Patriots 2025-26 Season

[Moranis]

9-8 is possible, but I don't think that makes the playoffs.  I think there are at least 7 teams that get to 10 wins, the Bills, Texans, Ravens, Steelers or Bengals, Chiefs, Chargers, and Broncos.

[Vermont Green]

I see the most likely as 8 wins.  Could be 9 or 10 with a few pleasant surprises.  Could be less if injuries expose their lack of depth.

I see a wild card as Cole Strange.  He was a really good guard not too long ago.  These are his PFF grades for 2022 where he started 17 games:

86.3 overall grade
83.4 pass block grade
86.9 run block grade

I can't find other seasons, but he started 10 in 2023 before the injury.  He got injured in Dec 2023 and has only played in 3 games since the injury (after 27 straight starts).  If we can play Strange at LG and have him play at or near his pre-injury level, that will go a long way towards solidifying the OL.  We would have 4 fairly established veterans and one rookie.  That would be a very solid line and would help Maye who would then help the receivers.  And the rush game too of course.

Strange may not even make the team though, much less start and play at his preinjury level. Vrabel does not seem to like players from the past regime.  Strange may be severely diminished after the injury (torn patellar tendon in his left knee Dec 2023), physically and maybe mentally.  Strange survived this most recent cut.  Sidy Sow was cut, it may have been only one of these two would be kept.

I don't see the practices and barely watched the preseason games, but it doesn't sound like Strange is impressing anyone so far.  I hope this is a case of a veteran - preseason thing.  Bradbury, Onwenu, and Moses have not done all that much either.  Strange did play a lot in the last preseason game, whatever that means.  Hopefully it was more of testing his conditioning.

[Vermont Green]

53 man roster is final, Cole Strange cut.  I am not sure the OL is good enough.  3 rookies (Campbell, Wilson, Bryant) and a second year guy (Wallace) who wasn't that good last season.  The "veterans" are Moses, Onwenu, Bradbury, Brown, and Lowe.  It looks like 2 rookies may start.

I am not questioning the talent evaluation that resulted in them deciding to cut Strange.  He was clearly diminished after the injury.  They determined that he was not as good as the others.  Strange once was a solid starter, something this line desperately needs.  It would have been really nice to have "proven stater" Cole Strange.

I would say that of this group, there are only 2 proven starters, Onwenu and Moses.  I am not sure Bradbury is still that category.  Brown and Lowe are veteran back ups.  Then it is all young, unproven potentially good players.