Patriots Defense Has Two ‘Guaranteed Risers,’ NFL Analyst Predicts

If defense wins championships, the New England Patriots are well-positioned to contend during the 2025 NFL campaign.

The team dropped a lot of money during the offseason to rebuild its defense under new head coach Mike Vrabel.

When the Patriots defense takes the field next month at training camp, it will have two “guaranteed risers,” according to NFL.com’s Marc Ross, who identified seven players overall who will improve in 2025. First up is cornerback Christian Gonzalez.

“The third-year cornerback has already shown he can play at a high level,” Ross wrote Monday. “After a promising rookie season ended due to injury just four games into the year, Gonzalez proved why he was a first-round pick by…