Where do we need to improve

NFL Mystique said:

Good job by Bill letting Thuney go. Certainly would not have needed a guy like him last night.

The Patriots need to have a QB coach work directly with Maye on pocket presence, getting the ball out quicker, and taking more check downs.

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To be fair we could have righted that wrong in March and didn't. I get wanting to get a look at the young guys but when a HOF talent is there on a team that needs help at the position you should pull the trigger.

Stu Pidassle said:

Spending draft capital on aging veterans is something teams with championship objectives do. It does not make as much sense for team starting a long term restoration of talent. No one expected the team to be one or two players away from winning the super bowl. Hopefully they will adjust their perspective if similar opportunities present themselves this year.

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Well it help securing the line for a few years to avoid your QB to be sped up and screw his development up.

Wilson played LG because they screwed up that position in the offseason and they didn’t really have any other option on the team even if at the end of the season I think Ben Brown was better than Wilson.

NFL Mystique said:

Good job by Bill letting Thuney go. Certainly would not have needed a guy like him last night.

The Patriots need to have a QB coach work directly with Maye on pocket presence, getting the ball out quicker, and taking more check downs.

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Signing Shaq Mason prematurely was idiotic. He wasn't a bad player, it was just unnecessary at the time. Because they invested in Mason, they played games with Thuney. He rejected BB's 11th hour attempt and told him "too late".

SONS_OF_BELICHICK said:

Where are the areas we need improve on to get back to the big game?

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LT, LG, C, RG, RT, TE (blocking) FB

TheRainMaker said:

Signing Shaq Mason prematurely was idiotic. He wasn't a bad player, it was just unnecessary at the time. Because they invested in Mason, they played games with Thuney. He rejected BB's 11th hour attempt and told him "too late".

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Did Thuney get another SB Ring??

PatsFan2 said:

Did Thuney get another SB Ring??

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Yes. 2 in KC.

Rob0729 said:

Obviously the o-line is most important. This o-line in the playoffs looked as bad as some of the o-lines from the Mac Jones years. Get a true LT. Rasheed Walker should probably be the target if he isn't franchised. Or target one in the first round.

The Pats need a true #1 WR. The Pats have a good selection of #2/#3/#4 WR types, but no one who can get consistent separation or teams need to allocate additional resources. So it is easy for a good secondary to cover the Pats' WRs.

Edge rusher. The Pats are dominant up the middle, but struggle to get an outside rush or set the edge. Maxx Crosby is tempting, but only if the Pats fulfil the needs of the other two needs first. Can't be giving up the draft capital only to let the other two needs to go unaddressed.

TE. They need a guy who can block as well as a threat up the middle. Henry seems to have dropped off as the season went along. He might be a point that he gets relegated to #2. Free agency has a lot of TE options. I see them addressing this need there.

More o-line help. Moses is old. Bradbury could use an upgrade. Owenu's contract is pretty big. Ultimately they need a younger RT and depending on Wilson's ability to play center, a new center. They need to redo Owenu's deal a bit.

Safety. Woodson is going to be a starter for years, but they need to upgrade from Hawkins.

LB. Spillane is great. Gibbens is a great back up, but they could use an upgrade there.

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Great post.. but with where we are drafting I don't think we will be able to do much at LT or WR unless we stink in 2026 and draft high in 2027 or we get lucky. At this point, we will need to bet on existing horses and see if they can improve. If they suck , anyways we will try again I. 2027. Make sure we have an out clause in 2027 for every player we resign in 2026 outside of gonzo .

Draft - TE,LB, Safety / guard in first 3 picks is what might be feasible . no good DE or LT will be available. If we get a good RT with first round pick that's a bonus but I am not holding up hopes.

Couple of changes in oline - move Wilson to center or backup center and get a new LG - brown or some other vet. Make Moses swing tackle and get Marcus Bryant in as right tackle. I hope they resign lowe but unlikely.

NFL Mystique said:

Good job by Bill letting Thuney go. Certainly would not have needed a guy like him last night.

The Patriots need to have a QB coach work directly with Maye on pocket presence, getting the ball out quicker, and taking more check downs.

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Man, some of these posts are living in the past.

Shaq Mason was on his last legs 5 years ago, David Andrews was a shell of himself in recent years, we didn't imagine we'd need Thuney this year because the plan was to build an offensive line with young players. They didn't think they'd be in the Super Bowl.

However, here's a young guy who probably would have helped: Cole Strange. He played better for the Dolphins than Wilson played for us.

