The 2025 New England Patriots were led to the Super Bowl by ascending second-year quarterback and MVP candidate Drake Maye. But when it mattered most, the wheels fell off the offense, and their warts were exposed for all the world to see. The offensive line allowed six sacks in the Patriots' Super Bowl defeat to Seattle, and the team committed three turnovers.
New England's defense, meanwhile, came on strong at the end of the year, especially in the playoffs, and Bleacher Report's Gary Davenport believes that trend will continue in 2026. He recently projected the Patriots to have the sixth-best defense in the NFL.
The offseason is the time to improve, and the Patriots put in a lot of effort to do just that. They improved the offense to some extent, and they've also added solid pieces to the defense. However, on both sides of the ball, they mostly matched incoming players with outgoing, and the results were a mixed bag.
One top defensive addition was safety Kevin Byard III. Other changes improved the defensive edge position. If they add a free agent like Joey Bosa, the Patriots could be a very formidable unit.
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In addition to Byard's arrival, the other position that improved was one of the team's top needs — edge defender. In 2025, that position group was manned by Harold Landry III, who was hampered by injury issues, and K'Lavon Chaisson, who left for Washington in free agency this offseason.
Davenport did a post-draft ranking of NFL defenses and summed up nicely how and where the Patriots have improved.
"The New England Patriots made it all the way to Super Bowl LX last year, and the defense played its part—the Pats were eighth in total defense and pass defense, sixth in rushing defense and fourth in scoring defense. It's a unit replete with talent at every level. A front that already featured edge-rusher Harold Landry III and tackles Milton Williams and Christian Barmore added another veteran presence in free agency in Dre'Mont Jones. Robert Spillane is a fine inside linebacker and brought in K.J. Britt to complement him. The secondary features ... Christian Gonzalez and a capable veteran in Carlton Davis. At safety, the Patriots brought in a first-team All-Pro when they poached Kevin Byard III from the Chicago Bears. Add in rookie second-rounder Gabe Jacas, who can play both the edge and potentially inside, and you have a defense long on strengths and short on weak spots."
There is no question that Byard improves the secondary at safety. In addition, the Jones/Jacas combination should be an upgrade over the 2025 edge unit. Yet the loss of Khyiris Tonga will weaken the defensive tackle position, and an injury to either Barmore or Williams would be devastating, as depth is thin.
New England's 2026 defense should be better than the 2025 version and will hopefully provide more sacks and produce more turnovers. Just how much better the Patriots have gotten, though, is up for debate.
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