MORSE: Season Wrap Up and Other Super Bowl Notes
Patriots' 'Magic Carpet Ride' Season: Vrabel's Impact, Rookie O-Line Struggles, and Super Bowl Reflections
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This was a Magic Carpet Ride of a season. The 4-13 Patriots were not supposed to be the team they became over the course of the season. It started with the new Head Coach, Mike Vrabel. In his 1st meeting with the team, he outlined the team’s goals
1.) Win the Division, CHECK
2.) Host a home Playoff game, CHECK,
3.) Competing for Championships, CHECK.
Yes, they came up short in the big game, but that cannot take away from everything this team accomplished in the first year under Vrabel.
It all started in Free Agency. The Patriots signed 14 Free Agents and re-signed two of their own Free Agents. They overpaid Milton Williams and Carlton Davis to get them to come to Foxboro. Both players played up to their billing and were worth every penny they paid them. Williams upped his playing time but also got hurt and was put on IR for 4 games. Davis played in every game, something he has never done in his 8-year NFL career. They also added Robert Spillane, Khyiris Tonga, Mack Hollins, Morgan Moses, Harold Landry, Stefon Diggs, K’Lavon Chaisson, Marcus Epps (cut), Wes Schweitzer (retired), Garrett Bradbury, Joshua Dobbs, and Jack Gibbens. That was 8 new starters. This Free Agent class outlined how bare the shelves were with NFL-level talent.
The Draft Class was generally considered a Home Run. The Patriots had 11 Draft Picks, and by the end of the season, all 11 Draft Picks had made the roster. That never happens. Will Campbell and Jared Wilson were thrust into the starting lineup. Only one NFL team had ever started two rookies on the line, and that was the 2016 Baltimore Ravens. In the Super Bowl, the Patriots were the 1st team to attempt to play two rookies on the line. Ultimately, starting two rookies on the O-line was a disaster in the Super Bowl. They were able to cover this up against inferior talent during the regular season.
TreVeyon Henderson, the 2nd round selection, had a good rookie season but was exposed in the playoffs. Craig Woodson, a surprise 4th round selection, started from game 1 and had a terrific season. His PFF Grade for the regular season was 63.8. He really stepped up in the playoffs with an 85.3 rating for the playoff games and Super Bowl, which was 3rd amongst all Safeties in the playoffs.
The Patriots signed three Undrafted Free Agents in Efton Chism, Elijah Ponder, and Corey Durden (claimed at cut-down waivers). They also have two other Undrafted Free Agents on IR in RB Lan Larison and FB Brock Lampe. At the roster cutdown day, they claimed QB Tommy DeVito. DT Leonard Taylor had a key FG block in the Denver game as a game elevation in the last 4 playoff games, although he was never added to the 53-man roster. That is 27 new players on the 53-man roster, a 50% turnover rate. You never see these many changes. Maybe 30%, but not nearly half the team. I would add that playing so many rookies, especially the two offensive linemen, was a problem. They hit the wall playing in their 22nd game of the season.
The offensive line had 4 new players on the line, and it took some time to gel. They lost two of their first three games but went on a roll by winning 16 of their next 17 games.
I adjusted my season win projection (from 11 to 9) based on what I had seen from Campbell in the Training Camp and pre-season games. The Patriots blew the projection away with 14 wins in the regular season and 3 more in the postseason. I will say that the Patriots’ schedule was the easiest ever in NFL history. However, I must credit the Patriots for going undefeated on the road with 9 wins. It is not easy to win in the NFL.
Stefon Diggs was a revelation and served as a mentor and leader to the young receivers on the Patriots. This was an unexpected bonus as Diggs was seen as a diva. He turned out to be the complete opposite. We never heard a peep from him. He worked his butt off to get on the field after his ACL reconstruction surgery. Day one of training camp, and Diggs was a full participant. Nobody expected that, figuring he would be back by mid-season. In 2025, he caught 85 passes for 1,013 yards. Off the field, he has a pending assault charge that needs to be adjudicated. He also has a high-profile romance with Rapper Cardi-B, with whom he fathered a child. That wasn’t his only offspring sired this year.