VrabelJr said:

Same as all season: OL, TE, LB, DE

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The question was where we need to improve.

I am truly AMAZED that folks don't understand that of the very most important places we need to improve is in the play of our QB.

Yes, obviously we need to improve the left side of the OL. But that is on track. We need a top LG or LT and some health from the two rookies, but we shouldn't ignore the need to improve QB play.

Looking at the stats, 5 of the top 6 tacklers were defensive backs, the other was Jennings. Where were the interior linebackers? Do we think that is good enough. Maybe give Spillane a little slack for the ankle. Don't know what the playing time distribution was, but just looked off to me.

We can list positions, but ultimately I think the quote here sums up our true biggest need. It's not a specific position, it's elite talent. We're short on it. I'd probably put Milton Williams in this class too or at least very close to it, but outside of Gonzalez we just lack guys who are always going to be as good or better as the guy across from them. I think we did a great job last offseason of restoring baseline competency across the roster, but the highs on this team still aren't high enough. We don't have enough players/positional groupings that can be our foundation week to week. Other top contenders simply have more guys who you can't stop but only hope to contain. We need more elite players above all else, however that comes.

mgteich said:

The question was where we need to improve.

I am truly AMAZED that folks don't understand that of the very most important places we need to improve is in the play of our QB.

Yes, obviously we need to improve the left side of the OL. But that is on track. We need a top LG or LT and some health from the two rookies, but we shouldn't ignore the need to improve QB play.

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I don't think it's people not understanding that. I think most are just talking in terms of where personnel should change. Maye needs to play better than he did in the playoffs but he's still our QB obviously. No changes are coming there. Most are answering in terms of where they'd like to see talent upgrades for new players, not just internal development.

There isn't much they can do to improve the team in reality. Most of the draft will be chances since they are at the end of each round without the benefit of a trophy as the price. Like I stated earlier, with a putrid offensive performance like last night, the holes are massive. Players that think they are one of the pieces away might be intrigued but there are a lot of teams out there close to the Pats with less holes. The damage done to the Patriots as a destination last night might not be known for a while. Not to mention who knows who would be a fit for the locker room.

40 million in cap space is better than nothing but I think 10 or more teams have much more. Had the Pats lost in a nail biter, then that changes it a bit. It's gonna be very, very hard for them to fill the holes they need to fill.

mgteich said:

The question was where we need to improve.

I am truly AMAZED that folks don't understand that of the very most important places we need to improve is in the play of our QB.

Yes, obviously we need to improve the left side of the OL. But that is on track. We need a top LG or LT and some health from the two rookies, but we shouldn't ignore the need to improve QB play.

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I don't disagree with you, but we aren't in a position to abandon him. His style is the mid to deep throw needing a half a second more time. I think he hit a wall mentally and physically entering the playoffs. He was hammered about protecting the ball. That seemed to become the priority with the coaches. Still, you have to accept Drake Maye and his style and the attendant warts.

ViperGTS said:

There isn't much they can do to improve the team in reality. Most of the draft will be chances since they are at the end of each round without the benefit of a trophy as the price. Like I stated earlier, with a putrid offensive performance like last night, the holes are massive. Players that think they are one of the pieces away might be intrigued but there are a lot of teams out there close to the Pats with less holes. The damage done to the Patriots as a destination last night might not be known for a while. Not to mention who knows who would be a fit for the locker room.

40 million in cap space is better than nothing but I think 10 or more teams have much more. Had the Pats lost in a nail biter, then that changes it a bit. It's gonna be very, very hard for them to fill the holes they need to fill.

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I think this is a little doomsday. Every year we see genuinely AWFUL teams attract talent in free agency. I'm talking teams who get blown out like that week after week, not just in the super bowl. I don't think we did some irreparable harm to the team. Sure maybe not THE destination, but I think Vrabel is still going to be a huge draw and there will be tons of players who view us as an awesome situation for them.

Hugepatsfan said:

I think this is a little doomsday. Every year we see genuinely AWFUL teams attract talent in free agency. I'm talking teams who get blown out like that week after week, not just in the super bowl. I don't think we did some irreparable harm to the team. Sure maybe not THE destination, but I think Vrabel is still going to be a huge draw and there will be tons of players who view us as an awesome situation for them.

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Not saying they won't get players, but the sure fire I want to go there to win a title...isn't there imo. Drake and Vrabel are cool but so are Nix and Payton, Mendoza in Vegas, Daniels, Williams etc.

