The Patriots have been here before. It’s easy to forget that Mac Jones had the second highest completion percentage a rookie quarterback had ever had. There was a lot of hope in the building. Fans were buying jerseys. All they needed to do was build around him. But it didn’t quite go as planned.

Now, with Drake Maye in town, that feeling is back. And fans have a right to be optimistic. He looked promising out there despite having a pretty bad supporting cast. It would be wise to remain cautiously optimistic, but it’s hard to do so in a city that has seen so much success.

Regardless, the Patriots need to proceed as if they have their guy. The rookie contract window is short for quarterbacks, so you need to gear up and compete. The main focus should be the offensive line, but they do have the most cap space of any team, so weapons should also be in consideration. 

Let’s take a look at the depth chart, contracts, cap space, and NFL free agents to figure out what might be the best approach in free agency. 

*The salary cap numbers referenced in this article come courtesy of our friends over at Spotrac.com*

 

 

 

New England Patriots Depth Chart 2025 (Fantasy Football Relevant)

QB

Drake Maye

Jacoby Brissett

Joe Milton

 

RB

Rhamondre Stevenson

Antonio Gibson

JaMycal Hasty

Terrell Jennings

WR

Kendrick Bourne

Ja'Lynn Polk

  

WR

Demario Douglas

   

WR

Kayshon Boutte

Javon Baker

  

TE

Hunter Henry

Austin Hooper

Jaheim Bell

Jack Westover

  • White = unrestricted free agent
  • Green = role is safe
  • Yellow = role in flux
  • Orange = likely a depth piece
  • Red = roster spot not guaranteed

New England Patriots Free Agency 2025

  • CURRENT PROJECTED 2025 SALARIES: ~$186M
  • CURRENT ESTIMATED 2025 CAP SPACE: ~$124M

 

 

 

Patriots Quarterback Depth Chart

Drake Maye: Drake Maye has three years left on his rookie deal with a fifth-year option for 2028. This is the window in which the Patriots need to push the limits to compete as soon as possible. Having a quarterback good enough to give a second contract is a blessing but it comes at a price. 

In dynasty leagues, especially single quarterback leagues, these are the players I look to buy. In single QB leagues, solid QBs are easy to combine but unique ones with high end upside are not. High risk, high reward mobile players with rushing upside are exactly who you should be targeting.   

Jacoby Brissett: Jacoby Brissett did his job. He’s the seasoned veteran that comes in, shows Drake Maye how to be a pro, then hands over the reins. He certainly took his lumps and earned his money playing behind a terrible offensive line. Brissett seemingly still wants to compete for starting gigs, so I expect him to take his talents elsewhere, possibly in a similar situation. 

Joe Milton: Milton is an intriguing player because he has incredible athleticism and a cannon arm. The intrigue grew even stronger after he flashed his ability in the final game of the season, albeit against the Buffalo Bills backups. Now the Patriots have a decision to make.

Having Milton as a backup would be great. But there are rumblings that teams could be interested in trading for Milton. If we are talking about a Day Two pick in the second or third round, that is meaningful draft capital and a tremendous return for a 2024 6th round pick. They have to entertain those calls if they are coming in from rumored teams like the Seattle Seahawks.

  • Reserves/Futures: N/A

PATRIOTS QB FREE AGENCY TAKE: If the Patriots don’t trade Joe Milton, they don’t need to do much. Maybe they bring in a veteran “player coach” to be the QB3 and impart some wisdom on Maye. If they do trade Milton, they have the cap space to bring in a veteran QB2 that can both share his knowledge and play if need be. Here are the guys that fit that description. 

POSSIBLE FREE AGENT OPTIONS: Jameis Winston, Andy Dalton, Joe Flacco, Marcus Mariota, Teddy Bridgewater

 

 

 

Patriots Running Back Depth Chart

Rhamondre Stevenson: Stevenson signed an extension with the Patriots through 2028, locking him in for the long haul. The contract does have an affordable “out” in 2026 and, in 2027 he can actually be cut for zero dead cap and $9.6M in savings. So, it’s really kind of a two-year deal with club options in 2027 and 2028.

