Patriots’ Will Campbell is Showcasing Growth, but Greater Challenges Lie Ahead

One of the most encouraging performances from the New England Patriots’ season-opening loss to the Seattle Seahawks came along the offensive line, as second-year left tackle Will Campbell began to show the signs of growth that had been projected throughout training camp.

Campbell’s night may have been quiet in pass protection, but that’s exactly what the hope would be at his position — and something that became a rare commodity in New England’s 2025 postseason run as the rookie struggled through a torn MCL injury en route to Super Bowl LX.

Here’s a closer look at how Campbell improved, and how that development may be tested once again this Sunday:

To put in perspective Campbell’s first outing of 2026, it’s first important to gain an understanding how his NFL journey started.

A polarizing figure since being drafted by the Patriots with the number four overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, many doubted Campbell’s ability to be an effective tackle at the professional ranks due to his 77 ⅜” wingspan — which places him in the seventh percentile among offensive tackles. Critics argued that Campbell would be better served transitioning to guard with his outstanding athletic profile; in the pre-draft process, he registered a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 9.91 out of a possible 10.00, which ranked 15th of 1,507 tackle prospects from 1987-2025.

When Campbell took the field, his professional career began by lining up against the likes of Maxx Crosby, T.J. Watt, and Myles Garrett. He allowed a pressure rate of just 5.4% (ranked second among all rookie tackles) before tearing his MCL in Week 12. The rookie returned for New England’s Week 18 matchup against the Miami Dolphins and concluded the regular season as the 23rd highest-graded offensive tackle with a 76.5 pass blocking grade (of 83 qualifying tackles, per PFF).

Campbell battled his way through injury to be a part of the Patriots’ playoff run, but the results weren’t nearly the same. Campbell allowed 19 pressures and four sacks, while the offensive line surrendered an NFL postseason-record 21 sacks when all was said and done. On the game’s biggest stage, Campbell was credited with eight pressures allowed and a sack while allowing a pressure rate of 14.0%.

After a summer focused on rehab and development, Campbell began 2026 aligned across from the same Seahawks’ pass rushers that forced numerous blunders in February.

Now healthy and more experienced, his offseason work looked to pay dividends. On 44 pass blocking snaps (fourth most in the league in Week 1), Campbell allowed just two pressures and showcased a vastly improved base to anchor in his pass blocking sets and sustain blocks. He was credited with allowing one sack on the game’s final drive, but that came from an interior defensive line stunt by Derrick Hall that guard Alijah Vera-Tucker failed to pass-off. Hall looped into the A-gap and reached Drake Maye unabated on the play, but Campbell took the hit in the stat sheet.

Even with his one misdemeanor, Campbell finished the game with a 4.5% pressure rate, and 96.4 pass-blocking efficiency rating, per PFF. His 84.4 pass-blocking grade ranked fifth of 86 qualifying offensive tackles around the NFL in Week 1, and his 97.6% pass-block win-rate ranked third in the league. In isolated one-on-one blocking situations (without help from a guard, or chipping tight end or running back), Campbell won every single rep with a pass-block win-rate of 100% — tied for first in the NFL.

For a tackle who saw one of the heaviest pass-protection workloads at the position to open the season, Campbell's numbers are reflective of someone who handled significant volume well, with the one (questionably credited) sack being the lone blemish on an otherwise clean sheet.

Campbell’s Week 1 performance showed promise of an improving player with the traits to be one of the better left tackles in the NFL, but Seattle’s pass rush plan is built around scheme and causing confusion, rather than elite individual talent. 

That’s what Campbell will be up against when the Pittsburgh Steelers come to town in Week 2, and it’s a matchup that didn’t go his way last season.

Pittsburgh’s pass-rush is headlined by T.J. Watt, whose 117.0 sacks since entering the NFL in 2017 ranks second among all edge rushers in that time frame (Myles Garrett, 125.5). He’s had at least 0.5 sacks in eight of his last 15 games, including a season-best 2.0 sacks against New England in the team’s 2025 Week 3 contest.

Through the highs and lows of Campbell’s 2025 season, the Patriots’ 21-14 loss to the Steelers graded out as one of his most challenging performances. He registered a season-low pass-blocking grade of 48.1 and allowed four pressures, two quarterback hits, and a pressure-rate of 8.0%. His 78.7% pass-block win-rate and 75.0% island win rate ranked as his second-lowest marks of the regular season (Week 10 at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers).

While Watt may generate the headlines, Campbell will be seeing a much more significant snap share against his running mate, Alex Highsmith, who aligns primarily over the left tackle as the right defensive edge rusher in pass blocking situations. Highsmith has also been a productive player for Pittsburgh since entering the league in 2020, accruing 47.0 sacks in that span. He was inactive due to injury in Week 3 last season.

Both pass rushers are coming off of an excellent Week 1 outing against the Atlanta Falcons. On just 26 dropbacks, each recorded 2.0 sacks, and Watt capped things off with a 35-yard interception return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter that helped seal the Steelers’ 20-13 victory.

Without Highsmith in the lineup the last time New England squared-off with Pittsburgh, it was rotational pass-rusher Nick Herbig that got the better of Campbell on several occasions. The former Wisconsin Badger had a career-year in 2025 with 7.5 sacks and led all Steelers’ pass rushers in Week 1 with a 25.0% pass-rush win-rate on nine pass rushing snaps. He generated two pressures and registered one quarterback hit in the game.

Campbell’s continued development as a pass protector was a sticking point of the offseason after a rough playoff stretch that was fueled by injury. The early returns on his 2026 improvement are promising, but that will be tested again this Sunday by a rotation of high-level pass rushers that gave him and the Patriots’ offensive line fits the last time the two teams met.

How do you think Will Campbell performed in Week 1? Will he continue to impress against the Steelers on Sunday? Drop your thoughts in the comments below and join the conversation on Patriots Roundtable.

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