Now that the 53-man roster is complete (or so we think), I will analyze this year’s team compared to the team that went to the Super Bowl.
Offense
QB – Drake Maye nearly won the MVP last season with a 72% completion rate. He threw for nearly 4400 yards, 31 TDs, and 8 INTs. But that was last year against a week schedule of opponents. This year will be much tougher, with a gauntlet to start the season with Seattle, Pittsburgh, Jacksonville, and Buffalo out of the gate. Last season was a huge jump in year two for Maye.
Maye’s maturity and leadership are evident by his command at the Line of Scrimmage. The biggest reason for optimism is that Maye will have his second year with the same Offensive Coordinator, Josh McDaniels. You have to go back to his High School days, when he had the same Offensive Coordinator in back-to-back seasons. Understanding McDaniels’ complicated system is difficult. McDaniels is asking Maye to speed up the offense and not get so deep in the play clock and allow Defenses to make last-second adjustments. He is also asking him to do a better job at the line of scrimmage reading the defense.
Tommy DeVito was a terrific pickup at the cutdown waivers. The coaches obviously liked him better than Josh Dobbs, whom they released. DeVito had a good Training Camp. I feel much better with DeVito as the #2 QB than with Dobbs. Behren Morton surprised me in Training camp. I didn’t think much of drafting Morton, as I liked other QBs in that spot. However, Morton played pretty well in camp. I was surprised that Morton was kept on the 53-man roster. Advantage ’26 team.
RB– Rhamondre Stevenson is ready for the start of the season. He has looked good in Training camp, especially his receiving skills. Stevenson overcame his early-season fumbling issue to have a fine season. He had a good season with over 600 yards rushing while missing 3 games. He averaged 4.6 yards per carry despite having the 6th-worst Yards Before 1st Contact (1.9). This is a stat that reflects how bad the Offensive line was last season, starting two rookies on the left side.
TreVeyon Henderson came in with a lot of hype as a 2nd-round selection. He delivered a solid rookie year that had a lot of faults in his game. Henderson had trouble following and setting up his blocks while running inside the Tackles. He also was subpar in his pass blocking. However, if he got outside, he was lightning with 4 runs of over 50 yards. Henderson benefited with a 3.1 YBC, which was 4th best in the league.
The team started with Antonio Gibson as the 3rd RB, and he did an admirable job and was good as a Kickoff Returner. He tore up his knee returning a kick, and the team struggled trying to find a 3rd back that could return kickoffs. By the end of the season, the Patriots had the two slowest Kickoff return men in the league. We won’t know who the Kickoff return men will be until the Seattle game.
The team wasn’t happy with what they had as the 3rd RB, so they traded with Arizona for Corey Kiner. The 5’9”, 209-pound bowling ball is an interesting young player. Will he be ready to play in Week 1 is a question. TreVeyon Henderson’s health is a question, and the team may elevate Lan Larison for the 1st game to ensure they have a 3rd back ready to play.
I give the nod to the 25 team at this point.
FB– We didn’t have a FB last year. Jack Westover was awful, and the team eventually replaced him with Khyris Tonga. Reggie Gilliam is a legitimate top Fullback in the league. His play the last few years in Buffalo was one of the reasons they dominated the running game. Big advantage to the 26 roster.
WR – The Patriots’ wide receiver room is heads and shoulders better than the 25 team. AJ Brown is a legitimate #1 receiver that opponents need to account for and game plan for. Romeo Doubs is better than any other receiver outside of Stephon Diggs. The loss of Kayshon Boutte takes away Drake Maye’s favorite deep target. The trade opens up an opportunity for the continued development of Kyle Williams as a deep threat. Williams needs to be better with contested catches and route running. Mack Hollins is solid as a receiver and is a tremendous downfield blocker. Efton Chism continues to grow and is a willing blocker despite his small size. I expect a big year from Pop Douglas in the Josh McDaniels offense. The 26 receivers are better than the 25 group.
