New England Patriots 2024 Season Preview: Projected Depth Chart, Predictions for Jerod Mayo, Drake Maye, and Co.

The future of the New England Patriots is neither bright nor bleak. It’s somewhere in the middle, simultaneously giving fans hope for a return to relevance and signals of a prolonged rebuild.

The Patriots likely will struggle in 2024. We have no idea whether Jerod Mayo will be a competent Bill Belichick replacement, and the low ceiling of Jacoby Brissett — a true bridge quarterback — is clearly defined. As for Drake Maye, even the most optimistic projections for the No. 3 overall pick place him at the beginning of a long and winding learning curve.

Nevertheless, the Patriots are in an interesting, if precarious, spot. You can squint and see a team that could exceed expectations, but you also can open your eyes and see a franchise tethered to a torpedo destined for another top-five draft pick.

How do the Patriots look with Week 1 approaching? What’s their path toward a successful campaign?

We cover it all in our Patriots 2024 season preview.

When Will Drake Maye Take Over as Patriots’ Starting Quarterback?

That’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it?

If you asked in early August, we would’ve leaned toward Maye redshirting most, if not all, of his rookie season. He looked that raw in most training camp practices, and Brissett looked that much more capable of running a functional offense.

But everything changed on Aug. 15, when Maye shed his training wheels in an impressive preseason performance against the Philadelphia Eagles. His breakout coincided with more struggles from Brissett, and Maye continued outplaying his veteran counterpart in ensuing practices.

Mayo left the door open for Maye to be named the Week 1 starter, but in the end, the first-year head coach went with Brissett — which was the right choice. Brissett will start the season opener and it would be surprising to see him lose his job at any point anytime soon.

However, Maye’s improvement can’t be ignored, and his timeline might’ve changed. We previously would’ve bet on Maye debuting sometime after the team’s Week 14 bye. Now, you can’t rule out Maye debuting sometime in October.

In the meantime, the Patriots can only hope Brissett will keep the team afloat.

Patriots Roster

Quarterback (3)

Starter: Jacoby Brissett

Backups: Drake Maye, Joe Milton III

Running Back (3)

Starter: Rhamondre Stevenson

Backups: Antonio Gibson, JaMycal Hasty

Wide Receiver (6)

Starters: DeMario Douglas, K.J. Osborn, Ja’Lynn Polk

Backups: Tyquan Thornton, Kayshon Boutte, Javon Baker

PUP: Kendrick Bourne

IR: JaQuae Jackson

Tight End (3)

Starter: Hunter Henry

Backups: Austin Hooper, Jaheim Bell

Offensive Line (10)

Starters: Vederian Lowe, Sidy Sow, David Andrews, Layden Robinson, Mike Onwenu

Backups: Nick Leverett, Caedan Wallace, Chukwuma Okorafor, Demontray Jacobs, Zach Thomas

PUP: Cole Strange

IR: Jake Andrews, Tyrone Wheatley Jr.

Defensive Tackle (5)

Starters: Deatrich Wise Jr., Davon Godchaux, Daniel Ekuale

Backups: Jeremiah Pharms Jr., Eric Johnson II

IR: Christian Barmore

EDGE (4)

Starters: Keion White, Anfernee Jennings

Backups: Joshua Uche, Oshane Ximines

Linebacker (5)

Starters: Ja’Whaun Bentley, Jahlani Tavai

Backups: Christian Elliss, Raekwon McMillan, Curtis Jacobs

Cornerback (6)

Starters: Christian Gonzalez, Jonathan Jones, Marco Wilson

Backups: Alex Austin, Marcus Jones, Marcellas Dial Jr.

Out: Shaun Wade, Azizi Hearn, Mikey Victor

Safety (5)

Starters: Jabrill Peppers, Kyle Dugger

Backups: Jaylinn Hawkins, Dell Pettus, Brenden Schooler

IR: Marte Mapu

Special Teams (3)

Kicker: Joey Slye

Punter: Bryce Baringer

Long Snapper: Joe Cardona

Patriots’ Roster Changes

New England’s front office, led by de facto general manager Eliot Wolf, entered the offseason with a clear objective: reward in-house players with new contracts and fill out the roster with rookies and lower-tier free agents. And the group accomplished its goal, for better or worse.

