Expectations have been considerably raised for the Patriots in 2026.
In 12 months 1 below new head coach Mike Vrabel, the Patriots went 14-3 through the common season and unexpectedly made the Tremendous Bowl after ending 4-13 in consecutive seasons. Now it’s about determining the right way to get again to the Tremendous Bowl and win all of it.
Vrabel and high front-office executives Eliot Wolf, Ryan Cowden and John Streicher have over $40 million in cap area (with different means to unlock extra) and 11 choices within the 2026 NFL Draft.
The Herald is publishing a daily series with 5 offseason fixes that cowl the draft, free company and trades that may assist the Patriots get again to the Tremendous Bowl.
No. 2: Fortify the offensive line
You may consider the important thing to fixing the Patriots’ offensive line is to maneuver Will Campbell to left guard.
And also you may be proper. However as of now, that’s nothing however a fantasy proposition. Vrabel shot down the idea in his season-ending press convention final week after the Patriots lost Super Bowl LX to the Seahawks.
“Whenever you signal as much as play left sort out, you signal as much as play nook, you signal as much as play quarterback, you signal as much as be the top coach, you get judged, you get scrutinized. Will’s 22 years outdated. He’s our left sort out,” Vrabel affirmed. “He’ll get higher, he’ll get stronger. There have been moments the place he performed properly, moments the place he blocked the man. There’s performs he’d wish to have again. We’re not shifting Will to protect, to heart, to tight finish or wherever else. So, I don’t know what to let you know.”
Campbell had a really strong rookie common season after which struggled mightily within the postseason.
He earned a 72.6 general PFF grade through the common season with a 76.1 pass-blocking grade and 67.7 run-blocking grade, letting up 5 sacks, 5 QB hits and 26 complete pressures with a 96.5% pass-blocking effectivity metric.
These numbers dropped all the way down to a 48.7 general PFF grade, 34.7 pass-blocking grade, 65.9 run-blocking grade with 4 sacks, two QB hits and 19 complete pressures with a 92.6% pass-blocking effectivity metric within the playoffs, dealing with off in opposition to 4 top-tier defenses within the Chargers, Texans, Broncos and Seahawks.
The standard of competitors elevated, however Campbell was additionally coming off of a knee damage that put him on injured reserve and sidelined him for 4 weeks.
The remainder of the Patriots’ offensive line can also be below contract subsequent season in left guard Jared Wilson, heart Garrett Bradbury, proper guard Mike Onwenu and proper sort out Morgan Moses. Prime backup guard/heart Ben Brown can also be below contract. Prime backup tackles Vederian Lowe and Thayer Munford Jr. are each free brokers.
The Patriots may select to take a seat again and hope that enhancements from Campbell and Wilson will repair the offensive line when it issues most and the competitors is fiercest, however that’s additionally not a assured repair.
The opposite choice is to be proactive and make sure that at the least one place is improved upon this offseason. Regardless of Campbell’s struggles within the playoffs, Wilson was the weakest hyperlink within the group all through the season and nonetheless initiatives greatest as a middle. So, the Patriots may let Wilson and Bradbury battle it out for the beginning heart spot this offseason and signal an skilled guard.
It’s not a foul yr to seek out guard on the open market with Isaac Seumalo (Steelers), David Edwards (Payments), Alijah Vera-Tucker (Jets) and Joel Bitonio (Browns) all set to hit free company. Seumalo, Edwards and Bitonio are all left guard by commerce. Vera-Tucker has principally performed proper guard however was the Jets’ beginning left guard as a rookie. The Patriots may additionally signal a flexible offensive lineman like Jermaine Eluemunor, who spent the 2020 season in New England and may play guard or sort out.
Heart Tyler Linderbaum is the most effective offensive lineman out there, however there’s already a logjam at heart, and signing him would basically drive Wilson into a job at left guard, the place he’ll possible all the time be undersized.
No matter how the Patriots deal with guard and heart this season, they need to additionally look to pick one other sort out early within the 2026 NFL Draft. The explanations are two-fold.
First, Moses will flip 35 in March, and the Patriots had been extraordinarily lucky to get 21 video games out of him this season. Drafting a sort out would give Moses a built-in backup, and the rookie might be developed right into a full-time starter as early as 2027.
Second, if Campbell does have to maneuver inside to protect sooner or later, then it will possibly’t harm to maintain including younger tackles.
Houston left sort out Caleb Lomu, Georgia left sort out Monroe Freeling, Arizona State proper sort out Max Iheanachor, Clemson proper sort out Blake Miller, Northwestern left sort out Caleb Tiernan and Iowa proper sort out Gennings Dunker may all be in play for the Patriots within the first or second spherical.
The Patriots produce other wants, like extensive receiver, tight finish and edge defender, however none was extra evident throughout this postseason run than on the offensive line.
