When Mike Vrabel joined the New England Patriots on January 12, 2025, he knew he had a massive revamping of a bottom-of-the-NFL roster to undertake. One unit was the offensive line, and one position in particular needed addressing: left tackle. He filled it in the first round with Will Campbell, who's now been ranked the seventh-best rookie in 2025 by Pro Football Focus (PFF).
Campbell was the fourth-overall pick in the draft, so why not higher on that list? That's an easy question to answer; offensive tackles aren't the most glamorous positions on an NFL team. The skill positions get the accolades, while the big guys upfront do the dirty work to allow them to succeed.
Such is the lot of an NFL offensive lineman. They play to serve and take the punishment while the quarterbacks, running backs, and wide receivers get the glory.
While that's the reality, also quite real is the fact that without at least a solid offensive line, and especially a competent left tackle, your offense is going nowhere. (See the 2024 Patriots as a prime example.) Campbell entered the scene in Foxborough and, from Day One, owned the left tackle position. The rest is history.
Will Campbell gets the recognition he deserves from Pro Football Focus
ESPN's NFL All-Rookie team was announced recently, and Will Campbell's name didn't appear on either the first or second team list. It should have. While he missed five games due to injury (the presumptive reason for the slight), no rookie offensive lineman has probably had a bigger impact on his team than Campbell.
Pro Football Focus (PFF) has now opined, and their opinion is as good as it gets in NFL evaluation. They might overanalyze on occasion, but generally, they are spot on.
Recently, they rated Campbell the seventh-best rookie overall in the 2025 class.
"Campbell returned to the field after missing the previous five weeks with a knee injury. The fourth overall pick graded out as the 10th-best offensive tackle of the week, earning a 74.3 PFF overall grade against the Dolphins.
Campbell was beaten three times in pass protection and surrendered a hit, earning a 69.4 PFF pass-blocking grade across 23 snaps. Campbell fared much better in run blocking, tallying a 10th-ranked 74.4 PFF run-blocking grade for the week.
The 22-year-old LSU product has been the highest-graded rookie pass protector this season (76.1), surrendering 26 pressures across 449 snaps for a 5.8% pressure rate (10th best)."
Campbell was the highest-rated offensive lineman overall by PFF, as well. Any doubts about his effectiveness or ability should now be put to rest. When PFF, the best analytical NFL outfit there is, says who the best is, you can take their evaluation to the bank.
Will Campbell has silenced all the combine foolishness
Mike Vrabel is an outstanding NFL talent evaluator. If there are any questions, witness his 2025 Patriots offseason, one of the best in the team's history. He took a bottom-of-the-NFL lackluster 4-13 roster and, in one offseason, about six months, transformed it into the AFC East champion, beating the formidable Buffalo Bills in the process.
The Head Coach and Chief Personnel Evaluator, Vrabel, knew that a team without a left tackle was no team at all. With his fourth-overall pick, his first ever for the Patriots, he tabbed LSU's left tackle, Will Campbell. And that flew in the face of major combine statistical criticisms of Campbell's physical measurements. This was for a 6'6", 319-pound tackle.
The combine stat misgivings were centered around his lack of the requisite 3/8" in arm length for an NFL tackle and his narrow shoulders. Therefore, he was most likely to be consigned to playing guard in the NFL, not tackle, and certainly not left tackle.
Vrabel saw through all that foolishness and landed his fourth-overall pick in the draft right on Will Campbell's nose. And neither Vrabel, nor his quarterback, Drake Maye, nor the Patriots' entire offense has looked back.
Campbell is the best pass-blocking offensive tackle from the 2025 NFL draft. He's also the best run-blocker, though that has yet to be fully utilized by his team, which has run 66 percent of the time to the strong side (right) instead of behind the road-grading Campbell. That will eventuate.
Will Campbell is one of 2025's top rookie stars, and his team's performance clearly reflects that fact.