2025 New England Patriots Discussion Thread

erikthredd · August 8, 2025 2:19PM

@galaxy27 I had emailed the team's front office with my first suggestion but haven't heard back for some reason. 😎
https://us.v-cdn.net/6027503/uploads/editor/9z/e4r1xr5fobnz.jpeg

erikthredd · August 8, 2025 3:25PM

perkdog · August 8, 2025 3:31PM

Awesome stuff, nothing we can say that hasn't already been said

GOAT
Legend

perkdog · August 8, 2025 3:31PM

@erikthredd said:
The Pats will be unveiling the Brady statue tonight and judging by the outline of the pose, I'm going with this image.

I think this would have been a better look but what they did is pretty damn good

erikthredd · August 8, 2025 3:47PM

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:
The Pats will be unveiling the Brady statue tonight and judging by the outline of the pose, I'm going with this image.

I think this would have been a better look but what they did is pretty damn good

Or maybe one where he's midway through his throwing motion. Still though, that thing looks infinitely better than the Dwyane Wade statue lol.

erikthredd · August 8, 2025 4:39PM

100yd kickoff TD for TreVeyon Henderson to start off the preseason!

craig44 · August 9, 2025 4:49PM

i was hoping for an action pose for the statue, but i think it looks really good as is

perkdog · August 19, 2025 10:13AM

Wolf: Patriots willing to trade a top draft pick to help team - ESPN https://share.google/tikpUCXVtO52ymb5Q

Looks like all. options are on the table when talking about making the team "Better" but tough to tell what they need before they start playing real games that count

On paper is different than real games

erikthredd · August 19, 2025 12:42PM

@perkdog said:
Wolf: Patriots willing to trade a top draft pick to help team - ESPN https://share.google/tikpUCXVtO52ymb5Q

Looks like all. options are on the table when talking about making the team "Better" but tough to tell what they need before they start playing real games that count

On paper is different than real games

I saw his interview and he really didn't say much that wasn't already known, he's pretty much always looking to make the team better and they're willing to use high picks if necessary. The problem there is teams aren't really looking to deal away good established players at the positions that are still our biggest needs (WR/OT/Pass Rusher) and when they do its going to get real expensive in cap & picks.

I read another report that Wolf had been in touch with the Bengals about Trey Hendrickson and the supposed asking price varied. First it was Cincy wanted two 1sts, then it was a 1st and a good young player.

Our OL is still far from being a finished product and I'd rather just see them hold onto their 2026 1st (which is likely going to be a top 10-12 pick) to keep building the OL for the longterm.

craig44 · August 19, 2025 3:33PM

i hope they stay pat. I read that while they are 60MM under the cap right now, they are a bit over the cap for 2026. and gonzalez will need to be paid. and keep in mind that Drake is on rookie deal right now.

erikthredd · August 19, 2025 4:42PM

There's talk of releasing safety Kyle Dugger on cutdown day this weekend and if it happens he'll have a 15M dead cap chunk taking out of all of their cap space. He dealt with a foot injury last season that led to a down year statswise but when healthy he's been a very good safety here.

I've heard talk about possibly giving him a chance at LB/S, sort of a hybrid position that new teammate Roberts Spillane has excelled at while playing around the same size (6-1) and close to the same weight (229 Spillane/ 220 Dugger.)
Vrabel prefers his Linebackers to be on the smaller size (compared to BB's LBs) and a little more speedier, hopefully they can find him a solid role in their defense this season.

