For so long the NFL poster child for greatness, the Patriots are in desperate need of reclamation following three straight years of missed postseasons.
Head coach Mike Vrabel believes New England is on its way after some key free-agent additions -- especially on defense -- although he noted there's still much work to do through the draft, post-draft evaluations and building a proper foundation on the field.
"We're continuing to find ways to strengthen the roster, to improve our roster, to add competition," Vrabel told NFL Network Senior National Columnist Judy Battista on Saturday at the Annual League Meeting. "I think that's something that's critical in a 90-man roster is that there's competition throughout the roster. We were able to add what we feel like are premium players at every level of the defense that can help us. Those players that are currently on our team and the ones that we're adding, [I] feel like we like the person as much as the player, and I feel like that's important when you talk about free agency."
New England swung for the fences earlier in March, and the premium new talent indeed came at a premium.
Defensive tackle Milton Williams, fresh off helping the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl victory, joined the Pats on a four-year, $104 million deal. He was the No. 1 player on Gregg Rosenthal's top 101 free agents, a formidable run-stuffer who proved he can also provide pressure with a career-high five sacks last season. New England netted Rosenthal's top-rated corner, as well, signing Carlton Davis to a three-year, $60 million contract.
On the edge, the Patriots reeled in Harold Landry with a three-year, $43.5 million deal, reuniting him with Vrabel from their days as Tennessee Titans, and took a flier on K'Lavon Chaisson. Linebacker Robert Spillane, a 17-game starter in each of the past two seasons for the Las Vegas Raiders, should contribute in a mold similar to Vrabel's when he was a Pats player, while defensive lineman Khyiris Tonga and safety Marcus Epps represent other value signings.
A year after the Pats extended a bunch of homegrown talent, bringing in outside help to foster competition in a hurry appears to be the new route to turning around a 22nd-ranked scoring defense, the unit's worst finish since 1995.
But it's not as if the offense, which placed bottom-three in scoring during both Bill Belichick's final year as head coach and Jerod Mayo's only one, is without need for a boost.
The Pats sturdied the trenches with contracts for offensive tackle Morgan Moses, guard Wes Schweitzer and center Garrett Bradbury. Wide receiver Stefon Diggs also returned to an AFC East he haunted for years as a Buffalo Bill, although he's now a year and a torn ACL removed from such dominance.
As he did a couple days ago on the Green Light with Chris Long podcast, Vrabel spoke with Battista about his appreciation for Diggs' competitive play style. He would not, however, get into specifics regarding when the 31-year-old wideout might fully return from injury.
"The more that he can do, the more that we're going to continue to give him and put on his plate," Vrabel said. "He's working hard to get healthy, so not going to put a timeline on that or any sort of prediction on when he's gonna be back, but I know he's working hard. Extremely confident in how hard he's working."
Whenever Diggs is ready, he'll be tasked for a second straight season with helping raise the game of a talented second-year quarterback. In 2024, he joined the Houston Texans to do so with C.J. Stroud. In 2025, he'll work with Drake Maye, who Vrabel sang the praises of Saturday like he has all offseason.
"He's young, energetic, excited," Vrabel said. "He's just got this very young face, you know what I mean, he's 22 years old. And he's ready to learn. He's hungry to take the next step and he's excited about helping us build a program that everybody's proud of and is headed in the right direction."
Maye looked promising as a rookie despite the Patriots going 4-13.
All the spending and a quick turn to Vrabel as head coach won't guarantee Maye and New England are destined to improve on that in 2025, but the pieces are certainly falling into place to give it their best shot.