Lagaffe_07 said:

Well it help securing the line for a few years to avoid your QB to be sped up and screw his development up.

Wilson played LG because they screwed up that position in the offseason and they didn’t really have any other option on the team even if at the end of the season I think Ben Brown was better than Wilson

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I don't disagree about the benefits of having Thuney on the team. I was pointing out why something so obvious in hindsight was a calculated decision. I think Wolf and company might have made a different decision if there was any confidence that the team had a real chance of playing for a championship.

Toofy said:

Great post.. but with where we are drafting I don't think we will be able to do much at LT or WR unless we stink in 2026 and draft high in 2027 or we get lucky. At this point, we will need to bet on existing horses and see if they can improve. If they suck , anyways we will try again I. 2027. Make sure we have an out clause in 2027 for every player we resign in 2026 outside of gonzo .

Draft - TE,LB, Safety / guard in first 3 picks is what might be feasible . no good DE or LT will be available. If we get a good RT with first round pick that's a bonus but I am not holding up hopes.

Couple of changes in oline - move Wilson to center or backup center and get a new LG - brown or some other vet. Make Moses swing tackle and get Marcus Bryant in as right tackle. I hope they resign lowe but unlikely.

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Yeah, I am generally in agreement there. The cost to upgrade some spots is not worth the squeeze vs. just riding with what we have.

WR - I would mainly focus on the young guys already here: Williams, Boutte, Chism. Extend Boutte, and probably keep Hollins too. Douglas is likely worth keeping for the final year of his deal. Only splash opportunities I see would be a trade for AJ Brown or if (big if) Mike Evans shakes loose in free agency from Tampa Bay.

LT - Just keep Campbell. I get it, he had a bad end of his season, but there's a lot at play there - the injury, the rookie wall, conditioning, etc. If he can get healthy and bulk up going into year 2 to help deal with power rushers, I personally believe he can at least be average. It's not easy to find even average LTs in this league, and the cost to upgrade there is very high. Keep trying him at least another season there.

TE - There are actually several free agent options here and it is a sensible spot to try to upgrade as the cost is not usually very high. I'd be fine with moving on from Henry for cap savings and signing someone such as Likely as TE1 and seeing if they can get anything out of Dippre as TE2, who they carried on the 53 this year to keep, presumably with an eye towards 2026.

LB - I'd hit this position in the draft. I may try to sign a LB in free agency. Spillane probably has some tread left but I don't know if I want to count on him as a full time player. Tavai and Elliss are also worth keeping but they need one more plus guy there. Devin Lloyd?

DE - I'd definitely press hard to get Crosby. Would instantly make such a difference. Get him and also re-sign Chaisson - pass rush solved. But if that doesn't work, it definitely becomes difficult. Trey Hendrickson might be an option in free agency but obviously he is getting pretty old. Big need, I'd be hitting it in the draft too.

C/G - I'd be in on both Linderbaum and McGovern at C, both are big upgrades. Onwenu hasn't been too bad but his postseason was not the best. I'd probably consider just moving on from him with how much cap savings are on the table. Maybe move Wilson to RG, where being between a new plus C and Moses (assuming he plays one more year) will allow him to play well. Then play Brown at LG, who also would benefit from a better C, but generally was fine in pass pro.

RB - I'd be "big time in" on the free agent RB market. Several great options: Breece Hall, Kenneth Walker, Travis Etienne, Javonte Williams. Bring in a third guy to form a three headed monster of Stevenson-Henderson-Option C. Why the hell not?

S - Honestly I would just re-sign Hawkins and maybe throw a pick at the position late. They held up OK. He could be better, but the team has much more pressing needs, and if Woodson improves (I assume he will) then Hawkins will probably be good enough, at least for now.

Stu Pidassle said:

That is a good frame of reference. Having the playing strength to stop the bull rush is all about leverage and positioning. Both players will benefit from an off season to build on their rookie seasons. For Campbell the injury was also a big factor that derailed a good rookie year at a very difficult position, that is expensive to fill. Ideally the team can spend at other positions with the confidence that Campbell will be able to take a year 2 step up. Regardless of where they end up playing both should be long time contributors.

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What people are forgetting is that Campbell and the rest of the rookies were playing in their 21st game this season, which is way more then the 12 or so they played in college.

Huckleberry1 said:

What people are forgetting is that Campbell and the rest of the rookies were playing in their 21st game this season, which is way more then the 12 or so they played in college.

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When you include preseason it's even more than that.