The New England Patriots have filled a preliminary 90-man roster to begin offseason activities ahead of the 2026 season.

With roster movement plentiful through free agency, the NFL Draft, and the signings of undrafted rookie free agents, New England has spent the spring building out depth and long-term sustainability around a young foundation that led them to a Super Bowl LX appearance just a few short months ago.

More reinforcements are expected to be on the way for the Patriots as the calendar turns to June, with a blockbuster trade for Philadelphia Eagles’ star wide receiver A.J. Brown looming.

Now that we have a baseline for what New England’s 90-man roster will look like as training camp quickly approaches, let’s take things one step further. How might the Patriots look to trim the fat off the roster when cut-down day arrives? Today, we’ll be projecting an initial 53-man roster for New England to begin the 2026 regular season.

Here’s our way-too-early 53-man roster projection for the 2026 New England Patriots:

IN: Tommy DeVito, Drake Maye, Behren Morton (Rookie)

OUT: NONE

New England kept three quarterbacks rostered in 2025, and that looks to be the case again in 2026. A regular practice for most NFL teams now that the emergency third quarterback role has expanded, seventh-round pick Behren Morton joins the room as the most obvious candidate. Tommy DeVito will assume backup duties behind Drake Maye, who looks to build upon his outstanding 2025 campaign with a repeat performance.

IN: TreVeyon Henderson, Jam Miller (Rookie), Rhamondre Stevenson

OUT: Terrell Jennings, Lan Larison, Myles Montgomery (Rookie)

Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson return as the lead dogs in the Patriots’ running back rotation, but the RB3 spot is up for grabs. Of the four players vying for the role, Jam Miller is the only rusher that New England spent draft capital to acquire. For now, that gives him the nod — but it will be a wide-open competition this summer and early fall.

IN: Reggie Gilliam

OUT: Brock Lampe, Jack Westover

The Patriots invested heavily in the fullback position this offseason to bring in Reggie Gilliam from the Buffalo Bills. While Jack Westover did a commendable job transitioning from tight end last season and Brock Lampe had supporters as an undrafted rookie free agent last offseason, Gilliam represents the true revival of the fullback in Foxboro. He’ll be the man to beat in that room this fall.

IN: A.J. Brown, Efton Chism III, Romeo Doubs, DeMario Douglas, Mack Hollins, Kyle Williams

OUT: Kayshon Boutte, Nick DeGennaro (Rookie), Kyle Dixon (Rookie), Cameron Dorner (Rookie), Jimmy Kibble (Rookie), Jeremiah Webb

Wide receiver may be the position group with the greatest remaining question marks through this point in May. It is expected that New England will add A.J. Brown to lead the room at the beginning of June, calling into question the futures of Kayshon Boutte and DeMario Douglas on expiring contracts. As a boundary receiver, it’s more likely that Boutte would be on the outside looking in following the likely acquisition of Brown — either in the same deal, or a separate trade for the Patriots to re-coup some of the assets lost in the Brown deal. Romeo Doubs is the other new face in the group, who promises to provide value as an inside and outside receiver. New England will be looking to see year-two strides from Kyle Williams, with Mack Hollins acting as a big-bodied security blanket for Maye and the offense in a variety of scenarios. In any case, there will be a host of players fighting for the final one or two open spots in this room — one that looks much stronger with Brown leading the way.

IN: Hunter Henry, Julian Hill, Eli Raridon (Rookie)

OUT: Tanner Arkin (Rookie), C.J. Dippre

After starting the offseason with question marks at tight end, this may now be one of the more straight forward position groups to project. Hunter Henry is set to resume his role as the leader of the room, with Julian Hill brought in as a blocking specialist and Eli Raridon entering as a high-upside developmental prospect. Tanner Arkin is an intriguing UDFA as an additional body on the line of scrimmage, but will have to show flashes of spectacular play to warrant the Patriots keeping four tight ends on the initial 53-man roster. Both Arkin and Dippre could be practice squad candidates, but that may be their ceiling this offseason.

