The New England Patriots added nine draft picks to their roster this April, eight of whom made the team. Among the crop of rookie free agents, another three made the squad, though Khalil Jacobs will begin the season on IR.
After rostering as many as 14 rookies in a tremendously successful 2025 season, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Mike Vrabel will continue to trust the team's youth in 2026. Despite that trust, the odds of one of their draft selections making the team seemed especially low going into preseason.
Typically, draft picks are selected for either collegiate production or athleticism, and in a perfect world, both. Seventh-round selection Quintayvious Hutchins didn't show much of either during his career at Boston College.
During the pre-draft process, Next Gen Stats graded his athleticism a 53/99 by Next Gen Stats. As far as production goes, the edge rusher had only 5.5 sacks during his college career. His snap alignments suggested he'd be exclusively an edge rusher with little coverage ability.
Getting on the field consistently as a defensive lineman without the box ticked in the athleticism and production columns is already hard enough, but add in a sub-240-pound frame and a misdemeanor assault charge, and it's nearly impossible.
I graded the Hutchins selection an "F" coming out of the draft for these reasons, but despite doubters, he found a way to make a difference in the preseason. Now, the 247th pick is on an NFL roster.
Quintayvious Hutchins has the chance to make a difference no one thought he could
While it was an uphill battle for the Golden Eagle, he found a way to make the squad. Harold Landry's IR stint and Gabe Jacas's lackluster preseason after his holdout didn't hurt, but Hutchins still had plenty of merit in making the squad.
Hutchins recorded the second-most pass-rush snaps on the team during preseason (20), finishing with a 15% pressure rate and a strip sack on the final drive against the Eagles that sealed the game for New England. His preseason campaign was solid defensively, but it wasn't much better, if at all, than fellow edge rusher Bradyn Swinson's preseason, who didn't make the squad.
What set Hutchins apart was his special teams. He was one of seven players to play 30+ snaps on Jeremy Springer's unit, with fellow rookies Namdi Obiazor (35) and Karon Prunty (32) being the only other two to fit that mold and make the team.
Hutchins had a fantastic tackle on special teams in the team's third preseason game that pinned Cleveland inside their own five-yard line. Paired with his excellent rep against the Eagles, he could have a sizable role on the squad this season, and former OC Bill O'Brien agrees.
O'Brien, now the head coach at Boston College, gave his praise to Hutchins following the news that he made the team's final roster: "Very happy for Q. He did a great job down there on defense, but I think, most importantly, on special teams. He got better and better."
Between Brenden Schooler set to miss an unknown amount of time and the departures of numerous special teamers this offseason, the team needs to make up for over 2,000 lost snaps.
Returning players like Christian Elliss and Charles Woods, as well as waiver claims Cam Latu and Darius Muasau, will help make up the difference, but rookies like Hutchins making an impact will be key in the team retaining their top-tier special teams unit for years to come.
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