Some watchers have been bullish on the 2025 Patriots' chances after observing the seismic shift that changed the future fortunes of the post-Tom Brady woeful franchise. That, of course, was the hiring of new Head Coach and personnel manager, Mike Vrabel.
Vrabel conducted one of the best Patriots' offseasons in recent memory, if not ever. With barely a hiccup, he managed every facet of his offseason team-building from free agency to the draft to even undrafted free agency with a maestro's baton. It was a virtuoso performance.
Local observers who've watched Vrabel's team construction diligently have been aware of the brilliant reconstruction of a woeful roster in a single offseason. Yet, now, his effort has received a truly eye-catching suggestion from a well-respected national pundit. And he's taken the hyperbole to a whole new level.
ESPN pundit goes outside the box on Patriots' 2025 season suggestion
While some Patriots observers haven't been shy about predicting a possible Patriots run to the 2025 playoffs, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler has upped the ante dramatically. In an ESPN YouTube clip, Fowler has gone all in on the Patriots' 2025 potential.
In the clip, ESPN's Fowler made a shocking comment, "It would not shock me if they won the AFC East". Now that's taking a leap of faith, especially on a very powerful national media platform. Fowler has bought into the hype over Vrabel's reconstruction of the 2024 roster in style.
So, is this just media hype meant to garner responses from Patriots, Buffalo Bills, and AFC East and beyond audiences, or is Fowler onto something? Vrabel's work has certainly lit a fire under Fowler, and he may not be very far off with his startling suggestion.
The Patriots will pose a major problem for the Bills in 2025
Let's make one thing perfectly clear: the 2024 Patriots were at the bottom of the NFL barrel in 2024. While they foolishly won a meaningless last game over the Bills in a joke fest, leaving the Bills laughing all the way to the AFC East title, they still lost six games by only one score.
That was a team that had the NFL's worst offensive line, arguably its worst receiving corps, and also a bottom-of-the-pile defense. Enter Mike Vrabel, a professional both on the field and in personnel development, and the worm has turned in the Patriots' favor.
Vrabel rebuilt the offensive line, and it will be miles better than the porous 2024 one. That means second-year quarterback Drake Maye, cited as a key component of a march to the AFC East title by Fowler, will have a lot more time to throw. That spells trouble for any Patriots' opponent.
Maye completed 66 percent of his 2024 passes with no protection, a shallow running game, and no top NFL receivers. All are significantly improved. He'll top 70 percent. And the team now has a left tackle, Will Campbell, the fourth-overall pick in the 2025 draft. It had none in 2024. This offense will easily make up a score per game, and that will result in wins. But that's not all.
Coach Vrabel also overhauled his defense, adding playmakers at each level. He added the best defensive lineman available, Milton Williams; the top inside linebacker, tackling machine Robert Spillane; two solid pass-rushers, Harold Landry III and K'Lavon Chaisson; a second lockdown cornerback, Carlton Davis III, to partner with All-Pro, Christian Gonzalez, and a lot more.
Vrabel rebuilt his roster in one amazing offseason. The Patriots are poised to make the playoffs and maybe even top the AFC East, as Fowler suggests. Who knows if he's right or not: that's why they play the games. Yet, as currently constituted, Vrabel has built a team to contend for the 2025 playoffs and maybe even compete for the AFC East title. What a difference a year makes.