The New England Patriots had young core pieces like quarterback Drake Maye, running back TreVeyon Henderson and cornerback Christian Gonzalez fuel the team’s run to an appearance in the Super Bowl.
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Veteran wide receiver Stefon Diggs led the Patriots in receiving in the regular season with 85 receptions for 1,013 yards and four touchdowns. Following the Patriots’ 29-13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl, Diggs expressed his willingness to return to the team in 2026.
“Unless they opt out of the contract, I anticipate being here,” Diggs told reporters, according to MassLive. “So, I hope so. Love my guys. I had a hell of a year playing with them. Built some real family-like bond, so I hope so, I don’t control it though.”
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On Tuesday, Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel might have said the quiet part out loud when talking about the team’s plans in the offseason. He sent a warning to veteran players, suggesting New England wanted to find younger and “cheaper” athletes.
“But you have to start over,” Vrabel said, via the Patriots. “This whole thing starts over in 10 weeks. The offseason program starts in 10 weeks. That’s how I look at this, and when I said that to them, they kind of looked at me like I was crazy. But that’s the reality of it. We have a group of guys that played a lot of football. We have a lot of guys that didn’t play a lot of football.
“As I was taught, we talk about the business of the NFL, the businesses, we’re looking for the better, younger, cheaper player every day, and the players that we have are trying to not let that happen. And that’s the dynamic, and that’s the business of the National Football League.”
Competition helped Vrabel turn around the Patriots in 2025. Maybe some extra motivation could help New England win the Super Bowl next year.
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