kicked off Monday, the New England Patriots added a pair of depth pieces to their offense later in the day.
Early Monday evening, New England reportedly signed quarterback Josh Dobbs and wide receiver Mack Hollins to cap off a busy day of signings.
Who is Josh Dobbs?
New England reportedly signed Dobbs to a two-year deal, as announced by his agent on X. The pact will pay the backup quarterback $8 million with $3.8 million fully guaranteed, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.
The Patriots will be Dobbs’ sixth team since he made his NFL debut with Pittsburgh in 2018. He’ll slot behind Drake Maye and Joe Milton on New England’s depth chart and could push Milton for the top backup role.
The 30-year-old Dobbs is a nine-year NFL veteran, and made a pair of appearances for the San Francisco 49ers last season. Dobbs has also played for the Steelers (who drafted him in the fourth round in 2017), Jaguars, Browns, Titans, Cardinals, and Vikings.
Dobbs started two games for Tennessee in 2022 when Mike Vrabel was still head coach of the Titans. His most successful stretch came in 2023 when he played in five games (including four starts) for the Vikings and went 2-2 as the team’s starter, completing 62.9 percent of his passes for 895 yards, five touchdowns, and five interceptions.
For his career, Dobbs is 3-12 over his 15 starts and has appeared in 23 games overall. He’s completed 62.7 percent of his passes to go with 17 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. He’s also rushed for eight touchdowns.
Dobbs majored in aerospace engineering when he was at the University of Tennessee, which has earned him the nickname “The Passtronaut” at the NFL level.
Who is Mack Hollins?
The Patriots didn’t land a No. 1 receiver on Monday, but they did sign an interested personality to join the receiving corps. Hollins reportedly agreed to a two-year deal worth $8.4 million with New England, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.
Hollins, 31, was with the Buffalo Bills last season and caught 31 passes for 378 yards and career-best five touchdowns. He’s a tough pass-catcher and will bring a lot of personality — and costumes — to the locker room. Just don’t expect a lot of sneakers, since Hollins is known to go barefoot.
The move also reunites Hollins with Josh McDaniels, who was his head coach in Las Vegas in 2022. Hollins had a career-year for the Raiders that season with 57 receptions for 690 yards and four touchdowns. His best game that season — and of his career — came against Vrabel’s Titans in 2022, when Hollins had eight receptions for 158 yards and a touchdown.
The Patriots will be the sixth team Hollins suits up for, having also played for the Eagles, Dolphins, Raiders, Falcons, and Bills. Over his 112 regular season games, Hollins has racked up 162 catches for 2,069 yards and 15 touchdowns.
The Patriots have reportedly agreed to contracts with nine players since Sunday, with the big prize so far being defensive tackle Milton Williams. Keep track of all of New England’s free-agent signings and moves this offseason with our Patriots Free Agent Tracker.
Matt GeaganMatthew Geagan is a sports producer for CBS Boston. He has been part of the WBZ sports team for nearly 20 years. He moved over to the web in 2012 and has covered all the highs (and a few lows) in Boston sports.
