The Patriots entered the 2025 season with genuine optimism under new head coach Mike Vrabel and an active offseason that saw them add key pieces to the roster in free agency and through the draft. The defense was expected to take a leap, and second-year QB Drake Maye was discussed as a rising star. New England was projected for 8.5 wins and sleeper potential in a winnable AFC East.
But Week 1 delivered a sobering reality check. Many viewed the Raiders as beatable, but the Pats managed to lose 20-13
in a sloppy, low-scoring match at Gillette Stadium. Maye showed flashes of big-play ability but got battered behind an offensive line that allowed 9 QB hits and 4 sacks. Insult to injury: Geno Smith broke a 45-year franchise record for most passing yards in his debut as a Raider. Ouch!
Heading into Week 2, the Pats have slid down in the power rankings. The experts are mostly willing to give the team a chance to pull it together before writing them off as a middling-t0-lower tier AFC team. Concerns about the O-line, the run game and secondary will have to be addressed if the team wants to progress.
This Sunday takes us to Miami, the first road game of the season. The Dolphins lost worse than the Pats did last week (33-8), and the funny thing is that they are looking at their matchup with the Pats as a “get right game.” It will be a test of mental toughness for sure. Who wants it more?
GO PATS!!
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Around the AFC East:
Buffalo Bills (1-0) at New York Jets (0-1)
New England Patriots (0-1) at Miami Dolphins (0-1)
AFC Matchups:
Cincinnati Bengals (1-0) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-0)
Indianapolis Colts (1-0) vs. Denver Broncos (1-0)
Los Angeles Chargers (1-0) at Las Vegas Raiders (1-0)
Pittsburgh Steelers (1-0) vs. Seattle Seahawks (0-1)
Baltimore Ravens (0-1) vs. Cleveland Browns (0-1)
Houston Texans (0-1) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0)
Tennessee Titans (0-1) vs. Los Angeles Rams (1-0)
Kansas City Chiefs (0-1) vs. Philadelphia Eagles (1-0)
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24th – Mike Florio (ProFootball Talk): Hopefully, home wins haven’t been banned from Gillette Stadium. [-4]
25th – Nate Davis (USA Today): A disappointing opener for a team that made so many offseason adjustments. But WR Kayshon Boutte does now have consecutive 100-yard receiving games after getting his first in the 2024 regular-season finale. [-6]
25th – Eric Edholm (NFL.com): Drake Maye’s final stat line looked a lot better than he played against the Raiders. There were protection issues, and the run game never really got going, but Maye also missed some open guys, misfired some passes and failed to sense pressure a few times. Maye was hit on the third-quarter interception, but it was the turning point in the game. Rookie left tackle Will Campbell had a tough day, allowing a strip sack and committing two false starts in the second half. The second one compelled Mike Vrabel to punt down two scores late. Didn’t love it. New England had a few moments defensively, but not enough. That was a sobering Week 1 loss against a beatable opponent. [-3]
26th – Conor Orr (SI): One thing I don’t understand about conservatism from a head coach, especially in Mike Vrabel’s position (he was down 10 with about five minutes to go near midfield and, after a false start, faced a fourth-and-10): what’s the difference? Dan Campbell, years ago, successfully reframed fourth downs as not analytical but a matter of belief. Make Drake Maye feel like he has the juice! [-5]
26th – Frank Schwab (Yahoo! Sports): There might not be a single positive for New England to take from Week 1. Its defense gave up a ton of big plays. Drake Maye looked uncomfortable against what’s probably a bad Raiders defense, in part because his offensive line was poor. There was no run game either. It was a troubling performance. [-5]
26th – Vinnie Iyer (Sporting News): The Patriots were hyped plenty with Drake Maye and Mike Vrabel, but Josh McDaniels’ return to the offense was an early thud against his former team in Las Vegas. New England must streamline its receiving and running to its very best weapons and try not to make Maye do too much. [-3]
26th – Diante Lee (The Ringer): This team won’t win by asking Drake Maye to do it all. The top priority for Mike Vrabel and Josh McDaniels this year has to be building a solid infrastructure around the second-year quarterback Drake Maye, so that his developmental curve is as smooth as possible. But in Sunday’s loss to the Raiders, Maye was stuck in far too many tough situations, even against the Raiders’ limited secondary. While Maye’s performance was subpar, it’s. not reasonable to expect him to make superstars out of his mid receiving corps or be able to scramble away from every pressure. We’ll give New England time to find it’s offensive identity, but my skepticism of this staff increased after Sunday. [-4]
26th – Pete Prisco (CBS Sports): The Mike Vrabel era didn’t get off to a great start in losing at home to the Raiders. Drake Maye has to be better. [-2]
26th – Ralph Vacchiano (Fox Sports): What’s wrong with Drake Maye? They’ll be asking that question all week in New England after a sloppy performance and a loss to the Raiders. But he wasn’t horrible (30 of 46, 287 yards, 1 TD, 1 interception). Odds are, he’ll be fine. [-3]
27th – NFL Nation (ESPN): Best newcomer performance: OLB Harold Landry III. Landry, who was voted a team captain for the first time since high school, totaled 2.5 sacks in his Patriots debut. First-year defensive coordinator Terrell Williams, who also coached him in Tennessee, previously said, “He looks like a guy that’s got something prove. I’ve always loved Harold. I see a more mature player that understands now in Year 8 what his role is and what he wants to be.” [-4]
AVG RANK: 25.7
