It’s a new era in New England — again.
Under new coach Mike Vrabel, the Pats are again overhauling their football operations after a 4-13 season. Vrabel’s vision is now the franchise’s vision as they continue to rebuild, though the Patriots retained executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf to lead their personnel department. This offseason, the Patriots are projected to hold a league-leading $120 million in cap space, and four draft picks in the top 80, starting at No. 4 overall.
To put the Patriots back on track, the Herald is publishing a daily series with five offseason fixes that cover the draft, free agency and coaching.
The Patriots’ biggest needs are obvious and well-known.
Vrabel’s squad needs desperate help at wide receiver, offensive tackle and defensive end.
But the NFL’s weakest roster won’t suddenly be fixed with a pass-catcher, better protection and an elite pass rusher. It requires fixes across the board.
Here are four less obvious needs the Patriots have to fill this offseason.
The Patriots have just three tight ends on their roster in Hunter Henry, 2024 seventh-round pick Jaheim Bell and 2024 undrafted free agent Jack Westover.
The easiest way to address this group is by re-signing Austin Hooper, an unrestricted free agent. Hooper displayed good chemistry with Drake Maye in 2024 and has a history with Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, playing for the Titans under Vrabel in 2022 and the Raiders under McDaniels in 2023.
And, yes, the Patriots should re-sign Hooper, but that’s only really putting a band-aid on the situation. Bell and Westover have potential, but there’s a reason why they entered the NFL the way they did.
If the Patriots wanted to aim high, they could go after Penn State tight end Tyler Warren, one of the best pass-catchers in college football last season. This is a pretty solid draft for tight ends, however, so it would make more sense to address a different need in the first round and go after a player like Michigan’s Colston Loveland, Texas’ Gunnar Helm, LSU’s Mason Taylor or Bowling Green’s Harold Fannin later.
Fannin is an especially intriguing prospect. Still 20 years old, he caught 117 passes for 1,555 yards with 10 touchdowns while adding nine carries for 65 yards and another score in 2024.
Beyond Hooper, Browns free-agent tight ends Jordan Akins and Geoff Swaim could be other fits.
The Patriots really struggled defensively at the point of attack last season with Christian Barmore missing most of the year with blood clots. Barmore returned at midseason but was shut down early after a recurrence of the condition.
In an ideal world, Barmore returns and fixes a lot of the issues up front, but there’s so many unknowns when it comes to blood clots that it’s difficult to depend on that scenario.
If the Patriots want to aim high to fix their need at defensive tackle, they could select Michigan’s Mason Graham with their fourth overall pick or attempt to trade for Titans star Jeffery Simmons.
Some free agent options include the Cowboys’ Osa Odighizuwa and the 49ers’ Javon Hargrave.
For the Patriots, Daniel Ekuale is set to hit free agency. They have Barmore, Davon Godchaux, Eric Johnson and Jaquelin Roy on their roster.
Getting Ja’Whaun Bentley back on the field and healthy will help, but the defensive captain’s injury last season proved the Patriots need better depth at this position.
The Patriots will return Bentley, Curtis Jacobs, Monty Rice, Sione Takitaki and Jahlani Tavai at linebacker. Christian Elliss is an impending restricted free agent.
The Patriots have typically looked for bigger linebackers like Bentley and Tavai for the last 25 years, but that could change this season with Vrabel as head coach and Terrell Williams as his defensive coordinator. The Titans typically employed smaller linebackers, which is more along the lines of what other NFL franchises look for, under Vrabel.
David Long, who had two very good seasons with the Titans under Vrabel, is a free agent. Devin Bush is another free agent that Vrabel worked with in Cleveland last season on the Browns.
Among the best free agent linebackers are Zack Baun, Nick Bolton, Dre Greenlaw and Ernest Jones.
Prospects like Chris Paul Jr., Jeffrey Bass and Jack Kiser could wind up being mid-round picks.
Cornerback Christian Gonzalez is the Patriots’ best player, but he needs more help around him at cornerback. Marcus Jones is a solid, if undersized, option in the slot, and Miles Battle, Isaiah Bolden and Alex Austin all showed potential in 2024, but the Patriots need another dependable outside cornerback.
Jonathan Jones is a free agent, but he might be best served as a versatile chess piece in the secondary, capable of filling roles outside, in the slot and at safety.
D.J. Reed is the best free-agent option at cornerback, though Carlton Davis comes with ties to Williams from their time last season on the Lions. Charvarius Ward, Rasul Douglas and Byron Murphy Jr. are other free-agent options.
If the Patriots want the best cornerback pairing in the NFL, then they could aim to draft Travis Hunter or Will Johnson at No. 4 overall. This draft is loaded with big cornerbacks, however, so it could be a better need addressed on Day 2 or 3.