Coming out of night two, one thing that stood out was that Eliot Wolf and Mike Vrabel looked at the current group on the offensive side of the football and clearly came away with one thought.
They’re just weren’t good enough.
The impression that they left after Friday night was that they don’t want a group of guys who are just competitive. They want to put together a group capable of becoming a championship-caliber team.
That became obvious when the Patriots selected Washington State wide receiver Kyle Williams, which marked the 10th receiver New England now has on their roster.
But with Williams, they add a player who is a solid complement to newly added Stefon Diggs, and watching his film, he’s a player who appears to be head and shoulders ahead of the group of players they currently have.
Given the number of receivers (Williams’ addition marks 10 at that spot), adding another seems like a lot. But what Williams brings is a guy who is incredibly explosive with an ability to separate and make plays both on short passes and down the field.
His addition signals that Wolf and Vrabel clearly looked at the group they had offensively and decided that having some good players isn’t good enough. They needed great playmakers, and the addition of both Diggs and now Williams gives them that.
As it currently stands, the Patriots have Diggs, Williams, Kendrick Bourne, Demario Douglas, Mack Hollins, Kayshon Boutte, Ja’Lynn Polk, Javon Baker, JaQuae Jackson, and John Jiles in their receiver room. Wolf was asked Friday night about whether or not a veteran like Bourne should be put on notice, but Wolf shot that down, saying that Diggs is still recovering from his knee injury, so adding quality depth remains a priority.
“No, I see it as us being able to add depth and strengthen the group,” said Wolf. “Obviously, Stefon is going to be limited as we move through the spring here, so we’re still going to give those guys as many opportunities as we can.”
However, it’s probably safe to say that the rumors about Boutte’s future remain something to watch, while Baker is likely facing a make-or-break training camp. Ja’Lynn Polk will likely be given every chance to rebound from last season, but it feels like the margin of error is a little slimmer for a group that save for some nice moments in 2024, was relatively underwhelming last season.
Meanwhile, the addition of TreVeyon Henderson was certainly notable last night, as he’s an explosive running back who adds a different dimension to their backfield. The selection of Georgia center Jared Wilson also gives them size and bulk up front, solidifying an offensive line that now feels much more stable than it was last year.
They now have Will Campbell at left tackle, Cole Strange at left guard, Garrett Bradbury at center, with Wilson likely to push him for that spot. Wolf also said Friday night that he could see Wilson competing with Strange at left guard as well, but either way, left guard was a weak link while Strange was sidelined ,and the Patriots seem to have some improved depth heading into this season. From there, Mike Onwenu (right guard) and Morgan Moses (right tackle) will round out the rest of the line, with Caedan Wallace expected to be in the mix at right tackle also.
That’s a significant upgrade of what was in front of Drake Maye last season, which should certainly allow the offense to run much more smoothly and keep Maye from running for his life again this season.
To this point, this draft has had a significantly different feel from past drafts. The slate certainly feels clean, with Vrabel not shy about flooding the team with talent, even if it’s at the expense of who they currently have.
He talked about adding competition, and offensively, after finishing at the bottom of the league in points scored, it just wasn’t good enough. Clearly, that’s been a major focus after four straight selections on that side of the ball.
For now, based on what we’ve seen, this team will look much different in September. And the fact that the bar feels like it’s been raised should have most fans finally feeling a little better about the direction the team is headed.
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
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