FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Jared Wilson had a huge smile on his face as he fielded numerous questions regarding his upcoming position switch from left guard to center.
The 2025 third-round pick was drafted out of Georgia as a center, but the team had Garrett Bradbury on the roster last year, so they moved him to left guard instead. But now, Bradbury was traded to the Chicago Bears this offseason, and the Patriots signed Alijah Vera-Tucker to take over at left guard.
That left an opening at center and Wilson was more than happy to make that switch back to his original position.
“Very excited. Very excited,” Wilson said. “I’ll keep it at that.”
And with that, he opened up about what it takes to make that change.
“Honestly, from guard to center, I mean, people say you gotta know all three positions on the interior offensive lineman. That is a very true statement, but it’s very different,” Wilson said. “I was there before, played it in college, so I’m comfortable, but there’s always things to learn, always new things to learn and things to tweak.”
So, does he have a favorite thing about playing center?
“Everything,” he simply replied. “I like it all.”
Jared Wilson Excited For ‘Full Circle’ Moment
GettyNew England Patriots O-lineman Jared Wilson
Jared Wilson initially committed to play college football at the University of North Carolina, where he would have been snapping the ball to Drake Maye. However, he ultimately decommitted, instead deciding to play for Georgia.
But, while they never played together during their college career, Wilson will now get the opportunity to snap the ball to Maye.
“Oh, man, it’s cool. It’s a full circle moment,” Wilson said. “I remember us talking about it… It was a couple of weeks ago. I was just like, ‘dang. We were committed to North Carolina together. This is close to getting there and then veered off to Georgia, and now we’re both here.’ I’m the center, and he’s the quarterback. It all worked out great.”
He’s also excited to play alongside Vera-Tucker.
“Alijah’s a great dude. I love him. Athletic freak. His feet are crazy,” Wilson said. “He’s a smart player. He’s going to be a great guy to have.”
Jared Wilson Predicted To Have Breakout Season
GettyJared Wilson
On Wednesday, Pro Football Focus’ Bradley Locker released the 2026 NFL All-Breakout Team, and one Patriots player made the list.
That was center Jared Wilson, with Locker saying that the offensive line will be “even steadier this year with Wilson up the middle.”
“Wilson experienced growing pains in his first pro season, playing almost exclusively at left guard,” Locker wrote. “However, Wilson showed signs of progress later in the year with a 73.6 PFF pass-blocking grade from Week 11 through the Super Bowl.”
“Moving back to center should do wonders for Wilson, who compiled a 79.6 overall grade during his time there at Georgia in 2024. Adding veteran Alijah Vera-Tucker to man left guard and retaining the likes of Mike Onwenu, Will Campbell and Morgan Moses creates a relatively ideal situation for Wilson.”
Patriots Second-Year Player Confident New Role Will Unlock His Potential