Patriots made unexpected playmaker the primary focus of their offseason

Patriots made unexpected playmaker the primary focus of their offseason

Briefly

"Because of that, the players who arguably came out of the offseason as the biggest winners of all are the running backs, most notably Rhamondre Stevenson, who is expected to remain the RB1 during the upcoming season. It's a sentiment that The Athletic's Chad Graff mentioned in a recent article on how the offseason has gone for the roster as a whole, with Stevenson emerging as the biggest winner. And if all goes according to plan, he will have an even more prominent role in 2026."

"Because the offensive line struggled throughout the playoffs, particularly in the Super Bowl, the Patriots needed to make changes to put the offense in the best possible position to succeed after an unexpectedly productive season. They accomplished that by moving Jared Wilson to his primary role at center, signing Pro Bowl-level left guard Alijah Vera-Tucker, adding much-needed depth across the board, and bringing in fullback Reggie Gilliam."

"On top of that, they also added a big-bodied tight end, Julian Hill, who has historically blocked throughout his career, and it's expected that he will be an extra body on the offensive line to ensure that Drake Maye has more time to get a play going and the running backs have an easier time breaking through the line. That's exactly why Graff views Stevenson as the biggest winner of the offseason, and based on how the coaching staff and his teammates rallied around him last year in t"