Stevenson is actually a decent buy candidate in your dynasty fantasy football leagues. He’s had some injury issues, but he still managed almost 1,000 yards from scrimmage and 8 TDs on one of the league’s worst offenses in 2024. 

We expect this team to use their extensive draft and salary capital to make big improvements, especially to the offensive line, so Stevenson could see a boost. The only real concern to his starting job is a fumbling issue that he needs to get under control.

Antonio Gibson: Antonio Gibson was a pretty savvy addition by New England in free agency. At the very least, we know that he can catch passes out of the backfield and return kicks, both of which he did. But he also carries the ball 120 times for 539 times which netted him 744 yards from scrimmage on the season, the second highest on the team behind only Stevenson.

He’s under contract for the next two seasons and there’s no reason to consider cutting him until 2026 at least based on his contract. In deeper dynasty leagues, I don’t mind having Gibson on the bench as a “handcuff plus” that has some upside if the starter gets hurt but could also slot in for bye weeks and not give you a zero if need be.

JaMycal Hasty: Hasty and Gibson returned most of the kicks in 2024 so that’s the capacity he would return in if they bring him back as an unrestricted free agent. That’s entirely possible as he’s not a bad depth piece.

Terrell Jennings: Jennings was signed as an undrafted free agent. He was primarily on the practice squad but appeared in a couple of games, primarily to help on special teams. He can be released with zero dead cap, so he’ll need to make this team from scratch when they cut down from 90 to 53. 

  • Reserves/Futures: N/A

PATRIOTS RB FREE AGENCY TAKE: The Patriots have what they need at the top of the depth chart with Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson. With so many other holes to fill, it’s hard to believe they use meaningful draft capital or salary space on another back. If JaMycal Hasty leaves, they will need depth and ideally depth that can return kicks. Here are the guys that fit that bill.

POSSIBLE FREE AGENT OPTIONS: JaMycal Hasty, Ty Johnson, Kenneth Gainwell, Jeremy McNichols, Dare Ogunbawale, Ameer Abdullah

 

 

 

Patriots Wide Receiver Depth Chart

Kendrick Bourne: Let’s go in order of average salary for this wide receiver group. Kendrick Bourne is currently the highest paid Patriots wide receiver. And this year was a struggle for him. He struggled to stay healthy. He struggled to earn snaps. And he struggled to earn targets. There were trade rumors surrounding him at the deadline and there are currently rumors he could be traded/released as well.

Moving on from him could save them $5.1M in cap space and even more in 2025 if he were designated a post June-1 release. Given that he couldn’t carve out much of a role on a depleted Patriots team, I find it hard to believe he will have much upside with tougher competition elsewhere. 

Ja'Lynn Polk: This story of Polk’s rookie year is a rough one. Jerod Mayo hired Tyler Hughes from Washington University to be his wide receiver coach. They then traded away their second-round pick, who the Chargers used on Ladd McConkey, to draft Polk who was at Washington with Hughes. Polk then proceeded to have 87 total yards on the season. McConkey had 197 yards in his playoff game against the Texans alone.

Now the question is whether Polk gets another serious shot or whether they move on to other options. Polk played 100% of the snaps in Week 5 with Jacoby Brissett but never cracked 50% from Week 8 on. Polk’s value has taken such a hit in your dynasty leagues that you might as well hold as there is no use in selling.

Javon Baker: The idea with drafting Baker is that some teams moved him down due to character issues and that maybe they were catching lightning in a bottle here with a talented player. 

He essentially didn’t play meaningful snaps until the very final game when they benched the starters. As a fourth-round pick who is only 22 years old on a very thin roster, he likely hangs around to see if he can develop. 

