The Super Bowl LX rematch is on.
The Patriots traveled out to Seattle on Monday in preparation for Wednesday’s NFL season opener at Lumen Field, then signed cornerback Christian Gonzalez to a new four-year extension later that night.
We’ve spent the last seven weeks watching the Patriots in training camp, joint practices and preseason games, but questions still remain ahead of Week 1.
Here are 10 things we’re watching Wednesday night.
1. Will Drake Maye bounce back in rematch?
Maye saved his worst performance of the 2025 season for the Patriots’ last game, Super Bowl LX against the Seahawks.
The Patriots QB led the NFL with a 77.1 QBR during the regular season. That metric dropped to 40.0 during the playoffs. He earned a 16.3 QBR in the Super Bowl against the Seahawks.
Maye should be facing an easier unit this season, however. Safety Coby Bryant, defensive end Boye Mafe and cornerback Riq Woolen all left in free agency, and defensive back Nick Emmanwori is still recovering from ankle surgery.
The unit should still be stout under head coach Mike Macdonald, but they might not give Maye as much trouble.
2. Will A.J. Brown live up to the hype?
The Patriots’ No. 1 receiver, acquired in a trade with the Eagles for a 2028 first-round pick, was terrific this summer. He aced joint practices against the Colts and Eagles and held his own in training camp battles with Gonzalez.
He faces another difficult challenge against Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon, who splits his time between the outside and the slot.
Brown is coming off of a playoff loss to the 49ers when his effort was perhaps lacking at times. He should have a new lease on life back with head coach Mike Vrabel and playing with Maye.
Eagles fans don’t want to hear this, but Maye should be an upgrade over Jalen Hurts as a passer, targeting Brown.
New England Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown makes a catch during training camp at Gillette Stadium. (Matt Stone/Boston Herald)
3. Can Christian Gonzalez shut down Jaxon Smith-Njigba again?
Smith-Njigba, the 2025 NFL Offensive Player of the Year, was quiet in Super Bowl LX, catching just four passes on 10 targets for 27 yards. Gonzalez significantly outplayed Smith-Njigba.
Blanketing Smith-Njigba once is difficult. Doing it again might prove to be nearly impossible, especially since the Seahawks have already seen the Patriots’ plan to limit Smith-Njigba.
But if anyone can lock down Smith-Njigba, it’s Gonzalez, who proved to be competitive all summer in practice against Brown. Hopefully his pockets aren’t too weighed down after agreeing to a new deal worth $135 million.
4. What is Eli Raridon’s role?
The Patriots selected tight end Eli Raridon in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft out of Notre Dame. Rookie tight ends usually take a while to get going, but Raridon was heavily involved in the first-team offense this summer.
The Patriots do have a lot of mouths to feel on offense this season, however, with Brown and Romeo Doubs at wide receiver, Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson at running back and Hunter Henry at tight end.
Raridon has unique size and athleticism, however, and that could come in handy on third down and in the red zone.
5. Will DeMario Douglas really be a starting receiver?
Douglas spent all summer in the Patriots’ starting offense after not starting a single game last season.
It was Stefon Diggs, instead, who primarily manned the Patriots’ slot role. Now, it appears that spot is going back to Douglas.
Douglas is adept at getting open in man coverage. His ability to find holes in zones and master the intricacies of the offense are the only remaining questions. But compared to 2025, Douglas could have a much better season this year.
6. How will the new-look offensive line hold up?
Since Super Bowl LX, left tackle Will Campbell has nursed his knee injury and gotten healthy, Alijah Vera-Tucker has replaced Jared Wilson at left guard, Wilson has moved to center to replace Garrett Bradbury, and Mike Onwenu and Morgan Moses remain at right guard and right tackle, respectively.
On paper, the unit should be much better at protecting Maye and opening space in the run game. They looked good in pass protection over the summer. The run game wasn’t quite as impressive, especially in joint practices with the Eagles.
7. Can Patriots get pressure with a four-man rush?
The Patriots’ biggest weakness, at least on paper, is at outside linebacker, where they have starters Dre’Mont Jones and Elijah Ponder and two rookies as backups in Gabe Jacas and Quintayvious Hutchins.
Jones is a decent NFL starter, but the rest of the group is filled with question marks. Ponder has started all summer, but he has just 215 regular-season defensive snaps to his name last season as an undrafted rookie. Neither Jacas nor Hutchins looked ready for a significant Week 1 role during the preseason.
So, the Patriots will probably need to rely on blitzes to bring pressure, putting more pressure on the secondary. Watch for linebackers Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss along with safeties Kevin Byard and Craig Woodson on dialed-up blitzes.
8. How are snaps divvied up on the edge?
Jones and Ponder can’t play every snap, so what kind of role with Jacas and Hutchins actually play?
If the Patriots don’t believe that the rookies are ready for key roles, then perhaps we see Milton Williams playing on the edge during Week 1 in a heavy front seven with Christian Barmore and Cory Durden playing beside him.
9. Will Kevin Byard rub off on the secondary?
Byard led the NFL in interceptions last season and has pushed his teammates to generate more takeaways.
The Patriots weren’t able to force many turnovers against Maye, Tommy DeVito and Behren Morton this summer, but they did force mistakes out of Hurts in joint practices against the Eagles.
In order to win tough games against teams like the Seahawks, the Patriots’ defense has to do their part to put the ball back in the hands of the offense.
10. Special teams operation
First, punter Bryce Baringer is out with an injury, meaning punter Mitch Wishnowsky is holding for kicker Andy Borregales, which could create issues out of unfamiliarity.
Second, of the 11 players last season who were on the field for 150 or more special-teams snaps, just four — Ponder, Elliss, Dell Pettus and Chales Woods — will be active Wednesday. And of that group, Ponder will likely see less of a special teams role than he did last season in his new starting role on defense.
The Patriots will be relying on a lot of young players on special teams, especially with Brenden Schooler on the non-football injury list for the first four weeks of the season.