Patriots Maintain QB Stability by Re-Signing Tommy DeVito

Although keeping DeVito in the Foxborough fold has been met with largely positive reaction, some have speculated whether the financial value of his extension is an indication of the team’s plans to install him as their “QB2,” thus supplanting veteran Joshua Dobbs. The 31-year-old has one year remaining on the free agent deal he signed last offseason. The 31-year-old is scheduled to earn a base salary of $3.2 million in 2026, with a $4.75 million salary cap charge. Dobbs appeared in just four games this season, completing seven passes for 65 yards.

In that regard, DeVito would undoubtedly welcome an elevation beyond his role of being a game-day emergency quarterback. Still, it should be noted that the Illinois product was both comfortable and happy with the dynamic in the 2025 quarterback room.

“Josh [Dobbs] has been great too,” DeVito continued. “Obviously, he's been on a ton of different teams and been tossed into ton of different situations. We’re [Josh and I] able to relate in that aspect and give Drake tidbits whenever we can without overloading … it’s about us being able to read the room, right, and contributing where we can. But. this is a special group and a special team that I’m thankful to be a part of.”

Ultimately, DeVito’s ability to utilize his legs, as well as his arm to both make and extend plays is what will keep him in New England beyond last season. It is also what provides him the chance to succeed within coordinator Josh McDaniels’ system. Having played under McDaniels’ disciple Brian Daboll as his head coach with the Giants, DeVito remains confident that his strong work ethic has helped him to absorb enough of his OC’s wisdom and counsel to elevate his game when given the chance. 

“Everything in the quarterback room falls under Josh,” DeVito said of McDaniels. “He asks for a lot, and his offense asks for a lot. But, as I watched Drake handle that week-in and week-out — and, then start to master it and continue to get better with it each week — that has been really impressive. 

“I appreciate Josh,” he appended. “He demands a lot from the offense, a lot from the coaches, a lot from the players, and he holds everybody to a really high standard. I can see why he's had success. If you have the right people in that offense and on the team — those that are willing to do whatever he's asking —it's going to work out. That’s why it continues to work.”

Whether additional duties will be added to DeVito’s plate in 2026 remains a matter of conjecture. Meanwhile, his typical role as New England’s third string quarterback affords him the chance to be a strong contributor both in practice, as well as in the planning room. Though he may not have been able to predict the type of success enjoyed by the Patriots this season, DeVito fully realizes that something special continues to brew in southern New England.

In the process, he continues fully to embrace his role as a back up to the fullest — being ready to accept whichever assignment the team gives him at a moment’s notice.

“I was an undrafted guy, third on [New York’s] depth chart, and then all of a sudden, you're in it. You're playing, I'm starting games. My first start against the Dallas Cowboys, at Dallas … that’s a crazy environment,” DeVito recalled. “But, it's about being in that role where, if I'm called to play, that I'm gonna go in there and play and, you know, hit the ground running and not have any hiccups. I pride myself on that.”