I'm very pumped to see what Henderson, Chism & Kyle Williams (once healthy) can do in actual games. Those three add a level of speed to their offense that was clearly lacking in recent years, then if Diggs & Hollins can add some consistent stability each week, we may get to enjoy watching an actual NFL offense in Foxboro again after so very long.

erikthredd · August 20, 2025 8:15AM

https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-rumors/107059/patriots-nfl-trade-rumors-dugger-jennings

They're probably going to have to kick in some of Dugger's 15M salary if they can find a taker and want a return for him.

perkdog · August 21, 2025 3:18AM

Rob Gronkowski wants to sign 1-day contract and retire with Patriots - CBS Boston https://share.google/AHnnWFBgqwpwlI0jC

erikthredd · August 21, 2025 7:10AM

@perkdog said:
Rob Gronkowski wants to sign 1-day contract and retire with Patriots - CBS Boston https://share.google/AHnnWFBgqwpwlI0jC

They should sign him for 1-day and make him play tonight against the Giants, 😉

galaxy27 · August 21, 2025 10:48AM

what are you guys feeling week 1 at home against the Raiders? that line really jumped out at me. i think NE is going to be vastly improved this season, and i think they are going to win that game and easily cover the 3 points

erikthredd · August 21, 2025 11:20AM

The one thing that has stood out to me the most during their two preseason games has been that they really haven't made a ton of mental errors which was something that plagued them endlessly in recent years. They're still lacking more talent on both sides of the ball but if Mike Vrabel has done one thing since taking over its making sure that they're not beating themselves. It's finally a step in the right direction so we'll see if they can keep it going or not.

As for Week one vs the Raiders, alot will depend on whether or not players like Stefon Diggs, Morgan Moses & Christain Gonzalez will be out there. Those three are the most established players for each of their individual units and if one of them isn't out there it will be a huge hole to fill.

I'm not the guy to ask on whether that betting line is worth taking a chance on but I'd be really surprised if it wasn't a competitive game, at least from NE's point of view. Seeig how the Pats run defense holds up against Ashton Jeanty should be interesting.

galaxy27 · August 21, 2025 11:27AM

@erikthredd said:

alot will depend on whether or not players like Stefon Diggs, Morgan Moses & Christain Gonzalez will be out there. Those three are the most established players for each of their individual units and if one of them isn't out there it will be a huge hole to fill.

Are those 3 dinged up pretty good right now?

erikthredd · August 21, 2025 11:38AM

@galaxy27 said:

@erikthredd said:

alot will depend on whether or not players like Stefon Diggs, Morgan Moses & Christain Gonzalez will be out there. Those three are the most established players for each of their individual units and if one of them isn't out there it will be a huge hole to fill.

Are those 3 dinged up pretty good right now?

I don't think so. Diggs has been limited in his return from an acl injury. Moses didn't play in their 1st game and IIRC played a series in G2, Gonzalez did get dinged up very early in training camp but like Diggs hasn't played in either game.

There's been talk of Vrabel sort of giving some of the older vets more of a limited workload in camp so there's less wear & tear on them once the games start so its hard to tell who's actually hurt and who isn't. Some positions don't have much depth and if certain players go down then things may derail quickly, especially at Tackle.

erikthredd · August 21, 2025 11:46AM

Looks like Polk got put on season ending IR. Chism's play likely would have made Polk expendable had he not been injured, at least now they can try to rehab his trade value.
https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107154/jalynn-polk-reportedly-set-to-undergo-season-ending-shoulder-surgery

perkdog · August 22, 2025 9:36AM

@erikthredd said:
Looks like Polk got put on season ending IR. Chism's play likely would have made Polk expendable had he not been injured, at least now they can try to rehab his trade value.
https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107154/jalynn-polk-reportedly-set-to-undergo-season-ending-shoulder-surgery

So he still isn't going to be the best WR in the league?

Didn't this clown make that statement last year or something?

They should have cut him, he is awful

erikthredd · August 22, 2025 10:34AM

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:
Looks like Polk got put on season ending IR. Chism's play likely would have made Polk expendable had he not been injured, at least now they can try to rehab his trade value.
https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107154/jalynn-polk-reportedly-set-to-undergo-season-ending-shoulder-surgery

So he still isn't going to be the best WR in the league?

Didn't this clown make that statement last year or something?

They should have cut him, he is awful

Giving up on the guy 16 months into his NFL career would be idiocy, imo, its decision making like that as to why NE can never develop wide receivers. Between not being able to immediately become a part of Brady's circle of trust on offense OR finding yourself in Belichick's doghouse over a single mental error, the Pats have wasted about 20-30 WR draft picks over this past 25yrs which has led to the position that they're currently in with the worst WR depth chart in football.

