What mistakes from 2024 will Eliot Wolf need to learn from for 2025?
With Eliot Wolf retaining final say over the New England Patriots’ roster, what changes does he need to make from last year’s offseason?
A lot has changed for the New England Patriots since the end of the 2025 season. However, on Wednesday we learned one thing that hasn’t.
Despite a near-fully overhauled coaching staff, with new head coach Mike Vrabel bringing Ryan Cowden to join him in the front office, returning executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf will retain ‘final say’ over the team’s roster – a role he was given last year.
“Yeah, it’s similar,” Wolf said during his availability at the NFL Combine on Wednesday when asked to compare his role this year and last year. This came a day after Vrabel was asked about having final say and told reporters “well, I wouldn’t be here, and I wouldn’t have wanted to be the head coach here if I wasn’t comfortable in my impact on the roster.”
Wolf addressed that comment from Vrabel, noting “Ultimately, it’s my final say. But again, Mike and I – Mike said it yesterday, Mike wouldn’t have taken this job – and this is something we talked about in the interview process – Mike wouldn’t have taken this job if we weren’t comfortable with each other. There’s not going to be ‘Mike’s guys’ or Eliot’s guys.’ They’re going to be ‘Patriot guys.’ We’re excited to share the vision to work together to improve the roster. ”
WATCH: Christopher Price joins Alex Barth to react to Eliot Wolf’s press conference
Whatever the exact details, Wolf will have significant control a year after the Patriots failed to make a significant addition in free agency or the draft beyond third overall pick quarterback Drake Maye. The lack of an impact from last year’s offseason was something Wolf owned up to in his opening statement and while answering questions on Wednesday.
“Last season, ultimately, the roster was on me. We were 4-13. Just didn’t get enough done. Certainly, the free agency class didn’t live up to our expectations. The draft class, it’s too soon to tell, but we were expecting a bigger impact from some of those guys,” he said. “Everything that we’re doing is to improve this football team and getting to where we need to go. The fans, understanding their frustrations, I share those frustrations.”
If Wolf is going to do better this time around with his second offseason of final say, he’ll need to learn from the mistakes and missteps he and the team made last year. That starts with free agency, where he acknowledged their approach came up short.
“We’re not going to be frivolous,” Wolf said. “We’re going to do what we think is best, and we’re going to do what’s necessary. So last year we didn’t do enough of what was necessary. This year, we have to do what’s necessary to improve the team.”
Again, this echoed something Vrabel said on Tuesday. “I think that everybody overspends sometimes in free agency,” he said when asked if the team would overextend for top players.
Wolf noted he believes the Patriots are a better free agent destination then they were at this time last year, mainly because of Maye (who he also said would be a significant part of the team’s pitch to free agents). Still they are going to need to outspend their competition to land some of the better players available.
However, spending wasn’t the only issue Wolf noted with free agency. “Some of the information that we got on some of the players wasn’t as thorough as it needed to be,” Wolf said. “So I think just moving forward, we have a tremendous opportunity with this coaching staff. A lot of these guys have been other places. They’re familiar with these guys, and just having that familiarity with players is going to be an advantage for us moving forward.”
A few players come to mind in that regard. The team tried to have tackle Chuks Okorafor change positions from right tackle to left, but after questioning the move as early as spring practices ended up leaving the team just two weeks into the season. Okorafor had said at the time he wasn’t told when he signed he might end up making that move.
Speaking of Okorafor, he was one of multiple offensive line additions that seemed to be a part of a ‘by committee’ approach that ultimately left the team with one of the worst units in the league ranking dead last with a 40.7% pressure rate allowed. Wolf took responsibility for that, noting “every hit on Jacoby [Brissett] or Drake during the season, I felt responsible for that. Just ultimately, we didn’t get enough done up front. The game is always won on the lines, offensive line, defensive line, not just because of the Super Bowl. It’s always been that way. Ultimately, just didn’t do enough to improve the roster to get it to where we need it to be.”
Getting Maye better protection needs to be a top priority for the Patriots. After investing in the middle of the market last year, they should put more emphasis on the offensive line positions – especially tackle – this offseason.
Another player is linebacker Sione Takitaki, who the team released earlier this month. Takitaki was limited throughout the offseason and into the start of the regular season due to a knee injury. The fact he was off the field at the beginning of spring practices suggests the injury occurred before he signed.
Finally, Wolf talked about the issues with player development in terms of the draft class. In particular, he singled out second-round pick wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk.
“I think organizationally, we maybe put too much on his plate early, and I think that really kind of stunted his growth a little bit,” Wolf admitted. “He’s aware of that, and we’ve talked about it, and he’s going to continue to work hard and rehab and do the things that are necessary to improve.”
As we often talk about during our draft coverage, drafting the right player is only half the battle. Teams need to properly develop the players they draft in order to max out their potentials. It’s something the Patriots have struggled with going back a few years, leading to their overall unimpactful drafts.
With a significant draft chest this year including four top-100 picks – plus last year’s rookies returning as key positions – the team needs to do more to bring those young players along. Polk should be both a learning lesson and a cautionary tale for the front office.
