Callahan: What I got wrong about the 2025 Patriots

FOXBORO Call it like you see it That s the job Consistently has been invariably will be If the Patriots win big you toss a limited bouquets When they get out-coached or outfought you swing your hammer And when greater part days fall somewhere in between you sit with the film or make particular calls for a serious analysis or overview on what s happening and what comes next And sometimes you toss out a prediction or two But since when did accountability become a one-way street Introducing my second annual accountability column where I retrace where I was largest part wrong about the Patriots this season Dating back to the start of the draft here are my biggest whiffs on the Pats Endorsing a Kayshon Boutte exchange On the eve of the NFL Draft ESPN shared the Patriots had deemed Kayshon Boutte expendable a soft way of saying they were more than happy to commerce him pending what they could fetch in return Less than a day later I endorsed a foreseen Boutte commerce citing a crowded depth chart after Stefon Diggs arrival Boutte s lack of an elite skill and zero impact on special teams What a dope Through nine games Boutte leads the Patriots in receiving touchdowns with catches for yards and five scores He ranks second in the NFL in yards per catch He s established himself as one of the league s best deep-ball trackers and a menace at the catch point Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte hauls in a touchdown pass during the third quarter of a success over Cleveland at Gillette Stadium Nancy Lane Boston Herald At Boutte boasts the third-highest catch rate on contested catches among receivers with at least five contested targets per Pro Football Focus Boutte as I ve written and reported and tweeted already has matured more than any young Patriots sportsman I ve covered in eight years He is a legitimate starting-caliber receiver not a leftover draft pick filling a starting job on a terrible group Boutte s rapid expansion also surprised high-ranking members of the organization But just because I have company doesn t make me any less wrong Good for Boutte Will Campbell s tiny wingspan is too big a menace Maybe Campbell s outlier arm length and wingspan will come back to bite him later in his career but I will take the L on this already Grading on a rookie curve Campbell has thrived On a normal curve he s done much more than survive as the Patriots starting left tackle Through nine games the -year-old has graded out as an above-average pass-protector and run-blocker among offensive tackles per Pro Football Focus Campbell s run-blocking has improved sharply since the start of the season and he s allowed pressure on of his pass-blocking snaps per the Herald s charting Yes he recorded the shortest wingspan among offensive tackles at the NFL combine since but it hasn t mattered The Patriots bet on Campbell was perpetually clear even when I felt they should have drafted Missouri s Armand Membou instead They assumed Campbell s other traits his quickness power flexibility and play demeanor are not just elite but good enough to compensate for his wingspan in the way short quarterbacks Drew Brees and Russell Wilson to name two offset height concerns with plus accuracy decision-making and a quick trigger Patriots offensive tackle Will Campbell warms up prior to the start of an NFL battle against the Carolina Panthers on Sunday Sept in Foxboro AP Photo Greg M Cooper Campbell does not need to become a Brees-level left tackle to justify his selection He must develop from a starting-caliber rookie to a Pro Bowl-caliber veteran Nine games in so far so good And go ahead if you must with more cracks about his T-Rex arms I did But don t forget the T-Rex still ruled the animal kingdom TreVeyon Henderson will be their best rookie Whoops Henderson may have been the MVP of the Patriots summer with his dazzling play speed soft hands and preseason highlights but since the games started counting he s been closer to a zero Henderson has been middle-of-the-pack among all Patriots rookies In majority games he s been an impatient runner and left yards on the field ranking sixth-worst by rush yards over expected per Next Gen Stats Henderson has also struggled in pass protection a stark change from his college tape and reputation The good news is he s coming around with rushing yards over the past two weeks almost half of his season total But it s a long long way to catch Campbell and kicker Andy Borregales for best performers in this rookie class and even with his great speed Henderson won t get there Circling the Bengals meeting Best event of the season Ha Right away after the Patriots schedule was distributed in May I broke down the best and worst of this year s slate and the Bengals meeting on Nov was my best pick Granted Joe Burrow s turf toe injury threw this prediction into the trash bin but overlooking how bad the Bengals defense is proved to be a huge mistake unto itself Related Articles Mike Vrabel explains why Patriots didn t add talent before NFL contract deadline Patriots-Buccaneers injury overview Rhamondre Stevenson Kayshon Boutte sit Wednesday Mike Vrabel commends Patriots players for continuing to work on off day Patriots wide receiver depth could be tested in tough matchup vs Buccaneers Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel evaluates newest wide receiver Cincinnati stinks They re - Their defense ranks dead last by Expected Points Added EPA and the opponent-and-situation-adjusted metric DVOA Anyone and everyone can throw and run on the Bengals Here were my other options for best event at Buffalo versus Buffalo at Baltimore and this Sunday s battle down in Tampa Bay After hitting on Drake Maye s matchup with Burrow I signed off the Cincinnati pick writing this With any luck playoff implications will be on the line between two teams expected to be in the Wild Card hunt If the Patriots win in Cincy expect the league to take notice Which brings us to one last swing and a miss The Patriots finish - Let s get ahead of this one too Barring an injury to Maye or a similarly catastrophic event the Pats will win double-digit games They ve got two games with the Jets on tap plus visits from the Dolphins and Giants and a trip to Cincinnati Already they are among the best teams in the league Cheers to them and see you at this same time next year