When players come into the league they're far from being a finished product and, sure, Polk deserves plenty of the blame for not living up his high opinion of himself but the coaching staff definitely didn't do their part last season in teaching the guy the intricacies of an NFL offense and where ne needs to be. You could pretty much say the same for every other position on the field in 2024.

The guy could end up entirely being a wasted pick but, again, its way to soon to just cut bait and move on yet. Obviously, the new regime agrees with that assessment because he ended up on IR and not the street.

erikthredd · August 22, 2025 10:41AM

Here's the first group of cuts and really no surprises other than maybe Sidy Sow when their guard depth is already pretty slim.
QB Ben Wooldridge
RB Micah Bernard
RB Shane Watts
WR Phil Lutz
TE Jaheim Bell
TE Cole Fotheringham
OL Sidy Sow
OL Tyrese Robinson
DE Jerome Robinson
DT Philip Blidi
DT Kyle Peko
LB R.J. Moten
LB Monty Rice
CB Tre Avery
CB Isaiah Bolden
CB Jordan Polk

perkdog · August 22, 2025 12:09PM

@erikthredd said:

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:
Looks like Polk got put on season ending IR. Chism's play likely would have made Polk expendable had he not been injured, at least now they can try to rehab his trade value.
https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107154/jalynn-polk-reportedly-set-to-undergo-season-ending-shoulder-surgery

So he still isn't going to be the best WR in the league?

Didn't this clown make that statement last year or something?

They should have cut him, he is awful

Giving up on the guy 16 months into his NFL career would be idiocy, imo, its decision making like that as to why NE can never develop wide receivers. Between not being able to immediately become a part of Brady's circle of trust on offense OR finding yourself in Belichick's doghouse over a single mental error, the Pats have wasted about 20-30 WR draft picks over this past 25yrs which has led to the position that they're currently in with the worst WR depth chart in football.

When players come into the league they're far from being a finished product and, sure, Polk deserves plenty of the blame for not living up his high opinion of himself but the coaching staff definitely didn't do their part last season in teaching the guy the intricacies of an NFL offense and where ne needs to be. You could pretty much say the same for every other position on the field in 2024.

The guy could end up entirely being a wasted pick but, again, its way to soon to just cut bait and move on yet. Obviously, the new regime agrees with that assessment because he ended up on IR and not the street.

Or they could get rid of him and use the roster spot on another WR

So by year 3 he will have given the Pats 12 catches for 80 yards total

I'd use his spot for another dice roll at WR

erikthredd · August 22, 2025 12:31PM

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:
Looks like Polk got put on season ending IR. Chism's play likely would have made Polk expendable had he not been injured, at least now they can try to rehab his trade value.
https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107154/jalynn-polk-reportedly-set-to-undergo-season-ending-shoulder-surgery

So he still isn't going to be the best WR in the league?

Didn't this clown make that statement last year or something?

They should have cut him, he is awful

Giving up on the guy 16 months into his NFL career would be idiocy, imo, its decision making like that as to why NE can never develop wide receivers. Between not being able to immediately become a part of Brady's circle of trust on offense OR finding yourself in Belichick's doghouse over a single mental error, the Pats have wasted about 20-30 WR draft picks over this past 25yrs which has led to the position that they're currently in with the worst WR depth chart in football.

When players come into the league they're far from being a finished product and, sure, Polk deserves plenty of the blame for not living up his high opinion of himself but the coaching staff definitely didn't do their part last season in teaching the guy the intricacies of an NFL offense and where ne needs to be. You could pretty much say the same for every other position on the field in 2024.

The guy could end up entirely being a wasted pick but, again, its way to soon to just cut bait and move on yet. Obviously, the new regime agrees with that assessment because he ended up on IR and not the street.