IN: Will Campbell, Morgan Moses, Caleb Lomu (Rookie), Dametrious Crownover (Rookie)

OUT: Marcus Bryant, James Hudson, Sebastian Gutierrez, Lorenz Metz (Rookie)

New England enters the summer of 2026 with much greater depth at the tackle position than any other year in recent memory. Rather than scraping the bottom of the barrel for an insurance tackle late in training camp, they’ll now have to find the right combination of offensive tackles to keep once cut-down day comes around. Will Campbell and Morgan Moses will likely return to their starting roles, with Caleb Lomu locked in as a developmental tackle-of-the-future. But will they use Lomu as a swing tackle while they train him to operate solely on the right side of the line? Dametrious Crownover could be a worthwhile substitute in the short term, with swing tackle and tackle-eligible flexibility as a formerly converted tight end. The rookies get the nod as the Patriots keep four tackles rostered to begin their 2026 campaign.

IN: Ben Brown, JonDarius Morgan (Rookie), Mike Onwenu, Alijah Vera-Tucker, Jared Wilson

OUT: Mekhi Butler, Jacob Rizy (Rookie), Andrew Rupcich, Caeden Wallace

While New England enjoys newfound depth on the exterior of the offensive line, their interior presents more question marks. Mike Onwenu is set to return at right guard for at least one more season, while Jared Wilson slides down to center and Alijah Vera-Tucker enters the room as a high-upside guard with a lengthy injury history. Behind their starting trio, Ben Brown serves as the lone dependable substitute currently on the roster. Caeden Wallace was a healthy inactive for the vast majority of 2025 after moving inside from tackle, while the Patriots brought in two undrafted rookie free agents to compete for a spot. Jacob Rizy fits the athletic profile New England looks for (9.88 Relative Athletic Score), but JonDarius Morgan had proven production (zero sacks allowed in 2025) against better competition at the collegiate level. A second substitute is needed along the interior offensive line… and at least for now, Morgan gets the nod.

IN: Quintayvious Hutchins (Rookie), Gabe Jacas (Rookie), Dre’Mont Jones, Harold Landry III, Elijah Ponder

OUT: Xavier Holmes (Rookie), Jesse Luketa, Bradyn Swinson

After disappointing results from the four-man pass rush in 2025, the Patriots enter 2026 with an edge rusher room that looks very different. Dre’Mont Jones was added in free agency and provides versatility to play on the edge or the interior, while second-round pick Gabe Jacas brings a violent play demeanor that wasn’t present in the group last season. Harold Landry and Elijah Ponder will likely return to their roles — but will New England keep an additional edge rusher rostered as insurance for Landry, who is still rehabbing a knee injury? The Patriots spoke pre-draft on their need for speed at the edge, and got some in the seventh-round of the draft with Boston College’s Quintayvious Hutchins. His smaller frame and special teams ability make him a different profile from the other rushers competing for a final roster spot, and may be enough to give him an edge. Bradyn Swinson would be the other name to watch, as he had many supporters last year — and turned down offers from other teams to remain on the practice squad in Foxboro. We’ll see who wins out for a place on the 53.

IN: Christian Barmore, Cory Durden, Joshua Farmer, Eric Gregory, Milton Williams

OUT: David Blay Jr. (Rookie), Jeremiah Pharms Jr., Leonard Taylor III

Interior defensive line is one of New England’s greatest strengths, with Milton Williams and Christian Barmore both resuming their roles as effective pocket-disruptors. Joshua Farmer showed flashes as a rookie before landing on injured reserve, and injuries in the room eventually opened the door for Cory Durden to make a name for himself through postseason play. The Patriots are still searching for an answer at nose tackle, and undrafted rookie free agent David Blay Jr. fit that mold during his time with the Miami Hurricanes. It’s possible that the New England connections with Miami allowed them to find great value on a player to fill the role following the NFL Draft. If he can show the same play strength he did with the Hurricanes, Blay may have an inside track to make the roster — but at just 292 lbs., his conversion to the pros may be a difficult one. Currently in-house, Eric Gregory could fill the role with better size (6'4", 320 lbs.) and some previous experience in the defensive scheme in Foxboro.

