Patriots Target Edge Rushers as Ducks Send Eight to Nfl Combine

The Nfl Combine in Indianapolis has become a crossroads for college prospects and NFL decision-makers: Oregon has eight players on site for workouts and meetings, while New England’s front office is using testing and interviews to zero in on edge rushers as a clear roster priority. The activity at Lucas Oil Stadium this week will shape late-first- and early-day-two draft thinking and immediate offseason roster decisions.

Friday at Nfl Combine: Ducks’ defensive backs and tight ends

On Friday, defensive backs and tight ends will take the field, meaning three Oregon Ducks are slated for on-field workouts: tight end Kenyon Sadiq, defensive back Jadon Canady, and safety Dillon Thieneman. Those position-group sessions are part of a multi-day schedule that divides players by roles; the Ducks’ contingent arrived earlier in the week and will complete a mix of on-field testing and meetings with teams.

Oregon’s bench press and team interview schedule

Defensive linemen and linebackers from Oregon, including Bryce Boettcher, are set to go through the bench press before departing Indianapolis. Thursday is a heavy team-interview day for many prospects: quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers will conduct media interviews throughout the morning, and a large swath of players not taking the field will go through team interviews. That schedule specifically lists Noah Whittington, Malik Benson, Emmanuel Pregnon, and Alex Harkey as meeting with prospective teams on Thursday, while Benson and Whittington will also stand at the podium for media sessions.

Eliot Wolf outlines Patriots’ edge rusher criteria

EVP of Player Personnel Eliot Wolf used a Tuesday morning press conference in Indianapolis to identify edge rusher as a priority for the Patriots. Wolf emphasized measurable and technical traits the team seeks: pass rush, speed and violence, explosiveness, first-step quickness and the ability to win in multiple ways. That checklist underpins New England’s evaluation as staff members meet prospects on the ground in Indy.

New England’s draft positioning and roster implications

The Patriots hold the 31st overall pick in the first round coming off their Super Bowl trip, a position that shapes how they view a deep edge class. Two pending veteran moves are central to the need: K'Lavon Chaisson is slated to be an unrestricted free agent and Harold Landry III is coming off a knee injury in 2025. Inside linebacker depth is another focus, with Wolf noting a desire to add youth behind veterans Robert Spillane, Jahlani Tavai and Christian Elliss; linebacker Jack Gibbens is a restricted free agent this offseason. New England also faces an interior-line consideration with nose tackle Khyiris Tonga set to be an unrestricted free agent when the 2026 league year begins in March.

Thursday night workouts at Lucas Oil Stadium and testing takeaways

Defensive front-seven work dominated Thursday night inside Lucas Oil Stadium as on-field testing shifted the combine’s spotlight to athletic measurements and technique. The Patriots’ staff met with “a bunch” of EDGE prospects in Indy, and two players expected to be in the upper tiers — Texas A& M’s Cashius Howell and Missouri’s Zion Young — confirmed they met with New England while in Indianapolis. Observers are parsing traits that project to the NFL; one recurring measurement discussion is arm length, highlighted under a takeaway that potential first-round edge rushers often measure as length outliers. The debate over arm length has surfaced before, with past discussion around Will Campbell’s measurement cited as part of that context.

All on-field action at the Nfl Combine will be televised on NFL Network starting at noon PT, keeping teams and fans tuned to testing results that will feed into draft boards. The depth of the edge-rusher group means the Patriots may find an impact player late on day one or into day two; the challenge will be choosing among closely clustered prospects whose testing and tape present differing skill sets and body types. What makes this notable is that measurable traits and team interviews over the next 48 hours could move players significantly in evaluations that feed directly into the Patriots’ plans with the 31st pick and into the Ducks’ draft hopes as their eight participants complete workouts and meetings in Indianapolis.