![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/0602-SPO-BHR-L-patsms002.jpg\")
New England Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown during OTAs at Gillette Stadium. (Photo By Matt Stone\/Boston Herald)<\/p>\nFOXBORO \u2014 Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez has skipped voluntary OTAs up to this point while he seeks a new contract.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t lose hope on the Patriots extending Gonzalez before the season begins, however.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s worth noting that among Gonzalez\u2019s 31-player 2023 first-round draft class, only three players (Will Anderson, Jack Campbell and Jaxon Smith-Njigba) have signed contract extensions.<\/p>\n
Gonzalez is in the same boat as many other members of his draft class, including Devon Witherspoon, Jahmyr Gibbs, Bijan Robinson, Bryce Young, Jalen Carter and Zay Flowers, who have yet to sign extensions despite being deserving.<\/p>\n
Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf was recently quoted by Yahoo! Sports\u2019 Jori Epstein, saying that signing Gonzalez to an extension is a top priority for the Patriots, communicating a willingness to get a deal done.<\/p>\n
All eyes will be on the Patriots\u2019 cornerback group this week during mandatory minicamp to see if Gonzalez is among the participants.<\/p>\n
It made sense for Gonzalez to skip voluntary practices \u2014 it\u2019s not worth risking injury. But skipping minicamp would put more pressure on the Patriots to get a deal done before training camp begins in late July.<\/p>\n
The top-paid cornerback in the NFL, Trent McDuffie, makes $31 million per year. The best cornerback in the NFL, Patrick Surtain II, is on a four-year, $96 million contract but just earned a $5 million pay raise in 2026 with $5 million more in incentives tacked onto the 2027 season. The Patriots and Seahawks will likely have to pay upward of $31 million to extend Gonzalez and Witherspoon, respectively.<\/p>\n
Brown bounce back<\/p>\n
The Patriots didn\u2019t mind taking a slight gamble when they gave up a 2028 first-round pick, plus a 2027 fifth-rounder, to acquire wide receiver A.J. Brown.<\/p>\n
But the Patriots are betting on a slight bounce-back from Brown.<\/p>\n
The 28-year-old wide receiver is coming off his least productive season since 2021. He caught 78 passes on 121 targets for 1,003 yards with seven touchdowns, and his 50.4% success rate was the lowest mark of his career. He also had the lowest yards after catch per reception (3.4 yards), yards per route run (1.96 yards) and PFF grade (80.9) of his career, and the second-lowest average depth of target (11.0 yards) and catch rate (64.5%) since being selected in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft.<\/p>\n
That being said, his PFF receiving grade (83.4) would have ranked first among Patriots wide receivers last season. He would have ranked second, below Stefon Diggs, in yards per route run.<\/p>\n
Overall, among 57 qualified receivers, he ranked 12th in PFF grade, 11th in PFF receiving grade, 43rd in yards after catch per reception, 17th in yards per route run, 28th in average depth of target, 14th in drop rate, ninth in contested catches, 26th in contested catch rate and 20th in missed tackles forced.<\/p>\n
It was a notable dropoff from 2024, when Brown ranked top five in PFF grade, PFF receiving grade and yards per route run.<\/p>\n
Brown doesn\u2019t necessarily need to be a top-five wide receiver to justify giving up a 2028 first-round pick, but you would hope that he can still rank in the top 10 at his position.<\/p>\n
New England Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown during OTAs at Gillette Stadium. (Photo By Matt Stone\/Boston Herald)<\/p>\n
It\u2019s also worth noting that Brown has never played with a quarterback like Drake Maye.<\/p>\n
Brown had Ryan Tannehill as his quarterback the first time he played under Mike Vrabel with the Titans. Then he partnered with Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts for four seasons. Tannehill made a Pro Bowl in Brown\u2019s first season, and Hurts made three Pro Bowls in his time with Brown and finished second in MVP voting in 2022.<\/p>\n
But Maye was on another echelon as a passer in 2025. It would not be surprising to see Brown experience a career resurgence under Maye. Brown also could lift Maye\u2019s game to a new level.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s little debate that Brown raises the Patriots\u2019 offense to new heights. The Patriots\u2019 offense was already a top-five unit last season, and it appears, on paper, as if their offensive line and pass-catching weapons have improved.<\/p>\n
New left guard Alijah Vera-Tucker should be a considerable improvement over last year\u2019s starter, Jared Wilson. Wilson moves to center, where he appears to be a better fit. If he can play up to his full potential, then he could be better than Garrett Bradbury, who started last season.<\/p>\n
Options at tight end<\/p>\n
Overall, it was an exciting week for the Patriots, which kicked off Monday with Brown\u2019s addition.<\/p>\n
