The Patriots have the fourth overall pick in the 2025 draft. And, they have tons of cash to burn.
Only this year, there’s no reason for the coach to walk back that line.
With plenty of holes to fill, and plenty of musts on the priority list, the Patriots have to back up the Brink truck and get busy.
Where will Mike Vrabel start?
The Patriots coach provided a clue during his introductory press conference a few weeks ago.
“Certainly, you look at the teams that are able to protect the quarterback and dictate the flow of the game offensively, making sure that up front we’re sound, we’re strong,” Vrabel said. “Whether that’s through free agency or the draft, that’s something that’s critical.”
The trenches are where it’s at. And this past season, the Patriots pretty much flunked on both sides of the ball.
Pass protection was a huge issue. So was run defense, and generating a pass rush.
Vrabel won’t leave this to chance. He won’t apply bandaids and pray they stick like Eliot Wolf & Co. did last year with the offensive line. He won’t roll the dice and hope a right tackle can play left and protect the blindside of his franchise quarterback Drake Maye.
Whether it’s free agency, the draft, or both, Vrabel will fix the perennial trouble spot.
“If you look at who the coach is, he’s going to build from the inside out,” former NFL quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said during a recent episode of Eye on Foxborough. “For him, it’s going to be foundation first. It’s going to be interior D-line and O’line.”
Ted Johnson, who played with Vrabel, and also observed him in Houston as a defensive coordinator, agreed with Hasselbeck.
Vrabel will prioritize fixing the lines. He’ll build from the inside out. Johnson believes Vrabel will tackle the offensive side first.
“I think the offensive line and defensive line are maybe the two most important units on the team,” said Johnson, a co-host on WEEI’s afternoon show. “They set the tone. It’s kind of its own team within a team. It’s just so important to setting the tone for your whole team and so if you have a tough, physical unit that is together on that side (offense), I think it’s the most important thing.”
Johnson pointed to former Indianapolis top pick Andrew Luck who only played seven years in part because the Colts couldn’t put an offensive line in front of him.
“There’s a lot of guys who get beat up in their career. I just think it’s the dumbest thing ever a team that doesn’t prioritize offensive line with a young quarterback trying to learn the game,” Johnson said. “If he’s running for his life all the time, it takes away from him adapting to the game.
“With a quarterback that’s special, and I consider Drake Maye in that category, you gotta have an offensive line to get the max out of that special quarterback. So my guess is that’s priority No. 1, to build an offensive line that his tough, physical, smart and works well together.”
LSU’s Will Campbell is a popular pick on draft boards for the Patriots, should they take a tackle in the first round. Texas’ star Kelvin Banks is another.
As for free agency, Baltimore’s Ronnie Stanley – if the Ravens don’t re-sign him – and Minnesota’s Cam Robinson are the prime catches. The Patriots are going to have to overpay to lure free agents to New England. Having Vrabel and Maye might entice some, but nothing speaks more than cash.
In terms of the defensive line, Vrabel might also opt for a top tackle in the first round. If the Patriots move down the board, Michigan’s Mason Graham is one name to watch. He’s a big, pocket-collapsing beast.
The best-case scenario would be having the Patriots address some of their big-ticket items – tackle, wide receiver, edge rusher – in free agency. That would allow them to take the best player available at No. 4.
If they can’t lock up a top free agent offensive tackle in free agency, that figures to be the priority in the draft.
While Vrabel does understand the importance of having an alpha receiver (see A.J. Brown), and is likely to address that need in some fashion, it’s no secret where his vision for the team starts. It’s at the line of scrimmage.
He is going to take care of the lines up front, and work his way out.
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