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New England Patriots Preseason Schedule 2025 – What To Expect From Mike Vrabel and Co. Ahead of NFL 2025–26 Season?

The Patriots have finished last in the AFC East two years in a row!

Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images

The last couple of seasons have been nothing but a nightmare for the New England Patriots and their fan base. Consecutive seasons of finishing last in the AFC East, with a 4-13 record, have shown just how far off the Patriots are from the rest of the league.

However, every season in the NFL is different. Teams can turn around their franchise by putting together a couple of good offseasons, and the best way to build for the future is to nail the draft. So, with the preseason coming up in just about a month’s time, here is a look at what to expect from Mike Vrabel and his new team.

New England Patriots 2025 Preseason Schedule

The New England Patriots’ preseason schedule will begin in the second week of August. As is the case each year, they will play a total of three games, with one game each week.

New England will kick off the preseason hosting the Washington Commanders on August 08 at 7:30 PM ET. On August 16, the Patriots travel to Minnesota to take on the Vikings in an afternoon game starting at 1:00 PM ET. Their final preseason game will be in New York as they take on the Giants in a night game starting at 8:00 PM ET on August 21.

Date	Matchup	Time (ET)	Venue
August 08, 2025	Washington Commanders at New England Patriots	7:30 PM	MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
August 16, 2025	New England Patriots at Minnesota Vikings	1:00 PM	U.S. Bank StadiumMinneapolis, Minnesota
August 21, 2025	New England Patriots at New York Giants	8:00 PM	MetLife Stadium,East Rutherford, New Jersey

The 2025 New England Patriots Schedule #NePats pic.twitter.com/13IQhiVpMZ
— Foxborough Fellas Podcast (@FoxFellasPod) May 15, 2025

Patriots Rookies To Watch in 2025 NFL Preseason

The Patriots had as many as 11 picks in the 2025 NFL draft, and as expected, they spent the first four picks improving the offensive side of the ball. The offense in New England has been left wanting over the past few seasons.

But they also spent the next three selections shoring up the defense, and the end result was a balanced draft. Here are some of the rookies in New England to keep an eye on during the preseason.

Will Campbell

With their 4th overall pick, the Patriots selected Offensive Tackle Will Campbell, who was always considered to be the best tackle in the draft class. He didn’t allow a single sack in his senior year of college. Campbell has elite physical attributes, and he will most likely anchor the left side of the Patriots’ O-line.

All the happy tears for Will Campbell 🥹 @Patriots

📺: #NFLDraft on NFLN/ESPN/ABC
📱: Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/y0V1WeAdwW
— NFL (@NFL) April 25, 2025

TreVeyon Henderson

With the 38th overall pick, New England selected running back TreVeyon Henderson to help boost the offense to a new level. Henderson has great acceleration and vision, and that initial burst of speed can make a huge difference to the Patriots’ run game. But that’s not all, when he doesn’t have the ball, Henderson is one of the better pass-blocking backs from the draft.

Joshua Farmer

The Patriots selected defensive tackle Joshua Farmer in round four. He should be a rotational player ready to make an instant impact on the defensive line.

What Aspects Do the New England Patriots Need To Work on This Season?

New England headed into this year’s offseason with a war chest full of money to spend, and to their credit, they have done just that. Of course, the coaching was the first thing that needed to get better, and with the appointment of Mike Vrabel as the head coach and Josh McDaniels as the new Offensive coordinator, there is a good chance of that happening.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Patriots had very little effect on the pass rush last season, and that is one aspect that needs to improve soon. The pass defense was not too bad, but they had the fewest sacks in the league with just 28 in the regular season.

As for the offense, it was one of the worst in the league. They finished middle of the pack in completion percentage (64.6%), but were near the bottom with just 6.3 yards per catch. They also ranked second from last in passing touchdowns (18), and ended in the bottom five in sacks taken with 52. Their rushing attack fared slightly better, but the overall offense needs a major boost this year.

Points in the red zone 🗣️

📺: https://t.co/0O2UyCflyj pic.twitter.com/wRzITk5Xc7
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) June 20, 2025

Will the Patriots Starters Play in the Preseason Games?

Preseason games are generally meant for teams to test out their rookies and new signings within the system. It also allows fringe players to get into the action and show what they are capable of against other teams.

Having said that, the starters will also feature in these games, but they will not take as many snaps as the other players. In fact, most of the starters may not take the field at all in the first couple of games.

As the new season is fast approaching, the upcoming preseason games will provide the Patriots a glimpse of what they need to work on for the regular season and what things are already working well. The most important question on hand will be how prepared the players are under the new system implemented by head coach Mike Vrabel.

Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images

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Devavrat Kulkarni

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I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!