Speed is the trait that has Mike Vrabel looking hardest at Seattle’s first-round rookie.
Ahead of the Week 1 matchup, the Patriots head coach made it plain that Jadarian Price’s burst is the part of his game that can change the feel of a defense. Vrabel said, "I know that Jadarian's got great speed.
He's a slasher. He'll test edges.
He's got great patience. But I watched him circle guys up in college fairly easily.
So the speed, I think, is real."
That kind of explosiveness is exactly what New England is trying to account for entering the 2026 season opener. Price has never played a snap in the NFL, so nobody knows for sure how his game will translate right away. Still, the concern is obvious: pure speed is hard to game-plan for, and even harder to duplicate in practice.
Seattle’s offense is also entering the year with a new voice. Brian Fleury is set to coordinate the attack, and the expectation is that the Seahawks will lean on the run and do it in creative ways.
Price fits that plan neatly. If he holds up in pass protection and contributes as a receiver out of the backfield, he could become a real weapon.
The Patriots already know Seattle can bring problems on the other side of the ball. New England was dominated by the Seahawks in last season’s Super Bowl, and Vrabel’s offense had trouble adjusting to players like Devon Witherspoon and Nick Emmanwori.
But this matchup brings a different challenge. It’s not just about speed on defense anymore; it’s about whether New England can handle a back with game-breaking acceleration.
Former Seahawks runner Kenneth Walker III was the title game's MVP and showed the kind of quickness that can stress a defense when he was at his best. Walker’s ability to bounce runs outside and turn them into chunk gains gave multiple teams trouble late last season.
Price could bring even more juice. He is younger, and unlike Walker, he doesn’t carry the same injury history.
That does not make Price a better player than Walker, at least not yet. But it does explain why the rookie’s explosiveness has New England on alert.
Seattle is not the same team it was in the Super Bowl, and neither is New England. Injuries and departures have changed both rosters, and Emmanwori is dealing with an ankle injury.
Even so, the Seahawks should still have a strong defense because Mike Macdonald is too sharp not to put one together. The bigger question for Week 1 is whether Price’s speed can turn a creative Seattle ground game into the kind of early-season problem the Patriots don’t want to see.
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