New England Patriots
Kraft touched on expectations for the 2026 Patriots, an 18th regular-season game, and more.
Fresh off an unexpected run to Super Bowl LX this past season, Patriots owner Robert Kraft is expecting more hurdles for his team going into the 2026 campaign.
“Yeah, we have a pretty tough schedule, I think the hardest schedule with a lot of west coast travel,” Kraft acknowledged Monday in a media scrum with Patriots reporters at the NFL annual meetings in Phoenix.
Kraft touched on several topics during his meeting with the media, including this past year in Foxborough, retaining franchise fixtures like Christian Gonzalez, an 18th regular-season game, and much more.
Keeping expectations in check
The Patriots might be poised to take another step forward in 2026 as Drake Maye continues to develop and an overachieving roster adds depth and talent.
But, as Kraft noted, the road isn’t going to get any easier for New England next season, as the Patriots are saddled with one of the toughest schedules in the league as the reigning AFC East champions.
Given that first-place slate and tough matchups against teams in the AFC West and NFC North on tap, New England’s 14-3 record in 2025 could dip next fall. As such, Kraft is not setting Super Bowl expectations or tangible win totals down for Mike Vrabel’s team in 2026.
“My objective every year is we make the playoffs,” Kraft said. “And as we saw last year, when you’re privileged to make the playoffs, anything can happen.”
New England might be well ahead of schedule with what initially looked like a multi-year retool in 2025 and beyond. But, Kraft was candid Monday when asked to reflect on this past season, and just how much fell New England’s way in Vrabel’s first year at the helm.
“In all seriousness, I think actually the team way overachieved what any of us thought would happen. And it was wonderful,” Kraft said. “And winning that championship game in Denver, when we have such a past history of difficulty winning in Denver, it was very special. So proud of this team. And most of them are still young.”
Keeping franchise stars around
The Patriots don’t have to worry about handing Maye a new contract this offseason. But, after finishing second in NFL MVP voting this past season, the 23-year-old QB will likely rewrite the record books in the coming years when he’s eligible to sign an extension.
And, while star cornerback Christian Gonzalez isn’t hitting free agency until after the 2027 season, he is eligible for a contract extension this spring after completing his fourth NFL campaign.
Gonzalez could be in line for the priciest contract for a cornerback in league history if New England puts pen to paper on a new deal for him in the coming months.
After playing his best football down the stretch in 2025 — including a standout performance against the Seahawks in Super Bowl LX — Gonzalez stands as the type of player that Kraft wants to keep around for the foreseeable future.
“Well, we always try,” Kraft said when asked about possible extensions for Gonzalez and eventually Maye. “We have a salary cap, so we have a limit. So, we have to think [about] what’s best for the team in terms of timing, of the signing and of course, the earlier you do it, it’s believed it’s more economically satisfactory.
“But we leave that to Mike Vrabel, Elliot Wolf, and our people making contract decisions. We’re lucky to have those two players, and I hope and believe they’ll be with us for the long term.”
Despite spending heavily in free agency for the second spring in a row, New England does have $35.2 million in cap space, per OverTheCap. Only five teams have more cap space than the Patriots entering the 2026 season.
Another regular-season game?
One of the hot topics entering the NFL annual meetings in Arizona is the possibility of adding another regular-season game onto the league schedule in the coming years.
The NFL went from a 16-game regular season to 17 games in 2021, and the appetite is there from league owners to play even more moving forward.
If the NFL approves an 18-game schedule at some point, the NFL preseason slate would be limited to just two games in the late summer — with teams granted two bye weeks over the course of the regular season to accommodate a longer campaign.
Kraft vouched for the extended schedule on Monday.
“I like it long term for the growth and development of the league because to keep our league healthy and grow revenue,” Kraft said. “I think preseason games have not been what [they] used to be when we owned the team, and changing to 18 games and having that real content and being mindful of player safety.
While an additional bye week would be necessary given the added wear and tear on players, Kraft noted that an extra week off could also open the door for the NFL to schedule more international games, given the added rest to accommodate longer travel times.
“We have every team in the league would play a game overseas,” Kraft said. “And it just, I think, would be a lot more exciting for the fans to have an extra game rather than the way our preseason games stack up.”
Opening a new team facility
The Patriots will take the field in Gillette Stadium once again in 2026. But, their locker rooms, offices, and other team facilities are set to get a major upgrade this year.
New England will officially unveil the New Balance Athletic Center at some point in the coming months, with the team’s new facility — located next to the club’s practice fields behind Gillette Stadium — already up and running. Coaches have already moved into the building, which spans 160,000 square feet.
“The training center, I think it’s very special, and I think it’ll give our coaching staff and players reason to celebrate the efficiency and what can go on there, and it’s right on the field,” Kraft said. “I’ll be very interested to get the reaction of all of you experts in the media when you see it and how it compares to what our competition (has). I think it’s one of a kind.”
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