Yes, I'd argue that they viewed Meyers as their #1 last year, and would view him as their #1 this year.
I'm not saying because the Pats viewed them that way, means they are actually #1's. I'm saying this is how BB and the Pats, with the exception of Moss have viewed their #1 receiver forever. They don't pay for top tier high end talent at that position, but instead expect one of their #2-#4's to end up with the most catches, but paying guys like Agholor and JuJu the way they have, they damn well better expect those guys to do more than what they are doing. They are being paid to be the best WR's on the team.
To answer your question, yes, I thought they should have paid Meyers what Oakland did, instead of getting JuJu. I was on record here thinking that Meyers was going to get Kirk type money. I was shocked at how little it took, and once again, it didn't matter, it was too much for the Patriots.
@Reverend touched on this. It's a composition issue, and has been going back to 2019 or earlier. They refuse to bring in a true stud #1 and instead insist on trying to turn #2's and #3's into #1's for short money. It's not what you do to a young quarterback, and then compound that with the disaster of the offensive line.