In the first game of the Mike Vrabel coaching era in Foxborough, the New England Patriots cruised to a 48-18 victory in their preseason opener against the Washington Commanders. In a dominant showing in front of their home fans, the Patriots put on a clinic in all three phases of the game, recieving contributions from the entire depth chart and leaving plenty of encouraging signs.
The first play of the game foreshadowed what was to come in New England’s preseason debut, as Treveyon Henderson took the opening kickoff to the house for a 100-yard touchdown. Henderson would be heavily featured with the starters in the first few drives of the game.
Washington struggled to get any offense going early, giving the Patriots the ball back. Josh McDaniels began the game with multiple power run calls for Rhamondre Stevenson with good results; however, the drive ended abruptly on a Drake Maye fumble as he tried to throw the ball away following a stunt that the left side of the offensive line failed to pick up.
Luckily for New England, the second drive of the game featured multiple positive runs for Stevenson and Henderson, as well as big yardage from Maye as he scrambled out of pressure multiple times, eventually finding the endzone. This would be the last of the starting offense for the Patriots as Josh Dobbs came into the game at quarterback.
While New England continued to dominate the game, Dobbs struggled to push the ball downfield, missing multiple throws, most notably leaving a ball behind Kyle Williams in the end zone. Despite this, the ball continued to move as the Patriots ran the ball very effectively, regardless of who was carrying it. Antonio Gibbs and Lan Larison led the second unit to multiple scoring drives, finishing runs with additional yardage and punishing defenders for attempting tackles. Despite no legitimate pass rush for a majority of the game, New England’s defense continued to limit chunk plays and consistently gave the ball back to the offense.
Ben Wooldridge came into the game as the Patriots’ third and final quarterback and was arguably the most impressive. Despite facing third-stringers, his poise and timing for someone who’s seen limited practice reps in training camp stood out positively. He connected with Efton Chism III and John Jiles on multiple occasions, making him the only Patriots quarterback to move the ball with his arm effectively. Wooldridge closed out the game well, concluding an all-out beatdown of the Commanders’ backups.
For one of the first times in the last two years, there are many positive takeaways from a Patriots win. Despite it only being preseason against Washington’s reserves, the way Vrabel’s team played was very reflective of his coaching style and character. The emphasis on being quick to the ball defensively, utilizing physically on offense, and finishing plays in all three phases stood out tremendously. They were able to effectively force mistakes and capitalize on poor football, one of the first things Vrabel stated the team needed to do in the offseason.
Following Vrabel’s cleaning house with the Patriots’ coaching staff when he was hired, it’s extremely telling that Special Teams Coach Jeremy Springer is the sole coordinator remaining from recently fired head coach Jerod Mayo’s staff. Springer’s enthusiasm is one of the first things that stands out about him, and you can see it by watching his unit play. The special teams unit is one of the few bright spots from New England’s 2024 team, and it was arguably the most impressive group from their preseason opener. With two big returns, timely blocks, and bone-crushing hits, it’s fair to assume that the third phase will be a strength for the Patriots entering the 2025 season.
While the offense wasn’t a seamless operation, it was one of the more effective rushing attacks in recent years for New England. A much leaner Stevenson and the explosive Henderson gave the Commanders defensive problems from the opening snap. When the backups came in there was no let up, mixing up their attack with different kinds of runs and different kinds of backs. They were also heavily featured in the pass-catching game, utilizing multiple creative screens and checkdowns as expected in McDaniels’ offense.
Despite facing backups, there were some encouraging signs from New England’s offensive line, specifically Will Campbell. While Campbell and Wilson failed to pick up a stunt resulting in a fumble from their quarterback, they played a fairly clean game through a couple of drives. Campbell’s vicious downhill blocking proved to be vital in the success of their rushing offense, landing multiple pancake blocks and punishing defensive backs. With the interior of the offensive line being a concern, the consistent play of Jared Wilson at either guard or center will be a major factor for the Patriots in 2025.
It’s always important to take certain aspects of preseason football with a grain of salt, but it’s important to acknowledge multiple positives from the Patriots’ win over the Commanders. The effort and physically New England showcased can certainly translate to the regular season, as well as the contributions from the younger players in all three phases.
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