Good morning, and a happy Sunday to all. From all of us here, we hope everyone had a happy and safe Independence Day. The 250th anniversary of the United States is amazing; I remember the Bicentennial in 1976 was a pretty wild day when Americans could celebrate together. So…
Here is your Patriots news for 07-05, along with this week’s NFL notes. With July here, we are less than three weeks from training camp officially beginning.
For the Patriots, the top items on the team’s to-do list prior to camp are to get (in no particular order) Gabe Jacas signed and in camp, and to ensure Christian Gonzalez’s extension is finalized.
More sad news this week, with the passing of Rams’ former All-Pro cornerback LeRoy Irvin, who passed away this week at 68. Irvin was an outstanding cornerback with a penchant for scoring touchdowns on defense. Early in his career, he was also an outstanding punt returner and still holds the record for punt return yardage in a single game, notching 207 yards against the Falcons.
Former NFL running back Chris Johnson announced last week that he’s suffering from ALS and has reinstituted the “Ice Bucket Challenge” to former teammates to bring awareness of the disease to the forefront.
Quick Hitters For the Patriots and NFL News
Mike and Jen Vrabel: The pair were seen in New York City this weekend to attend the celebrity wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce.
That was interesting, in that Vrabel has never coached Kelce, but it was a star-studded affair.
Patriots Record Talk: The NFL.com posted predictions of all 32 teams, conducted by two of the site’s analysts, Ali Bhanpuri and Tom Blair. And neither one has much faith that the Patriots will replicate any success in 2026.
Both have the Patriots missing the playoffs, and both predict an 8-9 finish.
Brendan Sorsby: The NFL turned down quarterback Brendan Sorsby’s supplemental draft application following the news that he bet on college football games while he was playing.
The NCAA ruled him ineligible after his betting history came to light. Sorsby then issued a temporary injunction by a Texas court to clear his path to play at Texas Tech this season. The Big 12 filed suit to block him from playing. Sorsby then filed his intention to declare for the NFL’s supplemental draft.
Sorsby took responsibility for his actions and entered an in-house treatment facility for gambling addiction. The NFL’s decision now makes Sorsby eligible for the 2027 NFL Draft, which equates to essentially a one-year suspension.
Meanwhile, the NFL has partnerships that include DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and bet365.
Patriots No Huddle Podcast: We were back to talk about the latest Patriots’ 53-Man Roster projection by Derek Friday afternoon on the PatsFans.com website. You can always check out our other podcasts on our YouTube channel.
Please check it out. And be sure to like, share, and leave us a review.
Russ Francis/Chuck Fairbanks: The former Patriots tight end and head coach should be in the Patriots team Hall of Fame, and the fact that Francis isn’t is an absolute travesty. Francis and the Raiders’ Dave Casper changed how teams used the tight end position.
We will continue to display this in our Sunday posts until it happens. Casper is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Francis’ numbers stand up well against Casper’s, yet he isn’t even in the team’s HOF.
Positional Groups That Still Need Work In 2026
The Patriots addressed many of their needs in free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft; however, there are still positional groups that need some extra depth. Among them is tight end, off-the-ball linebacker, and possibly the edge.
Interestingly enough, in his 53-man roster projection, Derek Havens mentioned on our “Patriots No Huddle” podcast that he believes safety is thin as well- one of the few times we disagree on anything- as I think Mike Brown will step into a big nickel role, but he made some good points.
First, we’ll start off with the team’s tight end depth. Hunter Henry returns this year after a very good 2025 season, where he caught 60 passes for 768 yards and 7 TDs. He added 9 catches for 112 yards and a score in the playoffs.
The team signed Julian Hill during free agency, but he was injured during OTAs and is lost for the season. They drafted Eli Raridon in the 3rd Round of the draft (95th overall), and he looks like he’s going to be a very good overall player. But will he be ready to contribute as a rookie?
He has the size and speed (6’6, 250, with a 4.62 40 time) to be very productive as a pro. He was already a good, reliable blocker in college, but the NFL is a big step up. It may take him time to find his feet in the pros.
After that, they have 2nd-year pro C.J. Dippre, and UDFA Tanner Arkin, both of those guys are more blockers than pass receivers. They could also opt to move Jack Westover back to TE from FB.
This position could probably use an established veteran to come in and take some of the onus off of Henry until Raridon is ready to take on a bigger role.
The Patriots have a depth issue at the off-the-ball linebacker position behind Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss. This offseason, they parted ways with Jahlani Tavai, Jack Gibbens, and Marte Mapu.
Spillane and Elliss are the two starters unless one of them gets hurt. And then that’s when things get a little dicier. Gibbens played nearly 50 percent of the snaps a year ago. But this season, they signed K.J. Britt in free agency, who will be expected to play more defense this year, as he’s been more of a STs guy.
They also have Namdi Obiazor, who they drafted in the 6th round this spring, Chad Muma, Otis Reese, Khalil Jacobs, and Amari Gainer
Although he is a bit undersized at 6 ‘1, 227, the Patriots were very interested in Jacobs, as he had three visits with the team prior to the draft.
He’s a smart, instinctive player who, despite probably never becoming a starter in the NFL, has the tools to become a subpackage rotational piece. And like the players that the team lost, his value is definitely tied to special teams, where he was a core member of Missouri’s STs. He could factor in replacing Mapu as the personal punt protector.