TE– Hunter Henry is back and is a nice safety valve for Drake Maye. I expect him to perform the same as he did in 25. The only question is that he is a year older, and can he hold up over the season? Eli Raridon has to step up as a rookie. He has improved as the Training Camp evolved. The game is beginning to slow down for him. The team claimed Cameron Latu and has Tanner Arkin as backups. Don’t understand why they are carrying 4 TE’s on the 53-man roster
OL – The Offensive Line is so much better in 2026 than last year. Will Campbell was having a good season until his knee injury. He was a shell of himself in the Super Bowl, where he gave up a record-setting 14 Pressures. Jared Wilson has been moved back to Center, the position he was drafted to play. Having two rookies playing next to each other was an insane strategy (out of desperation), that blew up in the Patriots face in the Super Bowl. Now having Alijah Vera-Tucker in between the two second-year players should help both of them. Having that veteran to lean on is a huge benefit. The concern with AVT is his health and knocking off the rust from not playing at all last year.
The Patriots also addressed their depth issues by signing Greg Van Roten, the former Giants starter, to serve as a backup. With Marcus Bryant going down in the Preseason game and placed on IR/DFR, they went out and traded for young lineman Walter Rouse. Interesting that Rouse is listed as a Guard in the 1st Depth Chart release. First-round selection Caleb Lomu was not ready to play and needs a red-shirt year to develop and get stronger. Rookie 6th-round selection Dametrious Crownover shows promise, and they are carrying him on the active roster rather than exposing him to waivers. I also like the signing of OC/OG Jake Kubas from the Giants. Kubas made the Giants’ 53-man roster in 2024 and played in 5 games with 3 starts. He was on their Practice Squad all of 2025. His PFF grade for this Pre-Season was 84.3, and his Run Blocking was 85.8. His 84.3 Grade was 13th best in the Preseason. The 26 team has it all over the 25 team, which should help the run game as well as the passing game.
Defense
DT – Milton Williams and Christian Barmore are solid in the middle. They will need pressure from these two in the pass rush to offset the lack of pressure from the edge. The loss of Khyris Tonga is a big hit. He was instrumental in stopping the run and they haven’t replaced him. Corey Durden made a big jump last season and is now thrust into the 3rd DT role. The former 2023 UDFA had played in 8 games prior to the Patriots claiming him at the cutdown day last season. He played all 17 games last season and contributed 30 tackles. Joshua Farmer and Leonard Taylor round out the group. The 25 team has a slight edge over the 26 team because of the loss of Tonga.
EDGE – This is a big concern for the 26 team. Harold Landry is out for at least 4 games (SEA, PIT, JAX, and BUF). This loss is huge. Dre’Mont Jones is a better edge player against the run, but not as effective as K’Lavon Chaisson. The Patriots’ pass rush was not good last year and is worse this year. They are depending on a big leap in year two for Elijah Ponder, who contributed 4 sacks in a little over 200 snaps last year. Can he step up and be an everyday starter on the Edge? Gabe Jacas is not ready for the NFL. He signed late because of an unauthorized knee surgery. He lost all that development time, and he may not be ready to play until mid-season. He has the physical skills but not the acumen to recognize plays and to react to what he is seeing. Quintayvious Hutchins made the team but really shouldn’t have, but there was no one better. The backups are both rookies. The Patriots also lost Anfernee Jennings, who was able to hold the Edge. Big advantage to the 25 team (and they were not good).
LB – The starters are good in Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss, but the depth behind them is very questionable. Darius Muasau was picked up on waivers from the Giants. He replaces Jack Gibbens. Muasau was a two-year starter for the Giants. Rookies Namdi Obiazor and UDFA Erick Hunter are the backups. I like the acquisition of Hunter and am excited to see what he can do. He played in the America Bowl and the HBCU Legacy Bowl this year. The 6’2”, 224-pound LB is more like a Big Nickel safety. He had 298 career tackles at Morgan State. He should make a big impact on Special Teams. I am going to give the 25 team the edge on linebackers because of their experience rather than having two rookies as backups.
CB – The Christian Gonzalez contract negotiations are hanging over the secondary. To Gonzo’s credit, he has been out there day after day practicing unless he was hurt. This secondary is probably the best in the league. They are better than last year’s secondary because of Kevin Byard. Carlton Davis played the entire season, the 1st time he has done that in his career. There is a concern about the backup players. Karon Prunty and Channing Canada are rookies who should help as gunners on the Punt Team. However, they are very green in pass coverage. Charles Woods played well last season filling in for Gonzalez when he replaced Alex Austin. However, Woods did not play well in the preseason, which is a concern. Woods ran a slow 4.59 40 at his Pro Day.
