It’s that time of year again.
To scout and interview prospects, tamper with free agents and dish on everyone else around the NFL.
Coaches, executives and agents will descend on Indianapolis this week for the league’s annual scouting combine. Officially, their business is to prepare for this April’s draft, while unofficially everyone will be hunting for intel on an evolving trade market and free agency next month. The Patriots have 11 picks heading into the draft, starting at No. 31 overall, and roughly $36 million to play with in free agency, good for 11th-most in the league, per Over the Cap.
Having come one win shy of a Super Bowl title, here are the six most pressing items on Mike Vrabel and Eliot Wolf’s to-do list to get the Patriots over the top:
1. Firm up the big board
It’s safe to say Vrabel is playing catch-up.
It’s been just two weeks since he landed home after Super Bowl LX, giving him little time to study film of the top prospects. The good news is his organizational vision has been in place for a year, so Wolf and Co. have known what Vrabel wants for more than a year now.
Prospects without a rugged play demeanor? Forget ’em.
Players who come across as entitled? Cross them off, too.
But tough, smart and selfless? Those traits will always be en vogue in New England, where the goal should be to trim the bottom of its draft board this week based on new information from medical evaluations and prospect interviews. Ideally, the Pats would tighten the top of their board, as well, where their current targets at No. 31 overall differentiate themselves based on interviews, medicals and athletic testing.
2. Ready, set, tamper
Once upon a time, it was the worst-kept secret in the league. Now, it’s just business as business is being done.
Even though the NFL does not permit negotiations between impending free agents and outside teams, meetings take place all over Indianapolis every year. From bars to coffee shops, restaurants, hotel lobbies and other corners of the city, front-office members hold contract talks with player representatives to get a sense of their markets.
By the end of the week, the Patriots might have a feel for how much, say, Alec Pierce will command on the open market as the top free-agent wide receiver. Or Romeo Doubs, arguably the second-best wideout available. By gathering contract estimates and gauging player interest, Wolf and Co. can begin mapping out Plans A, B, C and D ahead of free agency to best position themselves when business opens on March 9.
3. Check in with internal free agents
It’s another small group this year, but the Patriots can’t afford to lose all of their in-house free agents in the process of chasing outside names.
Outside linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson and safety Jaylinn Hawkins are the best players who could leave New England, followed by defensive tackle Khyiris Tonga and backup tight end Austin Hooper. Unlike external free agents, the front office is free to speak with these players and their reps at any time. Hawkins, Chaisson and Tonga have expressed interest in returning but, as always, it will come down to the right terms.
If the Patriots were to lose Chaisson, they would have several replacement options in free agency, while there are fewer available safeties who could fill Hawkins’ shoes. That supply could affect the team’s willingness to retain Chaisson who, at 26 years old, should have a wide market. Meanwhile, Hawkins might be able to leverage the Patriots into a more favorable deal, and Tonga and Hooper could be in take-it-or-leave-it-type situations.
4. Explore the trade market
Maxx Crosby is reportedly trying to push his way out of Las Vegas.
The Jaguars are supposedly shopping young receiver Brian Thomas Jr., and the Colts might try to offload Michael Pittman so that they can free up money to keep Pierce.
And what about A.J. Brown, the longest-rumored trade target in Patriots discourse?
Whether the Pats ultimately swing a blockbuster deal or something smaller, odds are they will know where they stand as a suitor by week’s end. All it will take for them is to set a few meetings with teams, pull up at a restaurant or bar and start talking.
5. Gather medical information
More than 40-yard dash times and bench press reps, the most important numbers to come out of the combine every year all pertain to medical evaluations.
Most prospects will undergo a physical, which often prove vital because sometimes they unearth previously unreported injuries. Even if they don’t, teams often move players up and down their boards based on injury risk alone. And injury risk may be the most under-valued factor in player evaluation.
Fans only need to consider two examples from Patriots history to know the difference between a wise risk and a careless one.
See: Rob Gronkowski and 2014 first-round pick Dominique Easley.
6. Set expectations
Wolf will meet with reporters Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET.
Vrabel is scheduled to speak to the media Wednesday at 1 p.m.
This is the time for both front-facing leaders of the organization to communicate with fans about how they view the current roster, this year’s free-agent crop and the 2026 draft class. Even if they aren’t spilling secrets (which they won’t), it’s important to know how closely Vrabel and Wolf believe the Patriots are to returning to the Super Bowl. Because internal decisions — like if the team plans to retain Stefon Diggs and how they intend to address the offensive line — will set the table for moves in free agency, the trade market and draft that could push them toward the promised land.
Whatever happens next, Wolf and Vrabel should leave behind a few breadcrumbs this week.
