After an unexpected 14-3 season and a run to the Super Bowl, the New England Patriots entered the offseason with some needs on the roster. They addressed most of them to the best of their ability.
Except, of course, at EDGE.
“EDGE to me is the one glaring weakness on the roster,” Phil Perry said on the latest Patriots Talk Podcast. “That’s the one spot and that’s the one premium position where you could look at it and say, no they don’t [have enough].
“That’s the one spot that I think could do them in.”
While the outlook for Patriots pass rushers may be grim, Perry pushed back against the idea that a lack of depth on the roster will doom New England in 2026.
“This year, if they lose a [Christian] Barmore, if they lose a Milton Williams, if they lose a [Robert] Spillane, if they lose Kevin Byard, there’s just not a lot,” Tom E. Curran said.
“I just would look at it, though, and say, hasn’t it always been that way?” Perry replied. “When the Patriots were winning Super Bowls, and it was [Tom] Brady and it was [Bill] Belichick, they did have guys that would fill in, and they made a lot of the middle class that they had. And it helped.
“I just think you can get those guys to elevate into doing things that you never thought they could do. And so maybe those guys are on the team. That’s what I’m saying right now. Maybe they’re there.”
And while the Patriots certainly are top-heavy at numerous positions — at tight end, along the O-line, at linebacker and safety, etc. — that isn’t necessarily a problem that’s exclusive to New England.
“I just look at most teams around the NFL, if they were to lose — you just rattled off a half-dozen names. If they were to lose a half-dozen starters on either side of the ball, they’d be screwed,” Perry argued. “So I think the Patriots are where a lot of good teams in the NFL are, which is, their really good players need to stay healthy and stay on the field in order for them to be really good.”
