Pats Pulpit
The New England Patriots will open their 2025 season on Sunday, hosting the Las Vegas Raiders at Gillette Stadium. In order to star the season 1-0, the team of new head coach Mike Vrabel will need to stick to its much-mentioned set of rules and furthermore reach its goals of properly anticipating and adapting to what the opponent — itself coached by a new HC, Pete Carroll — might throw at it.
Beyond that, of course, the Patriots also need to be ready for the challenge at the individual level. The players themselves have had quite some time to prepare for the opponent, but now it is about turning practice into in-game reality.
Naturally, that is a job that falls on every player declared active for the upcoming Week 1 game. However, a few of them still stand out in our estimation. And with that said, let’s take a look at the X-factors for the Patriots’ first regular season contest of the Vrabel era.
The offensive tackle position was arguably the weakest on the Patriots’ roster in 2024, and that is saying something. It was therefore no surprise to see the team go out and make a concerted effort to upgrade, signing Morgan Moses in free agency and selecting Will Campbell in the first round of the NFL Daft.
On Sunday, the pair will make its New England debut. Campbell is expected to start at left tackle despite being listed as questionable with an ankle injury, with Moses on the opposite side. In their respective roles, they will go up against a potent set of edge defenders: Maxx Crosby and Malcolm Koonce. Crosby in particular is a problem, something both of the Patriots’ tackles pointed out this week.
“He’s a great player,” said Campbell. “They have a great team. There are a bunch of good players on the defense. We just have to go out there and handle our business.”
“Everything he does on the football field is 100 percent,” added Moses. “He’s fast, twitchy. Obviously, [K’Lavon Chaisson] played with him last year, so being able to pick his brain about little things like that. But just going out there and playing football; knowing your assignment and doing your techniques, knowing you have to block that guy to the whistle.”
While Las Vegas also has some disruptive potential on the interior, with ex-Patriot Adam Butler leading the way, Crosby and Koonce offer the main potential for pressure. Accordingly, in order to ensure their offense operating smoothly and Drake Maye having sufficient time in the pocket, the new tackle pairing will have to do its job properly even with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels likely providing help as well.
LG Jared Wilson and C Garrett Bradbury: While the offensive tackle position gets most of the attention, New England’s offensive line as a whole is a question mark entering Week 1. That is particularly true at left guard and center, where the...
