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Duron Harmon Reveals What Could Spark the Patriots’ Next Championship Run—Exclusive

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jake Elman | Last updated Aug 29, 2025 11:58 AM ET

Luckily for longtime NFL defensive back Duron Harmon, he never had to worry about transitional periods or radical restructurings during his seven years with the New England Patriots.

The current Patriots are now far removed from the Patriots club that Harmon departed after the 2019 season. New England has reached the playoffs only once since 2020 and, after nearly 25 years with Bill Belichick running the show, enters Week 1 with a third head coach in as many seasons.

How bad are things in New England? The Patriots have lost 35 games since the start of 2022. Consider that the Patriots only had three six-loss seasons from 2002-19.

Of course, as Harmon noted, those Patriots took the field every week with Belichick and Tom Brady.

“I do think there is light at the end of the tunnel,” Harmon told Athlon. “Because at the end of the day, to win in this league, you have to have a good coach and you have to have a good quarterback. They had that.”

Duron Harmon Believes in Mike Vrabel and Drake Maye

The Patriots deserve credit for being aggressive and not trying to force the Jerod Mayo experiment. New England fired Mayo after the Patriots went 4-13 and ranked 28th in point differential during his first season as Belichick’s replacement.

New England partially made the move because ex-Titans head coach and longtime Patriots linebacker Mike Vrabel was available. Harmon called Vrabel, who went 54-45 in six seasons with the Titans, one of the league’s better coaches, and praised his decision to hire Josh McDaniels as offensive coordinator.

“They have one of the most young, promising quarterbacks who ... with Josh McDaniels, will continue to improve,” Harmon said of Maye, who completed 66.6% of his passes for 2,276 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 10 picks in 13 games.

The key is Maye taking the much-needed second-year growth that separates the developing young quarterbacks from those who can truly lead a franchise. Maye is the unquestioned starter, and the Patriots have committed to building around him, picking LSU left tackle Will Campbell in the first round and Ohio State standout running back TreVeyon Henderson early in the second.

Considering how deep the AFC is, it’ll likely be a bit before Maye and the Patriots cement their place as perennial playoff contenders again. However, Harmon certainly sounds like a believer—and given that he contributed massively to the Patriots’ last three Super Bowl titles, his optimism is telling.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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