Or they could get rid of him and use the roster spot on another WR

So by year 3 he will have given the Pats 12 catches for 80 yards total

I'd use his spot for another dice roll at WR

He went IR so they already did clear a roster spot for some other player. That decision still leaves open the possibility that either he might redeem himself later on or maybe the team can get a pick for him when healthy.

Their offense has been horrible and free agents on that side of the ball, especially at WR, don't want to sign here. They're not in a position to be throwing away drafted players 16 months into their playing career because the guy was too confident in himself.

That same line of thinking would have seen Tom Brady tossed to the curb. One month into his NFL career he tells Bob Kraft that he was the best decision that the team has ever made then went on to do jacksh!t as a rookie lol.

erikthredd · August 22, 2025 12:44PM

If I had to guess their WR locks it would probably go...
1. Stefon Diggs
2. Mack Hollins
3. Kyle Williams
4. Pop Douglas
5. Kayshon Boutte
6. Efton Chism

Kendrick Bourne or Javon Baker
Baker doesn't add much to the offense but plays S/T. Bourne knows the system and would add more to the offense but he might be a trade option. Bourne would cost about 8M in dead money if released.

Polk going to IR doesn't affect any other WR from making the roster.

perkdog · August 22, 2025 1:04PM

Fair enough about the roster spot

I just saw Polk drop so. many easy passes I soured on him pretty quickly, obviously I hope he turns into a solid player for the Pats sake

erikthredd · August 22, 2025 1:29PM

@perkdog said:
Fair enough about the roster spot

I just saw Polk drop so. many easy passes I soured on him pretty quickly, obviously I hope he turns into a solid player for the Pats sake

He was only credited for 4 dropped passes all season which had him tied for 2nd on team with Bourne & Boutte. Douglas had 7.
I think the "best hands" quote just painted a target on his back and if you can't live up to your own hype in a place like Boston/NE, the fans & media here will rip you to no end. And they did. We're probably not going to hear about him again until around this time a year from now.

erikthredd · August 27, 2025 11:07AM

Cole Strange hit the streets yesterday and Kendrick Bourne today.

They also just claimed former Giants QB Tommy DeVito who seems like a better option as their backup than Josh Dobbs.
I give it about two minutes after Drake’s first turnover in a game before the media here starts making the case for DeVito over Maye. 😎

perkdog · August 27, 2025 12:04PM

@erikthredd said:
Cole Strange hit the streets yesterday and Kendrick Bourne today.

They also just claimed former Giants QB Tommy DeVito who seems like a better option as their backup than Josh Dobbs.
I give it about two minutes after Drake’s first turnover in a game before the media here starts making the case for DeVito over Maye. 😎

I won't miss any of those guys, Tommy Cutlets or Dobbs doesn't matter

The excitement around Maye is greater than Mac Jones so I think a few mistakes will be allowed lol

erikthredd · August 27, 2025 12:30PM

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:
Cole Strange hit the streets yesterday and Kendrick Bourne today.

They also just claimed former Giants QB Tommy DeVito who seems like a better option as their backup than Josh Dobbs.
I give it about two minutes after Drake’s first turnover in a game before the media here starts making the case for DeVito over Maye. 😎

I won't miss any of those guys, Tommy Cutlets or Dobbs doesn't matter

The excitement around Maye is greater than Mac Jones so I think a few mistakes will be allowed lol

Oh they’re definitely going to complain, they’re still whining about his fumble on his first passing attempt of that first preseason game against the Commanders. Then after Maye threw a pick in their joint practice with the Vikings there was a week’s worth of talk about how he’s an overrated turnover machine lol.

