Mike Vrabel New England Patriots Seattle Seahawks
Getty
Head coach Mike Vrabel of the New England Patriots
New England Patriots Executive Vice President of Player Personnel Eliot Wolf met with the media on Tuesday. He covered a variety of topics and was asked about rookie offensive lineman Will Campbell. He met with NFL analyst Todd McShay and asserted that Campbell is not moving to a different position on the offensive line
There were some conversations following the Super Bowl regarding whether or not Campbell should be moved to a different position. He allowed 14 pressures against the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX. The defense was swarming, and Campbell struggled throughout the course of the evening.
Campbell struggled throughout the course of the playoffs, allowing 29 pressures across four playoff games. He struggled against top-tier pass rushers. This included Khalil Mack and Odafe Oweh with the Los Angeles Chargers, and All-Pros will Anderson and Danielle Hunter with the Houston Texans.
The struggles raised the possibility of Campbell moving positions for the 2026 season. Mike Vrabel vehemently denied that Campbell would be moved.
It appears that Wolf and Vrabel are on the same page. Wolf also denied any possibility that Campbell would be moved, as he noted in his interview with McShay.
“We’re not moving him to guard. He’s a young guy that had a tremendous season… I think he’d be the first to tell you that maybe he wasn’t able to anchor the same way he had with the knee injury.”
A Tale of Two Seasons for Campbell
There certainly could be something said for the uptick in competition during the playoffs. Campbell had a strong start to the 2026 season. He allowed 30 total pressures and six sacks over the course of 13 games. He was the only rookie tackle to post a Pro Football Focus grade of 80-plus in both run and pass blocking over the first few weeks of the season. In Week Two, he allowed zero pressures on 31 pass-blocking snaps.
The LSU product suffered his injury in Week 12 against the Cincinnati Bengals. He suffered a torn ligament in his right knee that ended up being a Grade 3 MCL sprain. This put him on injured reserve for several weeks. He missed four games before returning for the regular season finale against the Miami Dolphins on January 4.
The New England Patriots Have Bright Future
This move could make sense for the Patriots long-term. The calls to change Campbell’s position may be a bit premature. He was only in his rookie season last year. He faced tremendous competition, especially once the playoffs and Super Bowl began.
The Patriots rolled out a relatively young offensive line last season. Rookie center Jared Wilson joined Campbell, as the Patriots had to remake their offensive line over the offseason. This meant that development was happening on the fly and in real-time. Development for Campbell is going to be key, as the Patriots need him to have a solid second season. Fortunately, Campbell will be working with offensive line coach Doug Marrone, and the latter has plenty of experience.
This may be a topic that comes up not only over the course of the season, but in Campbell’s career. He is certainly a promising offensive lineman, and one with tremendous talent. The keys here are going to be the recovery from his injury and his overall development. Either way, Campbell is a promising offensive lineman. He could be a cornerstone for the future of the Patriots organization.