Morgan Moses, at age 34, played a full season and provided leadership to the Offensive Line. He solidified the right side and gave them the experience they needed. His mentorship of the young O-lineman was invaluable. The relationship among the O-lineman was highlighted by their weekly O-lineman dinners and the love of Shirley Temple non-alcoholic drinks. Moses played the entire season and was awarded a contract bonus for his high snap count. He finished the season with a 74 PFF grade, which was 27th of 89 OT’s. Morgan was better than half the starting Tackles in the league.
Here are the blocking grades from PFF for the Super Bowl. The numbers are brutal.
| Denver Broncos | |||||||
| Offense | Pass Blck | Run Blck | Sacks | QB Hits | Hurries | Pressure | |
| Campbell | 50.6 | 59.7 | 50.9 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 11 |
| 25′ Season | 74 | 75.1 | 71 | ||||
| Wilson | 61.1 | 69.6 | 57.5 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 9 |
| 49.9 | 42.8 | 62.2 | |||||
| Bradbury | 78.8 | 60 | 80.6 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 59.8 | 55.7 | 63.1 | |||||
| Onwenu | 47.9 | 81.6 | 41.1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 78.2 | 74.2 | 78.2 | |||||
| Moses | 51.1 | 34.4 | 57.1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 74 | 69.8 | 77.1 | |||||
| Super Bowl vs Seahawks | |||||||
| Offense | Pass Blck | Run Blck | Sacks | QB Hits | Hurries | Pressure | |
| Campbell | 38.3 | 32.9 | 53.1 | 4 | 2 | 13 | 19 |
| 25′ Season | 74 | 75.1 | 71 | ||||
| Wilson | 52.3 | 73.4 | 33 | 4 | 0 | 9 | 13 |
| 49.9 | 42.8 | 62.2 | |||||
| Bradbury | 49.2 | 44.4 | 58.3 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 9 |
| 59.8 | 55.7 | 63.1 | |||||
| Onwenu | 69.9 | 65.6 | 70.5 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| 78.2 | 74.2 | 78.2 | |||||
| Moses | 54.9 | 89.4 | 68.3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 |
| 74 | 69.8 | 77.1 | |||||
The chart above compares the Super Bowl to the AFC championship game. According to PFF grading, Will Campbell had a bad game, but it was nowhere near as bad as next Gen stats that were quoted by multiple sources after the game, including myself. They said he had given up a season high 13 Pressures and 29 Pressures over the 4 games. Campbell only gave up 8 Pressures (which is still bad) but not 13. This was verified by Nick Cattles when he did his review of the game video. He also apologized for his report after the game. Campbell admitted at Tuesday’s meeting with the media that he played with a torn ligament in his knee. David Andrews has been saying this for weeks that Campbell can’t push off his right leg. It also showed up when he tries to anchor and stop bull rushes. In his defense, the Patriots played a gauntlet of Defenses in the playoffs. The Patriots played 4 of the top 5 Defenses in the playoffs and won three of those games. No team has had that type of opposition in the playoffs.
How injured was Drake Maye? Why did he need to have a “painkiller” injection before the game? This info came from Maye himself during his post-game press conference. It appears to me that Maye wanted the public to know he had to take a shot to play in the game. This could explain why Maye was so inaccurate in his passes, missing wide-open receivers.
Why did Rhamondre Stevenson only have 7 carries in the game? He was perhaps the most valuable offensive player outside of Maye. The Patriots and Josh McDaniels completely abandoned the running game.
The New England Patriots announced that they have signed 11 players to futures contracts: G Mehki Butler, LB Amari Gainer, WR John Jiles, TE Marshall Lang, T Lorenz Metz, DT Jeremiah Pharms Jr., LB Otis Reese, G Andrew Rupcich, S John Saunders Jr., DL Leonard Taylor III, and WR Jeremiah Webb. All of those players finished the season on the New England practice squad. This brings their roster to 65 players minus their Free Agents.
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