But it wasn\u2019t all positive<\/a>. Buried in the Patriots\u2019 official announcement<\/a> of their trade with the Eagles was the news that tight end Julian Hill was going on injured reserve with a reported knee injury suffered during spring practices.<\/p>\n The Patriots had big plans for Hill, who signed a three-year, $15 million contract in free agency this offseason. Hill projected as the Patriots\u2019 No. 2 tight end behind Hunter Henry until rookie third-round pick Eli Raridon fully acclimated. Young tight ends typically come on slowly, so Hill could have served as Henry\u2019s backup all season.<\/p>\n Now, the Patriots are left with Henry, Raridon, 2025 undrafted free agent CJ Dippre and rookie UDFA Tanner Arkin at tight end. During Tuesday\u2019s practice, fullback Jack Westover also moved back over to tight end to serve as Henry\u2019s main backup.<\/p>\n Westover converted to fullback last training camp after Brock Lampe went down with an injury. Westover will likely be blocked by Reggie Gilliam, who signed a three-year deal this offseason to serve as the Patriots\u2019 top fullback, so a move back to his natural position, which he played at the University of Washington, makes sense.<\/p>\n He looked comfortable in the role Tuesday, maneuvering through traffic to catch a pass from Maye during OTAs.<\/p>\n If the Patriots are looking to bring in a veteran to replace Hill, their options are limited. Free agents Zach Ertz, Jonnu Smith and Darren Waller are better pass-catching options than blockers. The best hybrid option is Will Dissly, who was released by the Chargers in March. A former Husky, like Westover, Dissly is a strong blocker who also has 188 career receptions and 15 touchdowns in his eight-year career.<\/p>\n Dissly isn\u2019t as good of an athlete as Hill, but among the remaining blocking tight ends, he has the most pass-catching prowess.<\/p>\n There\u2019s also the option of making a trade for a veteran tight end. Perhaps the Patriots could use a wide receiver like Kayshon Boutte as a trade chip?<\/p>\n Looking through NFL team depth charts, the Bengals and Rams seem to have one too many players at the position. Michael Mayer is also underutilized by the Raiders.<\/p>\n Patriots left tackle Will Campbell still has confidence in himself after a tough end to his rookie season.<\/p>\n Campbell struggled during the Patriots\u2019 four-game postseason, but he was also fresh off of injured reserve and still nursing an MCL sprain. Campbell said he rehabbed his knee five times a week this offseason with the goal of regaining his strength.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like I did a good job with that,\u201d Campbell said.<\/p>\n Campbell was asked where he believes he can improve this season.<\/p>\n His answer: \u201cEverywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNobody\u2019s a finished product,\u201d Campbell said. \u201cIt\u2019s not one specific thing that I\u2019m going to nail. I\u2019ve worked at everything every day. Like I said before, I\u2019m 22. So, I\u2019m a long way from where I\u2019m going to be in the future. So it\u2019s not like I\u2019m great at everything, and there\u2019s one little thing I\u2019m building every day. I\u2019m trying to make everything as a whole better, and by doing my job is doing what the coaches teach and what they\u2019re asking us to do in the specific play at hand.\u201d<\/p>\n Not that this is any surprise, but Campbell has been repping at left tackle this spring in the starting offense. Morgan Moses has been limited in OTA practices but has been positioned at right tackle with the first-team unit. In Tuesday\u2019s OTAs, first-round pick Caleb Lomu and 2025 seventh-rounder Marcus Bryant split time as Moses\u2019s replacement when he wasn\u2019t in the lineup.<\/p>\n The Patriots also have 2026 sixth-round pick Dametrious Crownover and veteran James Hudson competing for snaps at tackle. Hudson saw some time at guard in the latest open OTAs session, as well.<\/p>\n Durden has Pro Bowl aspirations<\/p>\n Patriots defensive tackle Cory Durden was a pleasant surprise in last year\u2019s Super Bowl run, starting five of the team\u2019s last seven games.<\/p>\n Now Durden, 27, is looking to take the next step in his career as he looks to replace Khyiris Tonga, who was signed by the Chiefs in free agency, as the Patriots\u2019 starting nose tackle.<\/p>\n \u201cWhether that\u2019s making the Pro Bowl or whatever it is, I feel like the sky\u2019s the limit now,\u201d Durden said.<\/p>\n Durden went on to say that he felt the defensive tackles were the Patriots\u2019 best position group last season.<\/p>\n Tonga is gone, but Durden, Milton Williams, Christian Barmore, Joshua Farmer, Eric Gregory and Leonard Taylor III have all returned.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like that\u2019s the expectation this year,\u201d Durden said. \u201cWe\u2019re going into this year feeling like we\u2019re gonna be the best position on the team, and one of the better D-tackle rooms in the league. I feel like we\u2019re going to be one of the best D-tackle rooms in the NFL this year.\u201d<\/p>\n Durden entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent out of North Carolina State in 2023. He spent a year with the Rams and a year with the Giants before first joining the Patriots\u2019 practice squad ahead of Week 1 last season. He quickly signed to the Patriots\u2019 53-man roster and played in all of the team\u2019s 21 games.<\/p>\n He had the fourth-highest PFF pass-rush grade among defensive tackles last year, generating 30 pressures on 265 dropbacks. Only Jeffery Simmons, Chris Jones and Maliek Collins graded higher.<\/p>\n Now, Durden heads into the 2026 season with a more defined role where he can complement Williams and Barmore.