S – Kevin Byard led the league with 7 INTs last season. He was also named a team captain in his 1st year with the team. His leadership was very evident in the clips from the Forged in Foxboro video the team produced. Craig Woodson had a great season as a rookie, and he kept getting better each game as the season went on. His play in the playoffs was outstanding. Dell Pettus, when given the opportunity to play, has played well and is more of an in-the-box strong safety. His contribution will be on Special Teams. The acquisition of Jaylen Reed was a sneaky good catch for the Patriots. He could grow into a nickel safety, similar to what the Seahawks do. Remember that Reed was a 6th-round pick last season by Houston, and he started in both of their playoff games.
Special Teams
P – none
Bryce Baringer is on IR. The Patriots signed Mitch Wishnowsky, the former Bills punter. He is a veteran and should be a game-day elevation from the Practice Squad. The Patriots could activate Wishnowsky to the active roster and waive Tanner Arkin!
K – Andy Borregales: I hope his kicking woes are behind him. Those could have been an issue with the long snapper.
Longsnapper – Julian Ashby. The best thing I can say about Ashby is that you don’t notice him because all he does is make good snaps.
Comings and Goings
The Patriots added TE Shane Zylstra to the Practice Squad and waived S Eric Butler and WR Jimy Kibble from IR. That fills the Practice Squad at 17, meaning EDGE Xavier Holmes has not been added to the Practice Squad.
Zylstra, 29, originally entered the NFL as a rookie free agent with the Minnesota Vikings in 2021 out of Minnesota State-Mankato (D2). He set program records with 227 receptions, 4,297 yards, and 54 touchdowns. The 6-foot-3, 245-pounder joined the Detroit Lions practice squad after being released by Minnesota prior to the start of the 2021 season. In his career, he has spent time on the practice squad and the 53-man roster during his four seasons with the Lions. Overall, he has played 35 games with six starts and has 18 receptions for 136 yards and 4 touchdowns. Zylstra was signed by the Buffalo Bills as an unrestricted free agent on May 12, 2026, but was released on Aug. 29, 2026.
Patriots announced they have signed S Elliott Davison to the Practice Squad while releasing DT Jalen Hunt.
Davison, 24, originally entered the NFL as a rookie free agent with the New Orleans Saints on April 4, 2025, out of the University of Texas-San Antonio. The 6-foot, 200-pounder spent the 2025 season on the New Orleans practice squad. He went to training camp with the Saints this past summer but was released on Aug. 30, 2026.
The University of Texas San Antonio product is 6’, 190-pounds and ran a 4.48 40, 37” Vertical Jump, 7.02 3-Cone Drill at his Pro Day. He spent 2025 on the Saints Practice Squad, signed a futures contract in 2026, and was cut after camp. In his last year at UTSA in 2024, he had 58 Tackles, 2 INTs, 4 PBUs, and a Fumble Recovery.
Signing a 5th TE seems excessive to me. I would have rather seen Xavier Holmes signed or another EDGE player.
The Patriots are the 5th youngest team in the NFL now. Take a look at our Linebacker room. Spillane and Elliss are solid starters, but the backups are Namdi Obiazor (6th-round rookie), Darius Muasau (starter last year for NYG), and Erick Hunter (UDFA). We also have Khalil Jacobs (UDFA) on IR. At edge, our starters are Dre’Mont Jones and Elijah Ponder (UDFA,2nd yr), with Quintayvious Hutchins (7th Rd rookie) and Gabe Jacas (2nd round rookie). Two rookies as backup Cornerbacks (Prunty and Canada) and two 2nd-year safeties, Woodson and Reed. On offense, we are starting two 2nd-year O-linemen. We are very young.
Patriots Depth Chart
- Walter Rouse listed as a guard
- Efton Chism III listed behind AJ Brown and Kyle Williams behind Pop Douglas
- Kick returners listed as Williams and Chism – Theo Diesenhaus
No TreVeyon Henderson at the beginning of practice that is open to the media.
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Merrimack Valley native and lifelong fan of the New England Patriots. My earliest memories of the Patriots were attending as a child with my dad, the off-season practice at Phillips Academy. I was at the Patriots game at Harvard Stadium in 1970 where Bob “Harpo” Gladieux was called out of the stands by the stadium announcer over the PA to play in the game. Analyzing the draft since ESPN first started to televise it in 1980 and former writer for the Lowell Sun Newspaper.
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