Dobbs airmailed a pass to Kyle Williams that got him concussed, DeVito is already an improvement before he’s thrown a single pass.

perkdog · August 28, 2025 10:07AM

Buddy sent me this,, new look for the Pats

erikthredd · August 28, 2025 10:38AM

@perkdog said:

Buddy sent me this,, new look for the Pats

They should include a tiny little voice chip so when you press the NFL logo we hear drunk Bob’s We Are All Patriots speech. 😎

bgr · August 28, 2025 11:22AM

Pretty fashion-forward. Slimming.

craig44 · August 29, 2025 6:41AM

that is weird. I thought I was looking at Drake Maye in an Indianapolis Colts jersey. Sure does not look like a Patriots jersey. at least to me...

perkdog · August 29, 2025 7:32AM

I just wished they would go back full time to the originals, it was such a good look

erikthredd · August 29, 2025 10:12AM

Another former Belichick player sent packing. https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107980/patriots-release-safety-jabrill-peppers#comments

perkdog · August 29, 2025 2:21PM

@erikthredd said:
Another former Belichick player sent packing. https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107980/patriots-release-safety-jabrill-peppers#comments

Hmm I didn't see that coming

erikthredd · August 29, 2025 3:05PM

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:
Another former Belichick player sent packing. https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107980/patriots-release-safety-jabrill-peppers#comments

Hmm I didn't see that coming

With his release today, it now means not a single team captain from last season will be on their week one roster, I’m not sure if that has ever happened before.

Seems like Vrabel isn’t joking around about changing the culture here.

perkdog · August 29, 2025 3:42PM

@erikthredd said:

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:
Another former Belichick player sent packing. https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107980/patriots-release-safety-jabrill-peppers#comments

Hmm I didn't see that coming

With his release today, it now means not a single team captain from last season will be on their week one roster, I’m not sure if that has ever happened before.

Seems like Vrabel isn’t joking around about changing the culture here.

Let's hope so, however the players need to buy into it as well

erikthredd · August 29, 2025 5:24PM

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:
Another former Belichick player sent packing. https://www.patspulpit.com/new-england-patriots-news/107980/patriots-release-safety-jabrill-peppers#comments

Hmm I didn't see that coming

With his release today, it now means not a single team captain from last season will be on their week one roster, I’m not sure if that has ever happened before.

Seems like Vrabel isn’t joking around about changing the culture here.

Let's hope so, however the players need to buy into it as well

There’s already plenty of buy-in. IIRC over half of their 53 man roster are new players and most of the higher paid ones are from this recent free agent class that all have ties to the new coaching staff.

Onwenu & Dugger are really the only two high paid holdovers and Dugger just spent the preseason trying to make the case for keeping him around while most of the vets didn’t even suit up for that Giants game.

Even the WR room pecking order has changed significantly. Baker got waived, Bourne released. Polk out for the year and Douglas/Boutte will both need to earn any starts from here on out.

They’re still lacking talent and depth could be a real concern but I doubt that we see any of the off the field nonsense that plagued the team last season.

craig44 · September 7, 2025 1:09PM

well, first game in the books.

hmffff. about all i have to say about that one. weather an excuse?

erikthredd · September 7, 2025 1:45PM

That game pretty much went as expected, imo.
On defense, their front seven looked like it’s going to be their strength on that side of the ball with 4sacks/9 QB hits and just 56 total rushing yards allowed (2.3ypc w/Ashton jeanty back there.)
The secondary gave up a ton of passing yards including quite a few big chunk plays. Obviously not having their best player, Christian Gonzalez, played into that but their safeties & linebackers got beat quite a bit in coverage especially by Brock Bowers. Hawkins made up for allowing that first TD with his INT & sack but he’s still a far cry from filling the hole left when McCourty retired.

On offense, you could see the improvement in the play calling but that side of the ball definitely looked like it’s still a work in progress. I thought that WRs/TEs as a whole played better than expected even though the run game was pretty nonexistent. Boutte keeps getting better with each week and Diggs decided to show up in the 2nd half.