Gainer is another intriguing player to watch this summer. The Patriots signed the 6’3, 240-pound linebacker to their practice squad in December of last year. He offers a bit of versatility as he displays comfort in dropping back into coverage, playing in the box, or lining up on the edge as a pass-rusher.
Gainer is also a candidate to be a core special-teams player. He finished his college career at UNC, where he was a teammate of Drake Maye, who praised him.
“I played with him my last year in college,” Maye said. “He’s a great guy in the locker room. He’s good on the edge. He’s fast. He’s played inside a little bit. He’s played on the edge.”
Gainer has good speed and is very athletic, posting a 9.33 RAS when he came out of college.
Right now, it seems the team will keep Spillane, Elliss, Britt, and Muma, with the others possibly competing for a fifth roster spot.
But the off-the-ball linebacker position was part (but not all) of their issues in being the 30th Red Zone defense and the 32nd goal-to-go defense in 2025. The run defense will bear watching and could use a veteran defender.
Which brings us to the edge. Mike Vrabel has stated that he likes the group heading into 2026, but the big questions that remain with the current roster are whether Harold Landry, who is rehabbing from offseason surgery, will be ready for the season, and the same issue for Gabe Jacas, the Patriots 2nd round pick they used three draft picks for, who remains unsigned, and also had what Vrabel said was a “clean-up procedure.”
The team allowed K’Lavon Chaisson to walk in free agency. He came into his own last season and was very good coming off the edge and getting after the QB. But he was a definite liability against the run, something they want to get better at defending. A surprise move was the release of Anfernee Jennings, who was the team’s best edge setter in 2025.
To replace Chaisson, the team signed Dre’Mont Jones, who had seven sacks for the Titans and Ravens last year and is versatile and can kick inside as well. Jones has good size at 6’3, 268, and credits his off-field work with Yoga and Pilates for aiding his transition to more of an edge player.
The Patriots paid him to be a three-down starting edge rusher, and he has a relentless motor, which is similar to Landry and Jacas. He had a slow start to the season last year, but from Week 6 on, he really stepped up game.
After his trade to Baltimore, in the final nine games of the year, he logged more pressures (32) than Chaisson (22) did over the same period…That is just something to ponder, there but it was worth mentioning.
Coupled with the Patriots’ interior rushers, Milton Williams, and Christian Barmore, the possibilities are there for the team to be solid in the pass rush department if everyone is healthy. But currently that is a big “IF.”
Currently, the roster has Landry, Jones, Jacas, Elijah Ponder, Bradyn Swinson, Jesse Luketa, Quintayvious Hutchins, and Xavier Holmes. Ponder flashed at times last season, and there is a lot of optimism with him taking the next step in 2026.
Many will remember that many analysts believed that Swinson was a potential steal for the Patriots in the 5th round of last year’s draft. But he didn’t have a good spring/summer and was cut at the end of camp.
Vrabel has stated that it all stemmed from his failure to prepare and practice better as a professional. However, that has all changed this offseason, and the coaching staff is very pleased with his work this spring. He and Ponder will be players to watch this summer and into the preseason, possibly by default, if Landry and Jacas aren’t ready.
Right now, and until they prove otherwise, however, the edge remains a big question mark for the Patriots in 2026.
Late last season and into the postseason, Zak Kuhr dialed up a ton of pressure that alleviated some of their inability to get after the quarterback.
That probably won’t change much because the Patriots have the secondary to hold up when they bring the blitz, and not least of which was how successful they were at bringing pressure. But improving the consistency of the front four in getting after opposing quarterbacks is imperative this year.
Having a healthy Landry and Jacas would definitely aid in that. But we’ll just have to wait until training camp begins to see where they are at in terms of their respective rehabs. Otherwise, they will be relying on the two second-year players in Ponder and Swinson to provide meaningful snaps.
And that isn’t an ideal situation for the team. We’ll have a pre-training-camp 53-man roster projection soon. But if anyone would like to take a swing at predicting the initial 53-man roster, Ian Logue has put together a nice tool, called Pats Picker, on the Patsfans.com website.
Feel free to send them in, and we’ll share some of them in the near future.
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“Somebody asked me what success looks like, and I said, ‘Yeah, you can judge it by wins and losses during the season, but success for me in the offseason is going to be that the players believe in what we’re doing, and they believe in the message, they believe in the teaching, and they believe in the connections that we’re making.’” — Mike Vrabel
Follow me on Twitter @SteveB7SFG or email me at [email protected]
Listen to our PatsFans.com Patriots No Huddle podcasts on Apple and YouTube as Derek Havens, Mike D’Abate, and I discuss the latest Patriots news and game analysis.
🔍 Questions Answered in This Article
What are the Patriots' main priorities before training camp starts?
The Patriots' top priorities before training camp are to sign Gabe Jacas and finalize Christian Gonzalez's contract extension.
What are NFL.com analysts predicting for the Patriots' 2026 season record?
NFL.com analysts Ali Bhanpuri and Tom Blair both predict the Patriots will finish the 2026 season with an 8-9 record and miss the playoffs
Why was Brendan Sorsby's supplemental draft application denied by the NFL?
Brendan Sorsby's supplemental draft application was denied because he bet on college football games while playing, making him ineligible for the 2027 NFL Draft
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A former US Army Special Forces NCO and Officer, Steve has been following the Patriots since their days at Fenway Park. Steve has worked in the film industry and wrote as an Military Editor at SpecialOperations.com, 1945.com as a reporter for the Millbury Daily Voice, Millbury-Sutton Chronicle, and the Grafton News. He's also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)
