Treat the honors, especially in August, like the fortune cookie at the end of a great meal in your favorite Chinese restaurant.
They’re nice and everything, but if the house doesn’t deliver a great meal, it hardly matters.
And with that we bring you Pro Football Focus and its most intriguing rankings that have the New England Patriots slated at No. 1 as the National Football League’s best defensive secondary.
On paper, or on some spreadsheet, PFF’s analysis could be spot on. The personnel package – five deep – that Mike Vrabel has pieced together can match just about anybody’s.
But as camp unfolds, with under three weeks until the Sept. 9 opener at Seattle, serious questions need to be answered.
Where is ‘Gonzo?’
Christian Gonzalez and his most recent malady – be it twisted ankle, bruised leg or undernourished wallet – keeping him out of practice is an issue.
The lead corner missed nearly all of training camp a year ago and then sat the first three games of the season. He wasn’t himself until December. That can’t happen with this schedule.
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Davis a key figure
After averaging 12.7 games played per season in Tampa, the opposite corner, Carlton Davis, played all 17 regular season games and the four playoff games in 2025.
Can a repeat performance be expected?
Davis has already missed significant practice time with a hamstring injury and has not been himself this summer. His health is a giant factor in 2026.
Jones plays huge in slot
Wear and tear on 5-foot-8, 185-pound slot cornerback Marcus Jones has to be monitored.
A weapon in the return game and a fierce defender in run-force, Jones takes a physical pounding. After just 31 games played in his first three seasons, he went all 21 a year ago.
Fight to be free
Finally, New England could have something cooking at safety with the presence of bangers Kevin Byard and Craig Woodson.
What the Patriots don’t have is a true free safety. They really haven’t filled that void since Devin McCourty retired in 2023.
Center-field was exploited in the postseason last year, and it could have been worse, save for one amazing highlight-reel-leading play from Gonzalez and some woeful throws by Denver’s Jarrett Stidham in the AFC title game and Sam Darnold in the Super Bowl.
Teams will attack the deep middle. Can New England find a response?
