NE Efton Chism III
Wide Receiver, New England Patriots. 2025 draft pick (college: Texas A&M).
Quick Facts
- Position: WR
- Current team: New England Patriots (NE)
- Draft: 2025
- Natural position: Slot receiver
2026 Outlook
Chism is in his second year with the Patriots, working to expand beyond his natural slot position into multiple alignment spots in Josh McDaniels' offense. He has been exposed to various formations and concept work since his rookie year, and receiver coach Todd Downing noted meaningful improvement in play-speed development and "release speed" heading into 2026. Chism is focused on understanding defensive concepts more thoroughly so he can play faster when the ball is snapped, a critical transition for young receivers.
His primary strength remains slot work, where he showed quick-game ability and separation during spring minicamp (touchdown reception from Tommy DeVito in final OTA session). As A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs solidify the top of the depth chart, Chism projects as a depth piece competing for WR3/slot reps alongside Kyle Williams and Demario Douglas. His development trajectory depends on whether he can successfully translate slot expertise into other formations (per Patriots seeing growth from second-year wide receivers).
Role / Depth Chart
Slot receiver competing for reps in a crowded room. Likely depth behind Demario Douglas and Kyle Williams for playing time.
Recent News
- 2026-05-27 — Six Storylines to Monitor This Spring at Patriots Organized Team Activities (Six Storylines to Monitor This Spring at Patriots Organized Team Activities)
- 2026-03-10 — Winners and losers from the Patriots’ Day 1 free agency moves (Winners and losers from the Patriots’ Day 1 free agency moves)
- 2026-06-15 — Patriots way-too-early 53-man roster projection after offseason workouts (Patriots way-too-early 53-man roster projection after offseason workouts)
- 2026-04-26 — 10 winners and losers from the Patriots’ Day 3 picks in the NFL Draft (10 winners and losers from the Patriots’ Day 3 picks in the NFL Draft)
- 2026-06-02 — Winners and losers from A.J. Brown being traded to Patriots (Winners and losers from A.J. Brown being traded to Patriots)
- 2026-05-04 — Patriots 53-man roster projection: How things look after the NFL draft (Patriots 53-man roster projection: How things look after the NFL draft)
- 2026-06-02 — Predicting the Patriots' new-look wide receiver room for Week 1 (Predicting the Patriots' new-look wide receiver room for Week 1)
- 2026-05-27 — Patriots OTAs 2026: 5 things to watch this week (Patriots OTAs 2026: 5 things to watch this week)
- 2026-06-09 — Patriots minicamp Day 1 takeaways: Drake Maye sharp, Christian Gonzalez practices (Patriots minicamp Day 1 takeaways: Drake Maye sharp, Christian Gonzalez practices)
- 2026-06-01 — The Ultimate 2026 Return Yardage Watchlist: Breaking Down Every NFL Team’s PR/KR Depth... (The Ultimate 2026 Return Yardage Watchlist: Breaking Down Every NFL Team’s PR/KR Depth...)