Will Campbell has put together an impressive rookie season since being selected with the No. 4 pick by the Patriots in the 2025 NFL draft.
After immediately being thrust into the team’s left tackle role, the 22-year-old helped New England to a 14–3 record by starting 13 games—missing four due to injury—and allowing just five sacks of quarterback Drake Maye while committing only seven penalties. Last Sunday night against the Chargers, however, Campbell seemed to have met his match, struggling to keep L.A.’s pass rushers at bay. According to PFF, he allowed five pressures, a sack that led to a fumble, and notched a season-worst 92.5% efficiency rating.
Campbell has since been subject to some criticism on social media for his poor play, and on Wednesday in the Patriots locker room, spoke about how he handles it.
“I don’t give a sh-- what anyone says, to be honest with you,” Campbell answered, candidly. “It’s easy to type behind a Twitter account that, you know, is fake. I hold myself to the highest expectation of anybody. I want to be perfect, and it's hard for me to get told that it's going to be hard to be perfect. But the Chargers, obviously I didn't pitch a shutout. You know I wish I had two or three plays that I wish I could have back. But that's $300 million [of] defensive ends and I've got a ton of respect for those dudes. And It's going to be like that every week in the playoffs.”
A measured (and seemingly honest) response from one of the Patriots’ many promising rookies.
Campbell will be tested again this Sunday vs. Texans
Campbell and the rest of the Patriots’ offensive line will be tested again this Sunday when they welcome the Texans to Gillette Stadium. Led by former NFL linebacker DeMeco Ryans and one of the league’s most respected coordinators in Matt Burke, Houston’s defense was among the NFL’s elite in 2025—allowing a league-low 277.2 yards per game and the second-fewest points (17.4) during the regular season.
Additionally, the Texans ranked ninth in the NFL with 47 sacks led by stars Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr., who each reached double-digit QB takedowns with 15 and 12, respectively.
“They’re great players,” Campbell said of Houston's dynamic pass-rush duo. “Played against Will [Anderson Jr.] my freshman year in college and I watched Danielle [Hunter] since I was a kid and he was at LSU. So a ton of respect for those guys. They are who they are for a reason. They have players from the front four, linebackers, DB’s that can all make you pay if you don’t do your job.”
New England has its work cut out for it if it wants to advance to its first AFC title game since the 2018 season. Kick off from Foxborough’s Gillette Stadium is set for 3:00 p.m. ET.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘I Don’t Give a Sh--’: Patriots LT Will Campbell Had Blunt Response to Online Critics.