IN: K.J. Britt, Christian Elliss, Chad Muma, Namdi Obiazor (Rookie), Robert Spillane

OUT: Amari Gainer, Khalil Jacobs (Rookie), Otis Reese IV

The Patriots’ starting linebacker duo will remain steady from 2025, with Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss returning to roam the second-level of the defense. Behind them, the room will look different — with K.J. Britt added in free agency and Namdi Obiazor drafted in the sixth round of the 2026 NFL Draft. Both are near locks to make the roster considering how thin-bodied New England is at the position group currently, but the fifth off-ball linebacker spot may be a more open competition. Right now, incumbent Chad Muma gets the nod — but UDFA Khalil Jacobs is an interesting name to monitor, as the Patriots met with him on a Top 30 Visit during the pre-draft process before signing him to a contract in the days following the draft. We’ll see if their continued interest in the player eventually leads to him unseating a veteran on the 53-man roster.

IN: Carlton Davis III, Christian Gonzalez, Marcus Jones, Karon Prunty (Rookie), Kindle Vildor

OUT: Channing Canada (Rookie), Brandon Crossley, Marcellas Dial Jr., Kenneth Harris (Rookie), Kobee Minor, Charles Woods

While Christian Gonzalez, Carlton Davis III, and Marcus Jones are locked-in to resume their roles as a top-tier trio on the outside, the available roster spots beneath them are wide open for competition. Kindle Vildor was added in free agency and Karon Prunty was drafted in the fifth-round, so they’ll be the names to beat throughout the summer and into fall, but there are numerous corners lower on the depth chart that could make a realistic push for a place on the roster. Marcellas Dial Jr. showed out in training camp and through the preseason last year before landing on injured reserve, Charles Woods played snaps in meaningful games for the team down the stretch of the season, and many are high on UDFA Channing Canada as a former TCU corner with 38 games of starting experience in the Big 12. We’ll monitor who has the edge as we inch closer to cut-down day.

IN: Mike Brown, Kevin Byard III, Dell Pettus, Brenden Schooler, Craig Woodson

OUT: Peter Manuma (Rookie), John Saunders Jr.

Craig Woodson broke out as a rookie in 2025, playing nearly every snap for New England’s defense. He’s now paired with First-Team All-Pro Kevin Byard III to lead the third level of the defense, with Dell Pettus on deck for an increased role in 2026. Mike Brown joins the group after a brief crossover with Mike Vrabel in Tennessee, and Brenden Schooler will likely return as a plus-special teams contributor. This group may not be super deep entering the season, but possesses great top-end talent.

IN: Julian Ashby, Andy Borregales, Bryce Baringer

OUT: Niko Lalos

As of now, the specialists look to remain status-quo entering 2026. Andy Borregales shook off a shaky start to his rookie season with a dependable finish to the year, and Julian Ashby returns with surprising competition in Niko Lalos. Ashby still remains the man to beat as there were no glaring issues with special teams snaps last year, but punter may still be a position to monitor. Bryce Baringer remains alone in the room to start the summer, but enters the final year of his contract after some highs-and-lows in 2025. Former Indiana punter Mitch McCarthy participated at rookie minicamp, but is unsigned at this point. We’ll see how that position group develops as training camp nears.

New England bolstered depth at several positions of need this offseason. With more help expected to be on the way, a mix of veteran leadership and developmental talent will set the Patriots up for success in 2026, but may pay dividends in 2027 and beyond when those younger players realize their potential.

New England is positioned for another playoff push this fall, and the decisions made to finalize a 53-man roster may be more difficult than they have been in recent years. That’s a good problem to have — and a testament to the offseason work that’s built the team over the course of the past several years.

Who is your dark horse candidate to make the Patriots initial 53-man roster? Who do you think gets let go before the season begins? Let us know in the comments section below.

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- Next Steps in Building the 2026 New England Patriots

- An Early Overview of the 2026 New England Patriots 90-Man Roster

- 2026 NFL Draft Grades: New England Patriots Report Card and Analysis

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