The following is an excerpt from Warren Sharp's 2026 Football Preview. In addition to Warren's deep, detailed write-up on all 32 NFL teams, each chapter features page after page of full-color charts, stats, and heatmaps, as well as penalty analysis from Joe Gibbs. Click here for a full FREE chapter from the 2026 Football Preview.
Penalties are an under-discussed aspect of NFL success and failure. Average teams can become playoff contenders with good discipline, and good teams can become great simply by winning the penalty battle.
Let's look at how the New England Patriots performed from a penalty perspective in 2025 and where they can improve in 2026.
New England Patriots 2026 Penalty Outlook: Discipline, Flags & Hidden Edges
The Good
- The Patriots ranked 29th in penalties per game.
- New England ranked 30th in pre-snap penalties per game.
- The Patriots averaged the fewest declined penalties per game in 2025, ranking 32nd overall.
- The Patriots went from a top-10 penalized home team in 2024 to ranking 31st in penalty per-game average at home in 2025. In raw numbers, New England recorded a decline of 2.46 penalties per game at Gillette Stadium last season versus 2024.
- The offense and defense both ranked as bottom-five penalized units, a major improvement in each category in Mike Vrabel’s first season in New England.
- Continuing from the above point, the offense went from a top-10 penalized unit to a bottom-five penalized unit in per-game average last season. The only offense to record a bigger season-over-season improvement in this category? The Seattle Seahawks.
- The Patriots ranked as the No. 1 penalized team in per-game average on third-down plays in 2024, but improved in 2025, although there is still room for improvement in this category.
- The Patriots finished the 2025 season averaging the second-fewest penalties in the opening quarter of games.
The Bad
- Third-down penalties were a problem for the New England offense, with that unit ranking as a top-five penalized unit on third down. They were able to overcome it last season, but historically, the numbers suggest that won't continue.
Grade: A+
New England enters 2026 saddled with sky-high expectations that haven't existed for years in Foxborough.
Gone is the rebuilding narrative. The Patriots are now perceived as a league heavyweight after their postseason success last season.
That brings with it week-to-week pressure and every opponent having their Patriots game circled as an opportunity to make a statement against a Super Bowl team.
Despite that, the Patriots aim to prove 2025 was no fluke while navigating a much tougher schedule.
However, perhaps the biggest obstacle for this team in 2026 will be history, which has not been kind to the Super Bowl loser over the years.
New England finds itself in that unenviable position this season, making the Patriots a prime candidate for regression and potentially on the outside looking in come playoff time.
This analysis continues in the 2026 Football Preview
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Warren Sharp’s 600+ page full-color PDF, the 2026 Football Preview, is unlike anything you have read. Stunning visualizations, including new heat maps and stat pages, are built with the reader in mind. Innovative, next-level thought processes abound in every team chapter and article.
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Warren Sharp's book shares insights into the players, coaches, teams, and philosophies with one goal: to prepare you for the 2026 NFL season with the smartest information delivered in the fastest, most direct way possible for optimal reviewing and retention.
- Team Chapters previews are in-depth, data-driven & full of actionable info
- Fantasy Football player profiles, predictions, and ranks
- Vegas Odds forecast team wins, division rankings, lines for all 2026 games
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- Front Office Analysis positional spending, roster construction & cap analysis
- Reasons to bet over/under win totals & analysis of futures betting market
- Rookie draft class deep dive into impact for every team
- Rankings for every positional unit on every team with analysis
- Penalty analysis for all 32 NFL teams