<\/p>\n \u201cLenny T, Leonard Taylor, worked with us. Eric Gregory worked with us. These guys are proving that they want to be there. Josh Farmer is back healthy. But Cory, I think, probably coming out of last year, would be (Tonga\u2019s replacement) on paper,\u201d Vrabel said. \u201cAgain, there\u2019ll be a competition in training camp. But I think that\u2019s a good group. The lines of scrimmage are critical.\u201d<\/p>\n Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson made headlines earlier this offseason when responding to the Chicago Bulls\u2019 decision to waive Jaden Ivey after he criticized the NBA for celebrating Pride Month.<\/p>\n Henderson quoted a bible verse in a tweet, posting, \u201c\u2018Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness\u2019 sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.\u2019 Matthew 5:10.\u201d<\/p>\n Henderson spoke to reporters Tuesday for the first time since the 2025 season ended and was asked about that tweet.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the biggest thing I know is the cost that it comes with (it) when I share my faith in Jesus Christ,\u201d Henderson said. \u201cI have love for everyone, but my love may not look like the world\u2019s love. I try to love people through a biblical lens with just grace and truth. I know a lot of people may be offended by it. But I think the biggest thing is just we look at life at two different lenses. I look at it one way; someone else looks at it another.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not going to stop sharing my faith, you know? I\u2019ll continue to share my faith and reach people and just let the Lord use me to reach people with love and truth. But coach (Vrabel), we\u2019ve had a great conversation, and he was very respectful just about my beliefs. He expresses that a lot on his team, and so I really appreciate coach for that.\u201d<\/p>\n Henderson was asked to specify what cost comes with sharing his faith.<\/p>\n \u201cIt can come with a lot, to be honest,\u201d Henderson said. \u201cI\u2019m not a perfect man. I\u2019m a man that makes mistakes, as well. But I just try to continue to lean on the Lord to help, to allow him to help me to become the best person that he calls me to be.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not a perfect person. I go through things just like everyone else. That\u2019s why I\u2019m really just open about my struggles and the things that I once went through before I met Christ. But I think this world, we need hope, and I just try to point people to the only one who can really give us true hope.\u201d<\/p>\n Vrabel was asked about Henderson\u2019s tweet back in March at the NFL Annual Meeting.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to tell you, I love TreVeyon,\u201d Vrabel said. \u201cI love the person. He cares deeply about our team. He cares deeply about his faith. He cares deeply about his family, his wife, the people in our building. And so I want them to be able to express what they believe in their heart(s) and in their mind(s), but also (I) want to make sure that they\u2019re educated. And we want to be inclusive. Everything we want to do (is) to provide an environment for people to want to feel comfortable, but also to share their personal beliefs. And then also, we represent the team. And we represent the organization.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"FOXBORO \u2014 Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez has skipped voluntary OTAs up to this point while he seeks a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":912359,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2081],"tags":[4955,6032,833,839,7,838,1167,249,6,15,835,61050,208,107497,43714,112574,19972,112575,834,61051,61052,80497,724,837,238,237,261,2635,505],"class_list":["post-912358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-seattle-seahawks","tag-2026-nfl-draft","tag-christian-gonzalez","tag-drake-maye","tag-eliot-wolf","tag-football","tag-mike-vrabel","tag-new-england","tag-new-england-patriots","tag-nfl","tag-nfl-draft","tag-nfl-news","tag-nfl-patriots","tag-patriots","tag-patriots-2026","tag-patriots-free-agency","tag-patriots-free-agents","tag-patriots-game","tag-patriots-moves","tag-patriots-news","tag-patriots-schedule","tag-patriots-stats","tag-patriots-trades","tag-pats","tag-robert-kraft","tag-seahawks","tag-seattle","tag-seattle-seahawks","tag-seattleseahawks","tag-super-bowl"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116708471417759463","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/912358","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=912358"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/912358\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/912359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=912358"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=912358"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=912358"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26147754755795.jpg\")
New England Patriots offensive tackle Will Campbell during NFL OTA practice, Wednesday, May 27, 2026, in Foxboro. (AP Photo\/Charles Krupa)
\nCampbell knows he\u2019s a \u2018long way\u2019 away<\/p>\n![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26147755383219.jpg\")
New England Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson during an OTA practice, Wednesday, May 27, 2026, in Foxboro. (AP Photo\/Charles Krupa)
\nHenderson opens up on controversial tweet<\/p>\n