The New England Patriots had an active offseason, but the summer is when the team finds its key depth pieces. It's likely that around 40-45 roster spots are already decided on, but for the last ten or so slots, we're set to see some fierce position battles.
Unlike last season, these position battles aren't for starting jobs, but the competition for the RB3, TE3, and backup linebacker roles looks to be especially tight. While we still have plenty of the offseason to go, some players appear to be interesting candidates on paper for the roster.
With 2026 being a pivotal season for the Patriots' future, their Super Bowl hopes hinge on these players offering strong depth across the board.
3 long shots to look out for ahead of the 2026 Patriots preseason
TEs C.J. Dippre and Tanner Arkin
I couldn't pick a tight end to focus on, but given the similarities between Dippre and Arkin, I thought it appropriate to lump them together. The Patriots' tight end room remains headlined by Hunter Henry, but its depth underwent significant changes. Austin Hooper departed, and in his wake, the team signed former Miami Dolphin Julian Hill and selected Notre Dame's Eli Raridon in the third round.
While it appeared the tight end room was set with those three, Hill was placed on IR on June 1 following a reported knee injury that Mike Vrabel called "devastating" and "awful". Raridon is likely to take the TE2 snaps, but there remains a competition for the TE3 role.
Last season, Dippre spent the second half of the year as the third tight end, but was never targeted and saw just 20 offensive snaps, all coming in the final two weeks of the season. While that sliver of experience could benefit the former Maryland and Alabama tight end, Dippre will still have to battle against Arkin.
Arkin became the highest-paid UDFA of Mike Vrabel's two-season tenure with the Patriots, receiving over $270k in guarantees. The former Colorado State and Illinois tight end is a traditional blocking tight end, and a tough one at that. He broke his fibula at the beginning of his senior year of high school, but went on to play every game. He was also a two-time captain at Illinois.
Jack Westover's return to the position likely gives him the edge in the short term, but Dippre was trusted over him for the TE3 role last season. Arkin's rich contract and excellent blocking also make him a player to watch in the preseason. The TE3 battle will be an interesting one.
NT Travis Shaw
The Patriots have had unprecedented success in the early stages of Mike Vrabel's tenure as the head coach, and a major reason for that has been their trench play on defense. While Milton Williams and Christian Barmore were forces last season, the team found depth at unexpected places.
Last year, Cory Durden, Khyiris Tonga, and Leonard Taylor III all played important roles, while Joshua Farmer and Eric Gregory also saw time. Of that group, Durden and Taylor were signed off the practice squad after spending their preseasons elsewhere, while Tonga inked a one-year deal worth less than $3 million. Farmer was selected in the fourth round, and Gregory was a UDFA.
The team has been excellent at finding defensive tackle production out of nowhere.
This season, the team will look to do the same by evaluating a handful of young defensive linemen. Following Tonga's departure in free agency, however, one name sticks out as a potential replacement at nose tackle: Travis Shaw.
Shaw, 21, was a five-star recruit coming out of high school. He played three seasons at UNC before transferring to Texas for his final season. Listed at 6-foot-5, 342 pounds, he has the ideal size to replace Tonga, who was both shorter and lighter than the ex-Longhorn.
In 13 games last season, Shaw played only 184 snaps. He failed to notch a sack and finished the year with one pressure in 102 pass rush snaps. Shaw's lack of extensive play time for the Longhorns is a concern, but given his size, it shouldn't come as a major surprise that he played sparingly.
Tonga played 24.4 defensive snaps per game last season, while Shaw played 14.2. He dipped below ten snaps in a game four times. With NFL conditioning, however, he could improve his snap count should he show flashes this summer.
SAF Mike Brown
While the safety room has elite top-end talent, depth roles are up for grabs. The Patriots signed Kevin Byard to replace Jaylinn Hawkins, while Craig Woodson will return for his sophomore campaign opposite the 2025 league interceptions leader.
Last year, the team kept three traditional safeties, with Dell Pettus the lone backup. Special teamer Brenden Schooler played only 43 defensive snaps all season, with 38 of those coming in the final two weeks, when the Patriots beat the Jets and Dolphins by a combined score of 80-20.
In the divisional round against the Texans, Pettus stepped in for an injured Woodson. While he had a strong 2025 relative to expectations, the former Troy defensive back shouldn't realistically be relied on in crunch time. Given his stylistic differences from the two starters, Mike Brown could offer a boost to the safety room's depth.
Brown, 27, played college football at Miami (Ohio) and is now with his fifth team. Of the four organizations where he spent time before New England, he was on the active roster for two, one of which was Vrabel's Titans. The Patriots' coach signed Brown from the Browns' practice squad in January 2023, and played nine games for the Titans the following season.
Brown saw his first significant action in 2024, playing in all 17 games and recording 49 tackles with a spectacular 2.7% missed tackle rate. He allowed 8 catches for 61 yards all season, and was penalized only once.
Despite Brown's size (6-foot-1, 222 pounds), his role has been that of a deep safety for the bulk of his career. To this point, 61.3% of his career defensive snaps have come as a free safety. Despite that trend, his size and sure tackling imply he wouldn't have much trouble playing in the box if need be.
Zak Kuhr's defense certainly favors coverage safety play, but Brown could offer a new element to New England's defense with his size.
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