The Patriots’ 2025 rookie class already delivered more than a few surprises, but the bigger question now is what comes next for the three undrafted rookies who survived the cut. New England kept Efton Chism III, Elijah Ponder and Eric Gregory on the roster, and each one got a taste of real NFL action as a rookie. The challenge in 2026 is figuring out which of them is ready to turn that foothold into something bigger.
Chism was the preseason headliner, and he earned that buzz the hard way. His August run was capped by a six-catch, 71-yard first half against the Vikings, a stretch that included a touchdown and made him impossible to ignore.
The Patriots liked enough of what they saw to keep him around, even with 11 rookies overall landing on the roster after the 2025 NFL Draft. He’ll have a tougher climb this time, though, because New England added A.J.
Brown and Romeo Doubs to the offense. That points the passing game toward the outside, with Pop Douglas still sitting as the top slot option for now.
Chism could change that if he has a strong summer, especially since he lined up in the slot 70.1% of the time in his final season at Eastern Washington. That number dropped to 21.2% last season, and a return to his college usage would make sense.
Even then, he’d still profile as the fourth receiving option. A bigger role is on the table, but a breakout that pushes him well past 400 yards would be a surprise.
Gregory’s path looks different, and maybe a little quieter, but it matters just as much. The defensive tackle got his first action in Week 11 and ended up playing six games, averaging 21 snaps per game.
In that stretch, he posted three pressures and two stops. With Khyiris Tonga gone, there’s a lane for somebody to grab work on the interior, and Gregory is in the mix with Joshua Farmer and Leonard Taylor III.
David Blay Jr. has also started to generate some early buzz after his strong play at Louisiana Tech and a National Championship-winning season at Miami. Gregory appears to have an inside track to stick as one of the top six interior linemen, and the biggest question is whether he can grow into the primary nose tackle job.
Ponder may be the one to watch most closely. He beat out Bradyn Swinson for the final edge-defender spot, and his role only grew after the trade of Keion White.
Before Week 10, he had appeared in seven games and was averaging just 7.6 snaps per game, though he was already flashing a 9% pressure rate without a sack. Everything changed from Week 10 on.
His snap count jumped to 21.8 per game, his pressure rate climbed to 11.9%, and he finished with four sacks. The postseason only strengthened the case.
Ponder averaged 24.8 snaps per game in the playoffs, up from 14.3 in the regular season, and that kind of late-season surge is exactly why he looks like the UDFA most likely to make the biggest impact in 2026.
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