Pro Football Focus (PFF) has set its sights on every NFL team; this time, it's on their three best players. The New England Patriots are in a massive rebuild. The roster has undergone significant changes, and these adjustments are likely to continue right up until the first kickoff.
One name that Patriot Nation may have fully expected to be on that list is not. It's the most important player and position on any NFL team, and the key to the team's entire fortunes in 2025 and beyond. The only player who could be is the quarterback, Drake Maye, and as it turns out, he didn't make the cut.
Instead, three defensive players top the list for New England this upcoming season, with PFF selecting CB Christian Gonzalez, LB Robert Spillane, and DL Milton Williams.
"Gonzalez posted another strong season in coverage with a 78.2 grade. Williams arrives from Philadelphia after producing a 91.7 pass-rush grade during their Super Bowl run. Spillane brings proven value against the run, earning grades of 89.0 and 87.3 over the last two seasons."
As PFF sees things, the three best players are all on the same side of the ball, and two of them are brand-new to the team, if not the NFL. There's a chance they're right, but choosing two new players who have yet to prove themselves for the team is a risky decision that might not pay off this year.
One familiar name on the list is a no-brainer: Christian Gonzalez
PFF chose wisely in selecting a widely acclaimed player by Patriot Nation. It's third-year cornerback Christian Gonzalez. Gonzalez seems to get slighted from time to time as his talents go unrecognized in some quarters. Where it counted most, however, he scored high. He was named to the Associated Press second-team All-Pro for 2024.
That's no shock. Absent an injury in 2023, the former first-round pick may be gracing the first-team All-Pro list. He's already one of the NFL's top coverage corners, and he's just scratched the surface of his enormous talent.
Gonzalez is headed for the top of the NFL cornerback heap. He'll likely be rewarded for that proficiency after this season, when the team exercises his fifth-year option. That is, unless they decide to extend his contract then and avoid having to negotiate it later. Absent injury, the fifth-year option is a no-brainer, and locking up a possible first-team All-Pro early is never a bad idea.
The two other defenders chosen by PFF as top 3 Patriots players have promising potential
One defensive lineman who signed as a free agent with the Patriots is a no-shock choice. It's Super-Bowl hero, winner, and playmaking defensive tackle Milton Williams. He signed the largest Patriots contract ever in the offseason, and it has to be gratifying to the team that he's already garnering attention from the best observers around.
Williams excelled in the Super Bowl with two sacks and a fumble recovery. He makes big plays in big games. He'll fit in nicely with a hopefully fully healthy Christian Barmore, Keion White, and rookie Joshua Farmer on the interior of the Patriots' D-line in a new-age "Fearsome Foursome".
The last of PFF's three best Pat's players was also a free agent signee. He had flown somewhat under the radar in his career until the past two seasons, when he skyrocketed to lofty heights with his tackling.
As a Raider in 2023, he racked up 148 tackles with seven tackles for loss and four passes defended to go along with 3.5 sacks. In 2024, he kept the high standards with 158 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, three quarterback hits, and two sacks. He's a one-man second-level wrecking crew. Besides being a tackling machine, Spillane's already making waves as a leader.
While votes for Maye, Barmore, and Hunter Henry would not have been out of place, PFF's choices are rock-solid. We'll see if their play confirms these choices beginning in September. The guess here is they will, but that in 2026, there will be many more players to consider in their decision-making, and much harder decisions to make.