 

 

 

Kayshon Boutte: After the switch to Drake Maye, Kayshon Boutte emerged as a Patriots leader in both snaps and targets. He’s still on a cheap rookie deal and will look to continue to compete for snaps in 2025 on the outside. They will likely have two outside roles with Demario Douglas in the slot so, if they only add one high end WR option, he could hang onto his workload.

Demario Douglas: Douglas ended up leading this wide receiver group in targets, catches, and yards while tying for touchdowns with three. He’s not built to be an every-down outside wide receiver, but he thrives in his role playing 60-70% of the snaps, mostly on pass downs. 

Dynasty is such a top-heavy format when you are competing to win. Unless it is a deep league with a lot of starting spots, Douglas might have a hard time cracking your lineup. This is the type of player I look to sell if I can get anything back in return as they are expected to bring in weapons.

PATRIOTS WR FREE AGENCY TAKE: The Patriots have a ton of draft capital and the most cap space of any team. And they really don’t have any wide receiver that is a “must start” NFL player. It would be great to get a big split end but, after Tee Higgins has been franchise tagged, there aren’t many options for that outside of the draft. 

Guys like Amari Cooper and DeAndre Hopkins are a little too old to pair with Drake Maye in my opinion. Because of that, they might want to look to draft a big wideout and, if they add one in free agency, focus on the best slot/flanker who still has a few years left to play at a high level. 

Someone who can help Maye grow but still be in New England for 2-4 years to compete. Guys like Keenan Allen, Stefon Diggs, and Cooper Kupp (via trade) are all a little too old for that so we want someone on the right side of 30 at least. A guy like Chris Godwin at 28 would be appealing but it's starting to look more likely that he stays in Tampa Bay.

POSSIBLE FREE AGENT OPTIONS: Chris Godwin, Christian Kirk (via trade), Deebo Samuel (via trade/release), Hollywood Brown, Diontae Johnson, Elijah Moore, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine

 

 

 

Patriots Tight End Depth Chart

Hunter Henry: The Patriots extended Hunter Henry in the offseason. And then he proceeded to lead all Patriots pass-catchers in targets, receptions, and yards. He’s under contract for 2025 and 2026 and they likely won’t discuss moving on from him until 2026. The question for his fantasy football value is what kind of additions the Patriots make. Improving the line could help Henry but adding too many weapons would hurt.

Austin Hooper: Austin Hooper was a pretty reliable TE2. He had the third most receptions of any player on the team and tied for the lead with three touchdowns. I’m sure they would like to have him back but in a VERY thin free agent tight end class, he could draw interest from other teams. There is a limited supply of “two way” tight ends that can both block and catch at a decent level. He might even be the second best one behind Tyler Conklin. 

Jaheim Bell: The addition of Josh McDaniels as offensive coordinator is actually pretty interesting for Jaheim Bell. Bell is built like a “move” tight end who can line up in the slot, at wing, even in the backfield. And that’s how Josh McDaniels deployed Aaron Hernandez once upon a time.

Granted, Aaron Hernandez was a 4th round pick and Jaheim Bell is a last round pick. There’s no guarantee that Bell even makes the team with this new coaching group. Or that they give him a meaningful role at all if he does. But in very deep dynasty leagues it’s something to think about. 

Jack Westover: Westover signed as an undrafted free agent with Seattle but was released with an injury before the season. The Pats signed him to the practice squad in October then eventually called him up when Jaheim Bell suffered a neck injury. He’s an unrestricted free agent and it’s an entirely new staff so he doesn’t have too much of a leg up in terms of coming back. 

PATRIOTS TE FREE AGENCY TAKE: The Patriots are going to need depth as they only have two tight ends under contract. Hunter Henry is the starter. So, the question is whether anyone they sign slots in ahead of Jaheim Bell or behind him. I think signing a blocking tight end that compliments Bell in the event of a Henry injury probably makes the most sense. Here are some young(ish) options there.

POSSIBLE FREE AGENT OPTIONS: Mo Alie-Cox, Harrison Bryant, Ross Dwelley, John Bates, Ian Thomas, Hunter Long, Tommy Tremble