The Patriots re-signed or extended the following players:

• S Jabrill Peppers
• DT Christian Barmore
• C David Andrews
• RB Rhamondre Stevenson
• S Kyle Dugger
• OT Mike Onwenu
• TE Hunter Henry
• WR Kendrick Bourne
• LB Jahlani Tavai
• LB Josh Uche
• LB Anfernee Jennings
• DT Davon Godchaux

Notably absent is edge rusher Matthew Judon, who was traded to the Atlanta Falcons in mid-August. Judon is the biggest roster subtraction, depending on how you feel about Mac Jones.

As for additions, the Patriots signed Brissett as their bridge quarterback and made Osborn, Hooper, and Gibson their top skill-position signings. New England also tried and failed to trade for superstar receiver Brandon Aiyuk.

Maye headlines the Patriots’ 2024 NFL Draft class, which includes two QBs, two offensive linemen, two receivers, and just one defensive player.

Players Added:

• S Jaylinn Hawkins
• WR K.J. Osborn
• TE Austin Hooper
• LB Sione Takitaki
• QB Jacoby Brissett
• RB Antonio Gibson
• DT Armon Watts
• C Nick Leverett
• OT Chukwuma Okorafor
• DT Mike Purcell
• LS Tucker Addington
• TE Mitchell Wilcox
• OT Kellen Diesch
• S A.J. Thomas
• DT Josiah Bronson
• WR Kawaan Baker
• G Michael Jordan
• DE William Bradley-King

Players Lost:

• EDGE Matthew Judon
• WR DeVante Parker
• WR JuJu Smith-Schuster
• S Cody Davis
• DB Myles Bryant
• OT Trent Brown
• QB Mac Jones
• DL Lawrence Guy
• S Adrian Phillips
• CB J.C. Jackson
• LB Chris Board
• LB Mack Wilson Sr.
• TE Mike Gesicki
• S Jalen Mills
• TE Pharaoh Brown
• OL Andrew Stueber
• QB Nathan Rourke
• TE Matt Sokol

2024 Draft Class

• 1st round, 3rd pick: QB Drake Maye
• 2nd round, 37th pick: WR Ja’Lynn Polk
• 3rd round, 68th pick: OT Caedan Wallace
• 4th round, 103rd pick: G Layden Robinson
• 4th round, 110th pick: WR Javon Baker
• 6th round, 180th pick: CB Marcellas Dial
• 6th round, 193rd pick: QB Joe Milton III
• 7th round, 231st pick: TE Jaheim Bell

Patriots’ Coaching Staff

The Patriots underwent a significant coaching overhaul during the offseason. Belichick and his son, Steve Belichick, both left, as did offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien, tight ends coach Will Lawing, and offensive line coach Adrian Klemm, among others.

In response, the Patriots assembled their largest coaching staff since the pre-Belichick years, and many of the new assistants — Alex Van Pelt, Ben McAdoo, and Jerry Montgomery, to name a few — have connections to the Green Bay Packers. So, too, do Wolf and senior front office assistant Alonzo Highsmith.

MORE: Simulate the NFL Season With PFN’s Playoff Predictor

The Patriots hired Matthew Slater for a still-unclear position and retained Troy Brown, whose role also hasn’t been clarified.

In many respects, the Patriots ran a very Packers-esque offseason, right down to selecting two quarterbacks in the same draft. It wasn’t a surprise, considering Wolf’s background, but it was an interesting approach that will be scrutinized moving forward.

Here’s the full staff:

• Jerod Mayo, Head Coach
• Alex Van Pelt, Offensive Coordinator
• DeMarcus Covington, Defensive Coordinator
• Jeremy Springer, Special Teams Coordinator
• Ben McAdoo, Senior Offensive Assistant
• Bob Bicknell, Tight Ends Coach
• Taylor Embree, Running Backs Coach
• Tyler Hughes, Wide Receivers Coach
• Tiquan Underwood, Assistant Wide Receivers Coach
• Scott Peters, Offensive Line Coach
• Robert Kugler, Assistant Offensive Line Coach
• T.C. McCartney, Quarterbacks Coach
• Evan Rothstein, Assistant QBs Coach/Director of Game Management
• Michael McCarthy, Offensive Coaching Assistant
• Omar Young, Offensive Coaching Assistant
• Brian Belichick, Safeties Coach
• Jerry Montgomery, Defensive Line Coach
• Dont’a Hightower, Inside Linebackers Coach
• Drew Wilkins, Outside Linebackers Coach
• Mike Pellegrino, Cornerbacks Coach
• Jamel Lett, Defensive Coaching Assistant
• Vinny DePalma, Defensive Coaching Assistant
• Keith Jones Jr., Defensive Coaching Assistant
• Tom Quinn, Assistant Special Teams Coach
• Coby Tippett, Special Teams Coaching Assistant
• Troy Brown, undefined role
• Matthew Slater, undefined role

