The Patriots' receiving corps has been a topic of conversation that has dominated much of the discussion surrounding the team for several years, and that didn't change going into the 2025 season despite the apparent upgrades the new regime made to the group.
There was a special interest in how they would perform during a crucial second season for Drake Maye and so far, they have underperformed and drawn a lot of concern about the future. Among the most concerning has been DeMario Douglas, who had an impressive offseason and looked like he could be the WR2 behind Stefon Diggs.
Because he's not performing up to the level that many hoped he would, much of that can also be attributed to his limited usage, fans have been calling for him to be replaced, particularly with rookie Efton Chism III, who shined during the preseason.
Despite that, he has been a healthy scratch to start the year, much to the fans' dismay, but that might change sooner than expected; at least, that's something Mike Vrabel seemed to hint at.
The Patriots' offense could benefit from finally activating Efton Chism in Week 4
While speaking to reporters on Wednesday about the Patriots' upcoming game against the Panthers, the head coach was asked about activating Chism for the first time this season and why he had been a healthy scratch so far.
Vrabel took ownership of that decision, and spoke about having five active receivers for each game, but that could change in the future, therefore not closing the door on a potential debut for Chism in the near future.
Mike Vrabel on Efton Chism being inactive: "Just my decision each and every week. We can only get five right now, we're only taking five. That can change each week. He's been working hard in practice. We'll evaluate that each week, what his role could be and how he could help…
— Alex Barth (@RealAlexBarth) September 24, 2025
Based on what we saw from him during the preseason, it doesn't feel outlandish to suggest that Chism could be the spark that could ignite the Patriots' offense moving forward, especially now that Josh McDaniels is back to calling the offense. He is known for making slot receivers successful throughout his career, so Chism could be a superstar in no time.
We haven't seen that yet with Douglas, and even with Stefon Diggs, but Chism performed like an experienced player this summer and thrived in what has historically been referred to as a difficult playbook to learn.
If he can build upon that and prove he can hang with NFL talent, there's no reason for him to remain sidelined any longer, even if they have him activated and only test him out. They'll never know if they don't try and because the offense hasn't been stellar yet, there's plenty of reason so suggest Chism should be activated.