The Patriots are heading into a new era for the first time in more than two decades, and Jerod Mayo and Co. have already made it clear there will be a heavy focus on the youth movement.
That is their apparent basis for building the roster, focusing on keeping the talent they have drafted and developed while hoping to add more of those types of players this year with their coveted high selections.
Since they want to build from within, there are more than a handful of players who should become the backbone of the team and who they categorize as building blocks of the future.
6 players the Patriots should build their roster around for 2024 and beyond
Christian Gonzalez
If it wasn't already clear after his standout performances through four games as a rookie last year, it's clear the future leader of the secondary will inevitably be Christian Gonzalez. He impressed early on in 2023 and proved he was the real deal, as he was the frontrunner to win Defensive Rookie of the Year before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury.
Coming into the 2024 season, he will build upon all that he accomplished in such a short amount of time last year and it's hard not to be excited about what that could entail.
After cutting or not re-signing some the veteran corners in free agency (J.C. Jackson, Jalen Mills and Adrian Phillips), Gonzalez is set to take on an even bigger role at a young age. The prospect of him joining forces with the electric Marcus Jones, who is returning from injury, is a thrilling one.
With another standout season this year, Gonzalez would inevitably become the leader of the secondary, even more so with Jones heading to free agency in 2025. His role as the foundation of what the Patriots are trying to build with their defense is not just important; it's critical.
Gonzalez was so impressive in just four games last year that it's hard to imagine him not becoming one of the best corners in the league as his career continues. He will be an incredible asset on and off the field and a solid foundational player to kick off the new philosophy in Foxboro.
6 players the Patriots should build their roster around for 2024 and beyond
DeMario Douglas
Given the current state of the receiving corps, it's fairly obvious who they should build the future around and that's DeMario Douglas.
As a sixth-rounder who wasn't expected to contribute much to last year's offense, the receiver quickly rose in the rankings and became the best-performing pass catcher on the team for the season.
As the weeks progressed, Douglas's value became increasingly evident. This was particularly crucial given JuJu Smith-Schuster's struggles in the offense and Kendrick Bourne's unfortunate season-ending injury in Week 8. This catapulted Douglas to the top of the depth chart, making him the quarterback's primary target for the rest of the year.
Despite Bourne's re-signing and K.J. Osborn's arrival, Douglas's status remains unchanged as he enters his second season. He will continue to be one of the team's top two receivers and is projected to outperform his previous season, which is exciting.
In just one season, he's already earned the right to be a building block for the offense moving forward and has all the tools to be the mainstay slot receiver for years to come.
Douglas fits the role perfectly and eliminates the need to fill the void left by Julian Edelman's retirement, allowing Mayo and Co. to focus elsewhere in their search to make the offense a more well-rounded competitive unit.
6 players the Patriots should build their roster around for 2024 and beyond
Christian Barmore
As one of the more impressive rising stars of the entire team since being drafted in 2021, Christian Barmore will inevitably be a foundational piece for the Patriots' defense from here on out.
He had put together two good seasons before last year but completely broke out of his shell amidst a dominating year by the defense during the 2023 season. Barmore took advantage of the opportunity to shine in Matthew Judon's absence, recording a career-high 8.5 sacks, 64 combined tackles, 13 tackles for a loss, 16 quarterback hits, six passes defended, and a fumble recovery.
According to most fans and analysts, his season-long performance earned him an extension, which should have happened this offseason. However, the Patriots missed their chance and will have to pay even more money to keep him when he becomes a free agent next year.
After what Barmore accomplished in his third season, the expectation is that he will build upon that this fall, and there's no reason to believe he won't. With Judon and Josh Uche back in the mix for another year and Keion White entering his second season, Barmore will have quite a cast around to push him to be his best and should see the fruits of his labor on the field.
It will likely add even more reason for the Patriots to keep him around beyond the 2024 season, and make him a focus of the defensive line for a long time.
6 players the Patriots should build their roster around for 2024 and beyond
Rhamondre Stevenson
Although he has just one year left on his rookie contract, and teams don't like to pay running backs in the NFL, Rhamondre Stevenson has proved time and time again why he should be the future of the backfield for the Patriots.
His performance since his rookie season almost immediately made him become the starter over Damien Harris, who had held that role the year before.
Stevenson's determination to fit the mold of the well-rounded running back Bill Belichick loved made him focus on improving his skills in the passing game. This allowed him to be utilized more within the offense in his second year, recording 69 receptions for 421 yards and a touchdown.
Since then and in the wake of Harris' departure, he has continued as the RB1, and the team has struggled to find an adequate backup to play alongside him. The Ezekiel Elliott experiment in 2023 wasn't necessarily bad, per se, but Stevenson proved to be the best in the team's backfield and is expected to remain in that position this fall.
Hopefully, he will further prove why the Patriots need to keep him around long-term. Some argue it's easy to find good running backs in the draft, and that's a fair assumption. But it's not always easy to find a player like Stevenson.
He's earned a longer stay in Foxboro and could continue being the face of the backfield for a long time if given the opportunity.
6 players the Patriots should build their roster around for 2024 and beyond
Brenden Schooler
A special teamer makes the list of players the Patriots should build their roster around?
Yes, yes he does. When it comes to building a well-rounded team that involves improving all three units, including special teams, is critical, even more so for a team that has historically dominated in that area.
That hasn't been the case over the last few years, which has been shocking given how many games the Patriots have won due to their success. And because Matthew Slater is now retired, the guy he mentored for the last two seasons becomes the head of the table.
Brenden Schooler's journey to the Patriots is a testament to his determination and skill. As an undrafted player in 2022, he caught the attention of Bill Belichick during the preseason, leading to a decision that surprised many -- keeping the rookie over one of the best special teamers in the league at the time, Justin Bethel.
It was a decision met with mixed reactions, but Schooler quickly proved it was the right move.
He made an impression early on, retrieving a muffed punt in Week 2 and then following that up in Week 6 with another muffed punt recovery. It became his go-to move for the rest of the season, adding another victory to his rookie resume against the Colts three games later.
Schooler recovered a blocked punt and returned it for six yards, putting the Patriots offense at Indianapolis' 2-yard line, setting up the eventual Rhamondre Stevenson touchdown before halftime.
He put together a fairly good second season in 2023, as well, and is likely going to be the new face of the special teams from here on out.
6 players the Patriots should build their roster around for 2024 and beyond
Michael Onwenu
With the offensive line being a work in progress after a less-than-stellar last few years, who better to lead them on their quest to be one of the best in the league than Mike Onewnu?
The versatile offensive tackle was set to hit free agency this year and expected to be the best player available, which many teams were bound to inquire about. Fortunately, he didn't get the opportunity to do so, as the Patriots re-signed him to a hefty three-year contract to be their starting right tackle for the foreseeable future.
The new regime emphasizes keeping homegrown talent, reiterating the importance of a guy like Onwenu on the team. This became even more critical with the departure of Trent Brown, who was playing like the best lineman on the team for a stretch of the 2023 season.
Now that Onwenu will lock down the right side of the line, and the Patriots are expected to prioritize selecting a left tackle in this year's draft, there's no reason not to build the group around Onwenu, who defines what it means to be a reliable and building-block player for any team.
He provides insurance to the offense with his ability to play on either side of the line, but he also allows the team to focus elsewhere to improve the unit altogether now that he will take over as the starting right tackle, where he belongs.