FOXBOROUGH - Fresh off a welcome win over the Chicago Bears, the Patriots kicked off another game week on Wednesday with renewed energy and an intriguing new arrival.

Yannick Ngakoue is a nine-year veteran with 70.5 sacks and a Pro Bowl nod to his name and was present for practice after being claimed off waivers from the Ravens late last week.

"I'm just excited, happy for the opportunity," said Ngakoue. "You know, we just won a game last week versus the Bears, so I just want to help continue building that energy and that momentum so we can continue it for the following weeks."

There's little question that Ngakoue could provide a boost in an area of need for the defense. Despite last week's nine-sack performance against the Bears, the Patriots defense still ranks 29th in pressure rate and 30th in DVOA against the pass. All season long they've gotten good interior rush from sack leader Keion White, but Ngakoue could bring a threatening presence off the edge that could help the entire defense take a step forward.

Ngakoue brushed off questions about going from the top of the conference with Baltimore to a three-win New England team, pointing out that when he was drafted to Jacksonville they were one of the league's bottom feeders but the next year they found success.

"It doesn't matter to me," said Ngakoue. "Where I was drafted to it was a team that didn't win a lot, and in the next year we were in the AFC Championship. It's all about your perspective. It's all about how you can build team camaraderie and change those things."

Playing under a former defensive player like Jerod Mayo, who knows firsthand what it's like to be a player, was appealing to Ngakoue.

"[I] definitely [heard] a lot of great things about [Mayo], just reaching out to players that know him and the way he coaches," said Ngakoue. "He's a great coach. He's definitely a guy that people cling to, definitely a guy that people want to get led [by]. So I'm just happy and excited to be where he's a former player. So he knows what we go through."

With Deatrich Wise missing from practice after sustaining an ankle injury late in the Bears game, it could thrust Ngakoue into a significant role as soon as this weekend against the Rams. The vet highlighted the leadership and energy that he will bring to the team that could be a welcome jolt for a team that is just starting to find their identity.

"That's all I really want to bring, man, because energy is contagious, and if we can all have the right energy, then we can win some more football games."

Stacking Wins

Jerod Mayo set the tone in his press conference on Wednesday, challenging the team to do something they had yet to accomplish in 2024, win two games in a row.

"I'm going to continue to stress to the players, to the team, to the coaches, it's having a sense of urgency and really learning how to win," said Mayo. "We haven't had a back-to-back win this year. We've lost multiple games in a row, so we know that side of it. Now we've got to figure out how to turn the page after a win and get a victory."

Veteran Jonathan Jones is one player who has won his fair share of his back-to-back games. Last week Jones commented that the young hungry players were keeping the team positive, now it's time for those young players to take another step in their development.

"I think we're taking strides in learning how to win, kind of like I said the last few week," said Jones. "The next step is going back to back, coming back, reset, and having a good week, and then going out and executing this week to get two wins in a row."

"Yeah, just build on it from last week," said rookie quarterback Drake Maye. "I think it starts with cleaning up from the game Sunday, cleaning up some little things that I think we could have ended up being a bigger margin of victory for us, especially offensively. The defense did about all they could. Scoring in the red zone and obviously my turnover, we've got to just keep on these little things that can kind of help build the complementary football that Coach Mayo is preaching about."

"It's just the sense of urgency, and I think part of that has to do with turning the page," said Mayo of his philosophy to stacking wins. "I would also say it's the same thing during the game, where it doesn't matter what the score is at halftime. When we come out in the second half, it's 0-0, and that mentality hopefully will get us going. I just try to give them, if we hit these targets offensively, defensively, and special teams, in conjunction with the coaches. If we hit these targets, it gives us a good chance to win the game. Now, will it be nine out of nine targets hit? Probably not. If we can hit seven or eight out of nine, we have a good chance."

Navy Returns to Gillette in 2026

Joe Cardona took some special time to reflect this past Monday as he observed Veteran's Day, still excited from last week's announcement that Gillette Stadium will play host to the Navy-Notre Dame football game on Halloween of 2026.

"Super exciting that Gillette's gonna be hosting Navy-Notre Dame," said Cardona. "You know, I was a part of four great Navy-Notre Dame games. Unfortunately, I was 0-4 for so hoping that coming to Gillette brings Navy a little good luck."

Cardona also gave a brief history lesson to the media on the significance of the game, with a history that everyone might not know.

"Navy-Notre Dame is something that I think a lot of people may not have an appreciation for," said Cardona. "You go and play at Notre Dame, you know it's a storied stadium, but one thing that you feel when you go there as a Navy player is the appreciation that Notre Dame has for the Naval Academy and for the Navy in general. During World War Two, the Navy set up an officer training program there at Notre Dame, and that helped keep the university afloat in those tough times. So we're appreciative of the work that Notre Dame did to train officers in World War Two, and we're appreciative to go out and match up against one of the best football teams in the country perennially."

AVPraise

With Drake Maye's continued development, offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt some praise on Wednesday for the job he and the offensive staff have done. The Patriots offense is still a work in progress, but in recent weeks the signs of improvement are there. Head coach Jerod Mayo and quarterback Drake Maye made sure to highlight the job Van Pelt has done.

"He's been huge," said Maye of Van Pelt. "I think he's just a confidence booster for a quarterback. You love playing for an offensive coordinator like AVP. He's positive, and also at the same time, he'll coach you hard. He's done it; he's played quarterback in this league and at a high level, so he knows what needs to be done and the tasks."

"There's no one in this organization that deserves more credit as far as what Drake has been able to do on the football field than Alex Van Pelt," said Mayo. "When we interviewed Alex, I would say when we interviewed all of the coaches that are here, one of the prerequisites or requirements was a guy who was level-headed, a guy who believes in working together, and a guy who doesn't get too high, doesn't get too low. That's Alex, and I appreciate that."

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