Jared Wilson is back where he started, and for the Patriots, the details around that move matter just as much as the move itself.
After spending his rookie season at left guard, Wilson has shifted back to center in 2026, and the early focus is simple: make the exchange with Drake Maye clean, sharp and automatic. Wilson put it plainly after Saturday’s training camp practice.
“The snap and communication,” Wilson said after Saturday’s training camp practice, of what he feels is important in that development. “First it’s communication, then you’ve got to get the ball to [Maye].”
Wilson came into the league as a center at Georgia, and he did get work there in training camp last year. But repeated problems getting the ball to Maye pushed him to guard, while Garrett Bradbury handled center. With Bradbury now traded to the Bears and Alijah Vera-Tucker signed to start at left guard, Wilson has been moved back into the middle.
That transition is exactly what head coach Mike Vrabel is watching.
“Well, I think just the unspoken communication to be able to see it quickly, see it the same [as the quarterback], see it very similar, whether that’s pressure or defensive front, to be able to set the defense or get us in the right play,” Vrabel said. “Communication. I think that the center is the conduit to the rest of the offensive line.
“So, when the quarterback needs to get something to the line, the center is the easiest way to get it. And then his communication with everybody else has to be great. So, we’re looking forward to seeing Jared in that transition, working with Drake.”
Maye has already seen progress from Wilson this offseason, especially in how he carries the responsibility that comes with playing center.
“Now you’ve got to be loud; you’ve got to communicate. It’s hard to do.
So I think [Wilson’s] done a great job just getting used to the little things at center and how he likes to do the cadence and stuff like that,” Maye said of Wilson’s improved communication. “But we’ve got a great deal with cadence and all that.”
Still, the work is ongoing. Maye and Wilson had a snap mishandled during Saturday’s practice, another reminder that the quarterback and center are still learning each other’s rhythms.
“[Jared] hasn’t played center for a year, so you get to know his little things,” Maye said. “What he likes, how things work, if he’s going left and I’m going right, how it works, and some of the under-center things.”
There’s also a longer thread tying the two together. Both have North Carolina roots, and Maye first reached out to Wilson through social media when he was recruiting him to UNC. Wilson committed there in April of 2020, before later flipping to Georgia five months afterward.
Now teammates in New England, the two have been talking about that shared past plenty, including during Saturday’s practice.
“Very fortunate. It was always meant to be,” Wilson said about being teammates with Maye.
“That’s my guy. He’s such a good dude, laid-back dude.”
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