Image courtesy of Kathryn Riley/NFL
By Alan Segel
NEFJ Contributor
FOXBOROUGH – There are always surprises, in life and in sports.
Some surprises are better than others and some of the surprises sometimes bring thoughts of ‘why is this happening?’ In 2023 and 2024, Patriots players and the fan base were surprised with 4-13 records in both years.
Nobody expected that a Bill Belichick-led team would crater so badly in 2023. When former Patriot linebacker Jerod Mayo took over in 2024, very few thought they would see another lost season with the exact same record as the previous regime (especially with an opening game win in Cincinnati).
But, it did play out that way. It all led to another surprise (this time positive) in 2025.
The Patriots’ fan base suffered through ’23 and ’24, but imagine being one of those inside the locker room suffering things first hand.
There are 14 players on the current roster that were personally living football’s version of Ground Hog Day. They all saw things the same and at the same time, differently.
“It was a contract year for me and I did not know if the team was going to have me back. I was only thinking about getting my family back to Utah” linebacker Christian Ellis told me on Wednesday. “I did not know where I was going to be or if the team would have me back. But, we have great owners, we have people that know how to win, who were here in the Brady era, and we knew we could get there.”
January of 2024 and 2025 (before Mike Vrabel was hired) was tough for all of the Patriots. It was life in limbo, which is completely different than it is now. The atmosphere has changed and it brings perspective.
“It is easier looking back on it now” said tackle Mike Onwenu. “While you were experiencing the season first hand it was not easy. Those years were down years, but you learn something from it. You learn how to improve. This has been a great turnaround and we want to put our best foot forward.”
Hunter Henry told me “Those two years were disappointing and not where you want to be as a football player, as a team, or as an organization.”
However, he persevered, as did running back Rhamondre Stevenson.
He suggested that being “level headed” helped him get through what were two very disappointing years. He knew at some point it had to turn around—and it did.
This season has been a complete 180 for the team and organization. The playoffs were not a realistic subject as training camp began. Most pundits and most fans would have been satisfied with eight or nine wins and a promise of better things to come. Well, the promise of things to come turned out to be the present. The question is why?
Mike Vrabel’s hiring, his assistant coaching decisions, (VP of player personnel) Eliot Wolf’s roster decision making and Drake Maye’s meteoric rise are all legit reasons for a 14-3 season. But there is an intangible; team closeness.
In my 49 years covering this team, I have never seen a more genuine locker room atmosphere. These players like each other and it creates a special atmosphere.
“It is crazy you say that,” Stevenson said to me when I mentioned that to him. “I have never been this close-nit with my teammates. I talk to the defense all the time. It’s not like a defense and offense kind of thing. We all collaborate and we are working together. I think it is great and very instrumental to our success.”
Henry very much agrees with that line of thinking. “It is big when you are fighting for a guy you really care about and want to play for. There is a little added extra on every single play,” he said. “Every man in the room enjoys playing for the brother next to him. It creates a very positive mindset and energy that we need in this locker room.”
Will all of this translate to a win on Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers? We of course do not know. However, this organization, and the roster they put together, has defied the odds so far.
So, it would not be surprising in the least bit, if they play up to the level we have seen so far this season and we’re watching another game here in Foxborough next weekend.