None of the 2025 rookies has yet to step on the field, and naturally, there's a considerable amount of hope in Foxborough and elsewhere over each team's incoming classes. While the Patriots had a widely respected draft class, an addition that may have gone a bit under the radar came in the sixth round through Miami kicker Andres Borregales.
The first kicker drafted in 2025 was named to Gennaro Filice's way-too-early All-Rookie team.
Since Nick Folk's final season in New England, the team has had some issues at the kicker position. Toward the end of Folk's tenure, the problem centered around his inability to hit from deep. The team then grabbed Chad Ryland from Maryland in the fourth round of the 2023 draft to fix the deep kicking issue, but he struggled to make anything in his rookie season, eventually losing the job to Joey Slye.
Slye wasn't bad, but wasn't great either. He finished 26/33 on field goals and 25/26 on extra points, and was allowed to walk in free agency.
Borregales was a solid college kicker. The Venezuelan made 86% of his kicks across his four seasons in college and made All-ACC twice. His record from deep is good, too: 75% on field goals over his last two college seasons. We know that kicker is a confidence-based position, but there should be little reason for Borregales not to feel confident coming off the back of four good years with the Hurricanes.
Beating out the competition
John Parker Romo did some excellent work last year in Minnesota in the absence of Will Reichard, but didn't manage a game for the Pats last year. In four games with the Vikings, he went 11/12 on field goals with a long of 55, and 7/8 on extra points. In the open portion of minicamp, Romo was 14/20 compared to Borregales's 19/20, meaning the rookie is comfortably and confidently beating out his competition, which is nothing to scoff at.
Aside from competition in New England, Filice mentions Baltimore rookie Tyler Loop as a player that will have a lot of pressure in replacing Justin Tucker, a pressure he feels may be too much for the former Arizona Wildcat, remarking that it might be "wiser to go with the highest drafted kicker in Borregales".
Borregales was one of two special teamers drafted this season, with Vanderbilt long snapper Julian Ashby selected in the seventh round. Special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer was the only coordinator from Jerod Mayo's tenure who was retained by Mike Vrabel, a sign of the solid play of the special teams last season.
Now, the unit has only gotten younger and hopefully better, thanks to a player who can have a high impact early in Borregales.