Maye was making all of his throws in that first half while the OL held up fairly well but Pete Carroll amping up his pass rush in the 2nd half gave NE fits. I’m sure Will Campbell is going to catch some heat for his sack + penalty but I’d put the sack on Maye, who decided to head off at angle straight into the DE’s arms.
Oakland really just forced Drake into speeding up and that’s when everything went off the rails on offense. He had the INT & a fumble (that luckily NE recovered) to go along with a bunch of throws that didn’t look crisp at all. Maybe the rain played into some of that but he still looked like a guy making just his 11th careerNFL start.

erikthredd · September 7, 2025 2:35PM

edit: Las Vegas not Oakland lol.

perkdog · September 7, 2025 2:56PM

I thought Vrabel. would have been a little more fired up. on the sidelines today, he was pretty calm throughout the whole game

erikthredd · September 7, 2025 3:26PM

@perkdog said:
I thought Vrabel. would have been a little more fired up. on the sidelines today, he was pretty calm throughout the whole game

I’m not sure Vrabel being more boisterous on the sideline would have made any real difference today.

This loss really just came down to horrible overall pass coverage on defense and subpar pass protection in the 2nd half on offense.
Having two rookies starting at LT&LG helped play into that second part. I’d expect to see them keep getting tested by defensive coordinators going forward. Also, McDaniels giving up on the run in that second half didn’t help his offense at all.

I just read that they gave up 9 plays of 20yds or more and had a couple more in the high teens, can’t do that and expect to win. Gonzalez may have helped but it seemed like every Raiders WR or TE each made at least one big chunk play.

perkdog · September 7, 2025 4:56PM

@erikthredd said:

@perkdog said:
I thought Vrabel. would have been a little more fired up. on the sidelines today, he was pretty calm throughout the whole game

I’m not sure Vrabel being more boisterous on the sideline would have made any real difference today.

This loss really just came down to horrible overall pass coverage on defense and subpar pass protection in the 2nd half on offense.
Having two rookies starting at LT&LG helped play into that second part. I’d expect to see them keep getting tested by defensive coordinators going forward. Also, McDaniels giving up on the run in that second half didn’t help his offense at all.

I just read that they gave up 9 plays of 20yds or more and had a couple more in the high teens, can’t do that and expect to win. Gonzalez may have helped but it seemed like every Raiders WR or TE each made at least one big chunk play.

I'm not saying it would have had any impact I'm just surprised, I figured he would have shown a lot more emotions and fire but he was pretty calm throughout the game.

Agreed about the pass D

erikthredd · September 13, 2025 11:14AM

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46244307/patriots-trading-wr-jaylynn-polk-saints

Another player from the 2024 Pats draft class has been sent packing,

With just Drake Maye & OL Caedan Wallace left out of their 8 picks, I don’t see Eliot Wolf being kept around after this season.

perkdog · September 13, 2025 11:17AM

@erikthredd said:
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46244307/patriots-trading-wr-jaylynn-polk-saints

Another player from the 2024 Pats draft class has been sent packing,

With just Drake Maye & OL Caedan Wallace left out of their 8 picks, I don’t see Eliot Wolf being kept around after this season.

I know you didn't agree with me but I couldn't stand Polk

erikthredd · September 13, 2025 11:26AM

@perkdog said:

@erikthredd said:
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46244307/patriots-trading-wr-jaylynn-polk-saints

Another player from the 2024 Pats draft class has been sent packing,

With just Drake Maye & OL Caedan Wallace left out of their 8 picks, I don’t see Eliot Wolf being kept around after this season.

I know you didn't agree with me but I couldn't stand Polk

I didn’t care about Polk at all, I just wanted to see them get some sort of value for him, even as small as it was.

Just 17 months later, 6 of their 8 2024 draft picks are no longer on the roster and the only return that the team saw for that entire group was this minimal trade package.

erikthredd · September 13, 2025 11:35AM

These late round picks usually don’t amount to much but when you’re able to add some here or there, they’re great to have on hand to possibly throw into a bigger deal.

Hypothetical: say there’s an elite WR or OT that hits the trade market and NE is interested in the guy but his team wants 3-4 picks for him, owning these extra late round picks means that they wouldn’t be trading away over half of a future draft class for the guy.

They’re still sitting on 50+M in cap space and will almost certainly be in on anyone that they think will make the team better.

2025 New England Patriots Discussion Thread

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