水果派AV

A tumultuous season filled with signs of poor leadership 鈥� including the coach labeling his players as 鈥渟oft鈥� 鈥� convinced owner Robert Kraft to fire Jerod Mayo and hire Mike Vrabel.

Vrabel, like Mayo, is a retired Patriots linebacker who鈥檚 beloved by the fan base and learned under Bill Belichick. But they鈥檙e not getting another inexperienced coach who鈥檚 going to endure growing pains on the job.

Vrabel led the Tennessee Titans to three consecutive playoff appearances during his six seasons as coach, including a trip to the AFC championship game in 2019, and his teams were often miserable to play against.

Their linemen were usually tougher than their opponents. Their running back, Derrick Henry, ran over linebackers and safeties. They hit harder than everyone else and, according to players, took pride in working harder than everyone else.

Those are characteristics Vrabel plans to bring to New England, where the Patriots have a franchise quarterback in Drake Maye and talented players at key positions, like cornerback Christian Gonzalez.

鈥淲e鈥檙e going to earn the right to be here every day,鈥� Vrabel said at his introductory press conference in January. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to move entitlement from our football team. We鈥檙e going to get everything that we鈥檝e earned from the head coach to the position coaches, all the way down to the players. We鈥檙e going to earn the right to be here every single day.鈥�

The Patriots guaranteed $159.7 million to six free agents 鈥� led by former Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams. And they prioritized toughness throughout the NFL draft to reshape a team that Mayo called 鈥渟oft鈥� following its sixth consecutive loss last season.

Vrabel has a quarterback to build around in Maye, who threw for 2,276 yards with 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 13 games as a rookie. He was the first quarterback since at least 1950 to throw for three touchdowns and lead his team in rushing in his first start. Josh McDaniels, an assistant under Belichick on six Super Bowl teams, is back as offensive coordinator.

Nearly half the roster has changed since the end of last season. The Patriots鈥� longest-tenured player is safety Kyle Duggar, a 2020 draft choice by Belichick. There will be an emphasis on running the ball with TreVeyon Henderson and Rhamondre Stevenson to take pressure off Maye. According to ESPN, the Patriots were 31st in the NFL last season in pass-block win rate and 32nd in run-block win rate.

This will be a more competitive team, but the rebuild won鈥檛 be completed overnight. The Patriots are still lacking depth in key areas, particularly the offensive and defensive lines.

鈥淚n the interview process, Mike showed us that he had a very deep understanding of our current team, and most importantly, he had a clear and focused strategy of how to get us back to the championship way that is not only so important to all of us, but also something that I think our fan base really deserves and expects,鈥� said Kraft.

Offseason buzz

How quickly can the Patriots establish an identity under Vrabel? The process began with the roster overhaul and continued this spring with workouts. There are so many new faces that leaders need to emerge on offense, defense and special teams. The changes to the offensive line will also need to lead to significant improvement, but Vrabel can鈥檛 properly evaluate the position group until pads are on in training camp.

Who鈥檚 new?

The Patriots gifted Maye several new weapons this offseason, most notably former Bills wide receivers Stefon Diggs and Mack Hollins. They used a second-round pick on Ohio State running back Henderson and a third-rounder on promising Washington State receiver Kyle Williams.

Diggs suffered a torn ACL in Week 8 with the Houston Texans, and he may not be ready for the start of the season. The Patriots have enough depth if Diggs misses time 鈥� keep an eye on slot receiver DeMario Douglas. But they need Josh Allen鈥檚 former No. 1 guy to fill a similar role for Maye. New England also improved its offensive line by drafting LSU left tackle Will Campbell with the No. 4 overall pick.

Also new

QB Joshua Dobbs (Cardinals), C Garrett Bradbury (Vikings), OLB K鈥橪avon Chaisson (Raiders), OLB Harold Landry (Titans), DT Milton Williams (Eagles), DT Khyiris Tonga (Cardinals), ILB Robert Spillane (Raiders), CB Carlton Davis (Lions) and S Marcus Epps (Raiders).

Who鈥檚 gone?

QB Jacoby Brissett (Cardinals), QB Joe Milton (Cowboys), RB JaMycal Hasty (free agent), RT Chukwuma Okorafor (Jets), G Wes Schweitzer (retired), C Davie Andrews (retired), Edge Deatrich Wise (Commanders), LB Daniel Ekuale (Steelers), LB Ja鈥橶haun Bentley (free agent), LB Sione Takitaki (free agent), CB Jonathan Jones (Commanders), DT Davon Godchaux (Saints), LS Joe Cardona (Dolphins) and K Joey Slye (Titans).

Key number

The first 10 touchdown passes of Maye鈥檚 career were to 10 different receivers, the most by any rookie quarterback since Steve Ramsey accomplished the feat across three seasons from 1971-73 with the Denver Broncos. This will make for a great trivia question one day because one of Maye鈥檚 touchdown passes was to tackle Vederian Lowe in a Week 11 loss to the Rams.

What鈥檚 next?

You鈥檒l hear talking heads on ESPN label the Patriots as a potential sleeper in the AFC because there鈥檚 a perception they won the offseason by hiring Vrabel, spending a fortune in free agency to upgrade key positions and selecting 11 players in the draft. They seem like a paper tiger instead of a real contender, though. Diggs is no longer a No. 1 receiver, the offensive line is still lacking and the defense has too many holes to stop a quarterback like Allen.

The Patriots are finally back on track after missing the playoffs for three consecutive seasons 鈥� including consecutive 4-13 finishes 鈥� but Vrabel will need time to fix the issues that were caused by Belichick鈥檚 poor drafting late in his illustrious career in New England.