In the minutes before Tom Brady’s statue was unveiled in front of a sea of New England Patriots fans outside of Gillette Stadium, team owner Robert Kraft acknowledged the sobering reality that the franchise has faced in the years since the legendary quarterback left in 2020.
“Since Tom’s departure, we’ve been reminded just how difficult it is to win in the NFL,” said Kraft.
He’s not wrong. In the five years post-Brady, New England has endured four under .500 campaigns and is more recently looking to claw their way out from the NFL basement with back-to-back 4-13 seasons.
While losing the greatest quarterback of all time certainly will leave a dent in your organization, it wasn’t the only reason for the Patriots’ plummet. The club’s inability to replenish the roster via the NFL Draft has hamstrung them, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. But things may be looking up in that department.
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Brent Brookhouse
This offseason, New England deployed tremendous resources into improving the talent, which included utilizing its first two selections at the 2025 NFL Draft on key figures on offense. With their first pick, they added LSU offensive tackle Will Campbell and then used their second rounder on Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson, and one of their third rounders on Washington State wideout Kyle Williams. Of course, it’s early, but those two did seem to produce immediate dividends in the team’s preseason opener against the Washington Commanders.
TreVeyon Henderson, RB
Draft selection: Second round (No. 38 overall)
If you didn’t know who Henderson was before kickoff, you found out quickly. The 38th overall pick took the opening kick of the game — his first touch in the NFL — 100 yards to the house for a touchdown, giving New England as fast a 7-0 lead as you could hope for.
While Henderson certainly showed that he can be a threat in the kick return game with that dazzling touchdown, it’s in the backfield where the Patriots arguably need him the most. For years, New England has lacked true explosiveness offensively, and Henderson flashed his dual-threat ability as both a rusher and pass-catcher out of the backfield.
While playing with the starters — including Drake Maye — Henderson rushed once, but for 18 yards (more on that below in the Campbell section) and caught all three of his targets for 12 yards. That includes a reception around the line of scrimmage from Maye, where Henderson shed one would-be tackle and then lowered his shoulder to gain extra yards after picking up the first down.
Henderson will likely have a role as a pure rusher, but it’s as a receiver where he may shine brightest. Josh McDaniels, who has returned to the franchise this season as the offensive coordinator under first-year head coach Mike Vrabel, has a history of utilizing his backs in the passing game.
During his first stint holding the OC title for the Patriots, Kevin Faulk averaged 49.3 receptions per season. Over his second stint (2012-2021), the likes of Shane Vereen (averaged 52.6 receptions per season from 2013-2015) and James White (averaged 64.8 receptions per season from 2016-2020) were key pieces to Super Bowl-winning offenses. Henderson could be the next to fall in that lineage with the added upside of his rushing ability, and Friday’s debut flashed the initial signs of that.
Will Campbell, OT
Draft selection: First round (No. 4 overall)
Henderson will likely be the headliner from New England’s preseason opening win over Washington, but don’t sleep on Will Campbell. He’s unquestionably the most important rookie the Patriots are ushering in, as he’s earmarked to be the club’s starting left tackle after being the fourth overall pick last spring.
Remember when we said we’d get back to Henderson’s 18-yard rush? Well, that was largely thanks to Campbell opening up a massive hole for his fellow rookie, showing his speed running out to block Commanders cornerback Noah Igbinoghene into next week.
Midway through the first quarter, Campbell also had another Commanders defender skating backwards on a short run by Rhamondre Stevenson.
To be fair, it wasn’t perfect for Campbell. He was part of one of the lowlights of the night for the Patriots, allowing Drake Maye to get sacked due to some poor communication with fellow rookie Jared Wilson, and the second-year quarterback then fumbled the football.
Again, that felt like more of a mental blunder by Campbell/Wilson rather than being overpowered, and it was further compounded by the miscue from Maye. All-in-all, it was a strong debut for the presumptive Week 1 blindside tackle.
Kyle Williams, WR
Draft selection: Third round, No. 69 overall
You might be scratching your head here if you’re merely looking at the box score. Williams finished with zero catches on the night, but that doesn’t tell the entire story from his debut. The Washington State product was getting open, but the ball simply wasn’t finding him. And we mean OPEN.
At the end of the first quarter, Williams cooked his defender at the line of scrimmage, which should’ve set up a walk-in touchdown, but the throw from Joshua Doubs was behind him, and the ball fell incomplete.
On the drive before halftime, Williams was plagued by another poorly placed ball. He cleanly beat corner Bobby Price deep up the right sideline, but Doubs’ throw was short and nearly picked off. Had the ball hit Williams in stride, it’s possibly a runaway touchdown.
So, while the stats don’t show it, Williams’ separation that he showed on Friday shows us that the big plays are on the horizon, especially when it’s Maye throwing him the football.
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