New England Patriots Team Preview for the 26/27 Fantasy Football Season

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  • By Jon Mosales

    Last Updated on May 27, 2026 1:26 pm by Jon Mosales | Published: May 27, 2026

     

     

    The Patriots are the new blueprint for overnight success.  They went 14-3 and scored nearly 200 points more than the team from the previous season and started a new “dynasty”.  The recipe was clear, but no one thought they could actually make the Super Bowl.  Nonetheless, many teams will model their rebuild after this Pats team.  Draft a QB high, bring in a veteran coach and rebuild the o-line through the draft and you could also make the Super Bowl.  That’s the Coles notes version, but it’s impossible to ignore the overnight transition the Pats undertook from one season to the next.  Maye gets the headlines and deservedly so, but the real x-factor was one of the most soft schedules in the history of the NFL.  As great as last season was with so many variables lining up perfectly, the opposite might be in store for the AFC Champions.  The offense a season ago was essentially flawless, they finished 2nd with 28.8 PPG and were 10th or better in FPPG at every skill position. The offense had balance with a 47/53 run/pass split and Maye made the leap that franchises pray for with every second-year QB.  Last season is in the past and you can’t ride the wave into next season and historically the team that loses the Super Bowl struggles mightily the next season, with very few exceptions.  The Pats didn’t rock the boat in the offseason, signing Romeo Doubs to join an up and coming WR room.  Stefon Diggs likely won’t return, but that’s fine as Doubs, Kayshon Boutte and hopefully Kyle Williams will form a WR trio similar to what the Packers had last season (deep without an hierarchy).  Maye proved he’s not only the real deal and an elite dual-threat QB, but one of the best deep-ball passers in the game while leading the league in completion percentage (72%).  Being that efficient while also finishing season with league-best deep-ball EPA production (+62.6 EPA on deep attempts) is unprecedented for a sophomore QB and that’s why the future is so bright, regardless of who Maye is throwing to.  Honestly and unfortunately, I see more of a third-year slump, similar to what happened to Jared Goff and Trevor Lawrence.  Everything went right last season and with a much harder schedule and already questions about Maye’s health, I can’t imagine ever paying to draft Maye at his current ADP (QB3).  While Maye’s stats are nearly impossible to be replicated, it’s not like he will fall off a cliff.  He’s clearly among the best young QBs in the league and his ability to do whatever (4th in rushing yards for a QB) is needed makes him impossible to predict.  I was screaming from the roof tops last summer that Maye had top-10 QB value and his ADP was insane and even then I underestimated how great he would be, with a QB2 finish.  Every season is it’s own animal though and I can’t under any circumstances advocate drafting Maye now with a possibly over-inflated ADP.

    Player most likely to beat ADP: TreVeyon Henderson (ADp 57, RB21)

    One of my favorite fantasy pastimes is seeing where I think a player’s ADP is and then scrolling up or down to see where they are actually at.  With Henderson, I was shocked at how far I had to scroll down until I saw his name.  Now, Henderson’s rookie season wasn’t all rainbows as he was one of the most frustrating players over the first half of the season.  Look for his usage to sky-rocket and while I’m not super high on the Pats as a whole, Henderson will find his way onto many of my fantasy teams.

    Player most likely to fade based on ADP: Drake Maye  (ADP 33, QB3)

    It’s all about expectations and if Maye slips even a little and finishes as the QB5, it’s not worth drafting him in the third round.  There is a path for him to finish as the QB1, but I don’t see it.  I’m not saying he peaked as a sophomore, but it’s very hard to build on a season that was as successful as his past campaign.  With the QBs this season, it’s Josh Allen or punt.

    Late-round Flier that could blow up: Kyle WIlliams (ADP ?, WR93)

    Doubs and Boutte will start as the top-WRs, but they are only ahead on paper.  Williams was still getting healthy last season and has a decent path towards emerging as the WR1 on one of the best downfield passing teams in the league.  The chances that he hits are slim, but it’s worth it with the last pick of your draft..

    Writer’s Season Win Prediction: 10-7

    The Pats’ offense is a great example of the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.  This offense is not stacked with talent, but it succeeded nonetheless.  Maye is the engine and catalyst, but he wasn’t a one-man band.  A top-15 o-line should improve again, and the two-headed RB combo of Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyeon Henderson kept defenses off-balance while finishing top-six in rushes, yards and rushing TDs.  Neither RB separated himself, but together they were a force.  Each finished in the top-25, but NE ranked 7th in FPPG at RB.  The changing of the guard is about as inevitable as any backfield in recent memory.  Henderson averaged 5.6 FPPG threw the first seven weeks and 14.9 over the rest of the season.  The only problem was both Stevenson and Henderson were boom or bust and not as weekly reliable as say Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery in past seasons.  Stevenson is going around 40 picks later than Henderson and for good measure.  A smart GM might just scoop up the value and hope the timeshare remains in place, a future that is very possible, but I like chasing ceilings and if Henderson is handed the keys and gets 10+ carries each game like he did in eight of the last nine, the roof might get blown out.  Everyone is going to be on Henderson over Stevenson and while I hate being predictable, I love a player who is a threat to score every time they touch the ball.


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    May 27, 2026, 1:26 pm