Patriots’ 2024 Season Schedule

The Patriots have the NFL’s toughest strength of schedule, per Pro Football Network’s rankings. However, when you put the schedule in a certain context, it can seem less daunting.

For example, the Patriots caught a break in landing the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 1 as opposed to later in the season. Check out how the Bengals have started in each year of Zach Taylor’s tenure:

2019: 0-4 (lost opener)
2020: 1-2-1 (lost opener)
2021: 3-1 (overtime win in opener)
2022: 2-2 (overtime loss in opener)
2023: 1-3 (lost opener)

You can make a similar argument about visiting the New York Jets in Week 3. Will Aaron Rodgers and Co. still be working out the kinks? Will Rodgers still be rusty after missing all of last season?

The Patriots also get the Jacksonville Jaguars on a neutral site and will host some of their tougher opponents, including the Houston Texans, Los Angeles Rams, and Indianapolis Colts. Many fans likely will pencil in losses for road games against the Chicago Bears and Tennessee Titans, but are we so sure either of those teams will be any good?

The point is that hot takes about schedules rarely age well, typically because people focus solely on the opponents and ignore other important factors such as timing, location, and logistics.

Week 1: at Cincinnati Bengals (9/8, 1 p.m. on CBS)
Week 2: vs. Seattle Seahawks (9/15, 1 p.m. on FOX)
Week 3: at New York Jets (Thu. 9/19, 8:15 on Prime Video)
Week 4: at San Francisco 49ers (9/29, 4:05 p.m. on FOX)
Week 5: vs. Miami Dolphins (10/6, 1 p.m. on FOX)
Week 6: vs. Houston Texans (10/13, 1 p.m. on CBS)
Week 7: at Jacksonville Jaguars in London (10/20, 9:30 a.m. on NFL Network)
Week 8: vs. New York Jets (10/27, 1 p.m. on CBS)
Week 9: at Tennessee Titans (11/3, 1 p.m. on FOX)
Week 10: at Chicago Bears (11/10, 1 p.m. on FOX)
Week 11: vs. Los Angeles Rams (11/17, 1 p.m. on FOX)
Week 12: at Miami Dolphins (11/24, 1 p.m. on CBS)
Week 13: vs. Indianapolis Colts (12/1, 1 p.m. on CBS)
Week 14: BYE
Week 15: at Arizona Cardinals (12/15, 4:25 p.m. on CBS)
Week 16: at Buffalo Bills (12/22, 1 p.m. on CBS)
Week 17: vs. Los Angeles Chargers (TBA)
Week 18: vs. Buffalo Bills (TBA)

2024 Season Prediction for the Patriots

Earlier this offseason, I went out on a limb and predicted the Patriots would finish 9-8. I admittedly leaned toward bold-prediction territory, but I nevertheless felt New England was at least a seven-win team. I still stand by that rationale, which you can read about — and likely scoff at — by clicking here.

On the eve of training camp, I shifted my prediction to 8-9. I came to my senses and realized nine wins was a bit too aggressive, but I still was confident the Patriots were underrated.

Both of those prediction pieces were published before Barmore was diagnosed with blood clots and Judon was traded to the Falcons. My optimism hinged on New England having a top-five defense; without Barmore and Judon, I’ve lowered my expectations for that group.

Furthermore, I thought the Patriots would have figured out their offensive line by now. And while I still believe the interior line could be excellent, I have major concerns about both tackle spots.

So, I’m not as high on the Patriots as I was two months ago. I still believe Brissett can give the offense a higher floor than what we saw the last two seasons, but there are too many big question marks around across the roster, never mind the uncertainty at head coach.

Record Prediction: 6-11 (4th in AFC East)