Last season, the Patriots were the biggest surprise in football.
After going 4-13 in 2024, they pulled off a historic turnaround, becoming just the sixth team to reach the Super Bowl after winning five or fewer games the previous season.
Can they build on that success this season? Here are five bold predictions for what’s in store in 2026.
The Patriots have two 1,000-yard wide receivers
Let’s start with something that hasn’t happened since Rob Gronkowski and Brandin Cooks did it in 2017: The Patriots will have two 1,000-yard wide receivers in A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs.
Brown has topped 1,000 receiving yards in six of his seven NFL seasons, including each of the last four. The only time he fell short was in 2021, when he played just 13 games and finished with 869 yards. Assuming he stays healthy, Brown should reach 1,000 yards in his sleep.
Doubs has never had a 1,000-yard receiving season, posting a career-high 724 receiving yards last season.
But the Patriots clearly believe Doubs can reach that level. They gave him a four-year contract worth up to $80 million this offseason, and I believe he can get there, too, playing with a quarterback like Drake Maye in Josh McDaniels’ system.
The Patriots have had two 1,000-yard receivers in the same season just six times in franchise history: Harold Jackson and Stanley Morgan in 1979, Wes Welker and Randy Moss in three straight seasons from 2007-09, Welker and Gronkowski in 2011, and Cooks and Gronkowski in 2017.
Four teams had two 1,000-yard receivers last season: the Cardinals with Trey McBride and Michael Wilson, the Cowboys with CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, the Lions with Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams, and the Eagles with DeVonta Smith and Brown.
Craig Woodson makes an All-Pro team
Craig Woodson introduced himself to a national audience during last season’s playoffs.
The fourth-round pick (No. 106 overall) led the NFL with 30 tackles, including a league-best four tackles for loss. His six passes defended in the postseason trailed only teammate Christian Gonzalez (seven) and Cobie Durant of the Rams (seven). He allowed just four catches on 14 targets for 28 yards in coverage.
In the Super Bowl, Woodson was one of the Patriots’ best players on the field, leading the team with 10 tackles, including three tackles for loss, while also adding two pass breakups.
Woodson was one of the most reliable and consistent players on the defense last season, playing 950 snaps (93.23%), the most of any Patriots defensive player during the regular season. Now, heading into his second season at 25 years old, the stage is set for a breakout that results in All-Pro honors.
The Patriots rank dead last in sacks
Last season, the Patriots ranked 26th in sacks with 35.
Harold Landry (8.5) and K’Lavon Chaisson (7.5) were the only Patriots players to record more than 4.0 sacks. Chaisson is now in Washington with the Commanders, while Landry is on the PUP list with no timetable for his return.
That leaves New England with Dre’Mont Jones and Elijah Ponder as its projected starters at EDGE. Jones had a career-high 8.0 sacks in 18 games between the Titans and Ravens last season, while Ponder recorded 4.0 sacks in just 215 defensive snaps. Neither player particularly impressed throughout training camp.
That’s a major problem for a Patriots defense that needs to generate more pressure. They struggled to get to the quarterback last season, and without Landry and Chaisson, expect their sack total to take another step backward in 2026.
Drake Maye wins MVP
Last season, Maye narrowly lost the MVP vote to Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford. Stafford received 24 of 50 first-place votes and finished with 366 points, while Maye received 23 first-place votes and finished with 361 points. It was the closest MVP race since Peyton Manning and Steve McNair were co-winners in 2003.
Some might expect Maye to take a step back with a tougher schedule this season, but that won’t be the case.
With the addition of Brown, New England’s best skill player since Rob Gronkowski, as well as Romeo Doubs, who is an excellent option as a No. 2 wide receiver, the revamped wide receiver room will help Maye unlock another level.
That’s before you factor in the one-two punch at running back between Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson, the ever-so-consistent Hunter Henry, and an offensive line that showed improvement throughout camp and should take a step of its own with the addition of Alijah Vera-Tucker, while Will Campbell and Jared Wilson enter their second seasons.
Oh, and for the first time since his freshman and sophomore seasons at North Carolina, Maye will have continuity at offensive coordinator, entering Year 2 with Josh McDaniels.
With their passing and rushing attack, the Patriots have the tools to be one of the league’s most potent offenses. They ranked third in yards per game (379.4) and second in points per game (28.8) last season, and they only got better.
Maye is in an ideal situation, and he will be the conductor and face of that offense. That could result in MVP honors.
The Patriots win the AFC East again
This probably isn’t that bold.
The AFC East is a two-horse race between the Patriots and Bills, and it looks like it will stay that way for a while.
Last season marked the Patriots’ first division title since 2019, ending the Bills’ five-year run atop the AFC East. Despite that, sportsbooks have the Bills favored to reclaim the crown this season.
Betting on the Patriots as an underdog would be a smart play.
They went 5-1 against the division last season, with their only loss coming in Week 15 against the Bills at home. The Patriots led by as many as 21 points in the first half, opening with a 21-0 lead before taking a 24-7 advantage into halftime.
More of the same should be expected this season. The Patriots should take care of business against the Jets and Dolphins again, while beating the Bills twice would remain a challenge. The Patriots haven’t swept the Bills since 2019, splitting the season series each of the last three years and in four of the last five.
Still, the Patriots are a better team than the one that walked off the field after losing the Super Bowl in February. They’re more than capable of winning the division again.
