Top 10 New England Patriots Players Going Into the 2025-26 Season

The Patriots are still in a rebuilding phase. There is actually some hope here for once. Progress is being made slowly but surely.

Last year, the Patriots had little to no talent on the entire roster, especially at the skill positions. Jerod Mayo was completely in over his head as coach.

Luckily, Mike Vrabel is back and should right the ship. They brought in a few notable names, mainly Stefon Diggs and Carlton Davis.

With how bad the offensive line was, it's impressive Drake Maye was as good as he was. Now he has some help, at the very least.

I don't think this is a playoff team, but it is certainly on the right track, all things considered.

The Top Ten

Drake Maye

I didn't have a lot of high hopes for Drake Maye in 2024, and to be fair, I don't think a lot of people did. But despite all the naysayers, Drake Maye still did alright even with no real talent around him.
Look, throwing for 2,200 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions isn't the most impressive stat line ever, but with that offensive line and supporting cast? It's not too shabby. Maye still has potential to grow and improve on those numbers and should only get better. He has a strong arm, just needs to refine his accuracy a little bit.
Here's the thing. Drake Maye provides hope. You can do a whole lot worse than Maye at quarterback. I don't think I need to remind Patriots fans about the failures of Mac Jones. Hopefully Maye doesn't fall into those same traps.
Christian Gonzalez

Christian Gonzalez is well on his way to becoming one of the best cornerbacks in the league. He was named Second Team All-Pro in his first full season. He finished the season with 2 interceptions, 11 passes deflected, a fumble recovery, and 50 solo tackles.
He's already shown he can shut down top tier receivers and has strong numbers in terms of yards per target and completion percentage. Gonzalez still has a ton of room for growth and improvement and has potential to be an elite cornerback, even if PFF has him rated so low for some reason.
Stefon Diggs

Stefon Diggs is an American football wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League. He was selected in the fifth round (146th overall) of the 2015 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. Diggs was traded to the Bills in 2020, where he quickly became one of the league's top receivers... read more

Diggs is a veteran wide receiver who is likely going to get most of the targets and attention. He may be kind of a diva, but he's still a good wide receiver.
He is coming off a major season ending injury, so there are some questions about how he'll perform in his return to the field. But prior to missing half the 2024 season, he had made four straight Pro Bowls and a First Team All-Pro and Second Team All-Pro in that time and was generally considered one of the better wide receivers in the league.
In New England, he should become the go to guy for Drake Maye to throw to.
Will Campbell

Will Campbell is the perfect pick the Patriots could have made. Their offensive line is probably the worst in the league right now.
Campbell immediately upgrades that offensive line and provides some much needed protection for their franchise quarterback, Drake Maye. A true plug and play player on day one, Campbell fits exactly what the Patriots are looking for, good athleticism, strength, and technique.
Carlton Davis

Carlton Davis is a true, consistent veteran who should be an immediate boost to the Patriots secondary. He had 11 passes deflected in 2024 and 56 total tackles.
Davis is very physical and excels in press coverage and has received high marks from PFF. Davis is an experienced leader and has a strong track record of performing well against top wide receivers. He also does well at stopping the run as well.
Davis is one of the best defensive players the Patriots have right now.
Rhamondre Stevenson

Rhamondre Stevenson is a weird case. He's clearly talented, as evidenced by his 2022 season. Mostly, he had over 1,000 yards and 5 touchdowns.
Rhamondre is largely okay overall. He is still the top running back the Patriots have, but here's the thing, he's not elite by any means and last year he saw a decline in effectiveness. Rhamondre has a bit of a fumbling problem. He was a total liability more than a handful of times. If those issues aren't resolved, it'll be hard to win games.
I do think he'll bounce back in 2025 and hopefully fix his fumbling issues.
Christian Barmore

Barmore has shown promise and has high expectations in 2025. Being paired with Milton Williams, those two could be a deadly combination on defense.
Barmore had an impressive 2023 season with 8.5 sacks, 64 combined tackles, 13 tackles for loss, and 16 quarterback hits. His 2024 wasn't quite as productive, as he missed nearly the entirety of the season due to blood clots. Hopefully he can return to 2023 form. He's an effective pass rusher who can push the pocket and disrupt the line.
The Patriots are counting on him to deliver in a big way in 2025.
TreVeyon Henderson

The Patriots drafted Henderson in the second round of the 2025 draft. He should round out the running back room nicely.
Considering Rhamondre had more than a handful of drops last season, it would not surprise me if Henderson eventually takes on a significant role in the offense. He's very versatile, has good speed, and has good pass catching abilities. He finished with 1,016 yards in his senior season at Ohio State and 10 touchdowns.
He has the potential to make an immediate impact on the Patriots offense.
Hunter Henry

Hunter Henry is quietly one of the most underrated tight ends in the league. While he's not elite, he's still a very good tight end.
Henry is consistent and a good, reliable target with good hands and route running ability. While he's only scored 2 touchdowns in 2024, he did set career highs in receptions and yards, proving he's still productive and a very valuable target.
Things should only get better as Drake Maye continues to improve.
Anfernee Jennings

Jennings is generally decent. He's one of the better run defenders in the league, and he's coming off his best season so far in his career.
The Patriots have always kind of had a strong run defense. Jennings has definitely shown strides of improvement over the last two seasons and has become a leader on the defense in a way. There's a reason why the Patriots extended his contract last offseason. He'll be around for at least the next two years.
Although his fit in Vrabel's system may be a question mark.