Will Campbell sends a strong message to Patriots amid Year 2 concerns

Well before he was drafted by the Patriots last year, left tackle Will Campbell was the target of much scrutiny ahead of his NFL career. Despite his impressive tenure at LSU as a starter, the conversation centered on his arm length and how that could become a problem against pro talent, making many question whether he was worth the risk for the Patriots.

Those concerns were not a dealbreaker for them, however, as they used their fourth overall pick in the 2025 draft to get their hopeful next franchise left tackle. And at the start of his rookie season, all the questions about how he would play against NFL talent went out the window, as he held his own until he suffered an injury.

The devastating timing of the injury only made it worse, and the Patriots were forced to place Campbell on injured reserve right as they were about to secure their first divisional title in five years.

Fortunately, Campbell was able to return for the playoffs, only to string together some of his worst performances of the season, which also included his poor showing in Super Bowl LX against the Seahawks.

That has prompted a lot of conversation about whether the team should keep him as the starting left tackle or move him inside to guard, with even current and former left tackles coming out to express their concerns or offer some help.

Given that he's heard the noise, Campbell has taken them up on their offers, seemingly sending a loud message to the Patriots and the constant negativity from the naysayers.

Will Campbell isn't messing around ahead of his second season with the Patriots

In a recent post to Instagram, Eagles' longtime left tackle Lane Johnson shared that a group of tackles was working out together with some of the most respected linemen in the league: Dion Dawkins, Creed Humphrey, and Tristan Wirfs.

Among them to take advantage of the opportunity was Campbell, who couldn't be learning from better players at this stage of his career.

Clearly, it was a chance Campbell couldn't miss, and he would almost definitely have been criticized had he passed up the opportunity to work with some of the best talent the NFL has to offer at his position.

There's no doubt that he understands just how much work he has to put in ahead of what is already being labeled a very difficult schedule in 2026, on top of trying to prove that he is a better player than what we last saw in the Super Bowl.

He showed glimpses of exactly what the offense needs before his injury, but he is set to face a much stronger docket of opposing defenses this fall, so the task at hand won't be considered nearly as easy as it was last season.

If he can implement what he's learning from some of the most experienced and respected legends, and maybe even work with some other legends who expressed their desire to help out, then Campbell couldn't be in a better position to thrive this fall.

It will be up to him to show that he is, in fact, the Patriots' next franchise left tackle, and hopefully, he can do that.

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