RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS - AUGUST 22: Tommy DeVito #16 of the New England Patriots looks to pass during the first quarter of a preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Gillette Stadium on August 22, 2026 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Caleb Bowlin/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Joint practices. Scuffles. Wild overreactions. Peaks of optimism and valleys of depression. Now the preseason is really underway.
Depending on who you listen to/follow out in the sports media world, the Patriots are either going to be the most dangerous team in the league or are light-years behind where they were this time last year. Crown them or start getting ready for the 2027 NFL Draft. This type of preseason buzz used to annoy the hell out of me, but now I just find it amusing. Maybe I’m getting soft in my old age. I’m definitely not any wiser than I was 20 years ago, so it can’t be that.
It seems like we saw even less starters last night than we did in Week 1 of the preseason, so I’m not sure how much sense there is in breaking anything down. These games seem to have gotten even more pointless ever since they altered the preseason format. On the plus side, it makes me feel a lot less guilty for completely mailing these articles in until the season starts in earnest.
Nothing that happened yesterday is more important than Ja’Quinden Jackson’s health and well-being. Injuries at any point in the season are absolutely brutal… but there’s just something about preseason injuries that hit different. It’s such a weird time of year; we’re seeing a number of guys who have spent their entire lives dreaming and working towards an NFL career, and they have such a limited window in which they can make it happen. All signs point to Jackson being OK, which is the best news you can ask for.
In terms of the game itself… the punt team was fairly solid, I guess. Bryce Baringer has a great leg on him. I’m not sure how much value he adds to the finesse punting game, but if the Patriots ever need to flip the field, he’s a good guy to have on the roster. And this battle for RB3 is really fun. But other than that, is there anything of note that took place last night?
I feel like the most intriguing storyline of the preseaon so far is how much time Kyle Williams has seen out there. On one hand, somebody has to play in these games, and the top of the WR room seems fairly well set. And if Williams saw significant second-half time, I missed it. Plus, the coaches are on record stating their intention to make Williams a major part of their offensive scheme. But on the other, maybe they’re just saying that? Maybe they want to showcase him to move on? He for sure has explosive ability and can break the game open with a single play, as we saw last night. I just don’t know how much of a factor he’s going to be.
As with a lot of NFL teams, depth seems to be an issue for the Patriots, particularly along the offensive line and at the linebacker position. New England used to be lousy with versatile, rangy, cerebral LBs who could play on the line and off the ball, drop into coverage or add an extra pass rusher. As of right now, I couldn’t even fathom a guess as to what their base defense is going to be. There’s Landry, Spillane…and then kind of a drop off.
Still waiting for Gabe Jacas to start Gabe Jacasing. And yes, I’m very aware of how little I’d need to change to label him Gabe Jackass. Hopefully it never comes anywhere close to that point.
If I had to pick an RB3 right now, I’m probably giving it to Lan Larison. Seems to have more upside as a blocker and as a receiver.
My preseason darling continues to be Kindle Vildor, who had three tackles (two solo) yesterday. I’m not sure how much additional special teams value he adds, but if the Patriots ever want to put some kind of Cruciatus curse on anyone, he’s their guy.
I didn’t think I’d walk away from Week 2 of the preseason having gleaned even less about the team than I did in Week 1, but here I find myself. It seems that more and more teams are treating joint practices like the actual games, so when the time the game does come around it’s more or less a glorified scrimmage. At this point I’m wondering if Drake Maye will even take a snap this August. The only real substantive information any of us can take from yesterday was keeping count of who was still playing late in the fourth quarter.
All that said, here are three things I’m particularly optimistic about based on what we’ve seen so far:
There are more viable safeties on this team than I thought there would be coming into the year. I wasn’t sure how that position was going to shake out, and while I don’t think that there are any Pro Bowlers on the roster, safety doesn’t look to be a liability.
May we never know, but as far as competent backup QBs go, I think the Patriots have a very solid one in DeVito and a competent, high-ceilinged one in Morton. I don’t see Morton making the final squad, but I can for sure see him sticking around Foxboro.
If you want to take a massive amount of liberty with the phrase “breakout year,” I think you can apply it to Efton Chism. Whereas Williams brings the big-play skillset to the team, Chism is that shifty, versatile, change-of-pace receiver that the team hasn’t had in a while. I think he’ll make the final roster. How much time he’ll see is anyone’s guess, but he has enough ability.
On the flipside, here are three things I’m pessimistic about based on what I’ve seen so far:
I wish I had an opinion on Caleb Lomu by this point. He seemed adequate in his duties at left tackle, but he got spun around on several occasions and gave up a sack before halftime. You don’t want to redshirt your first-rounder, but maybe that’s the plan as Morgan Moses ages out of the game.
Related to that, the most exciting rush of the season came on a 36-yard scramble from the backup quarterback. Jam Miller had a nice 20-yard cut and run last night, but any kind of running game has been more or le...
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