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Callahan: Eliot Wolf isn’t holding back on the Patriots’ rebuild

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Callahan: Eliot Wolf isn’t holding back on the Patriots’ rebuild


INDIANAPOLIS — From wherever his office inside the Patriots’ facility last season, Eliot Wolf must have gazed out his window and shook his head.

There was the talent-starved roster. The overworked, politicking coaching staff. The culture that grated members instead of building them up.

How do I know Wolf felt this way?

Well, setting aside the 4-13 record, he said as much Tuesday.

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The Patriots’ old culture? Too punishing.

“Certainly,” he said at the NFL Scouting Combine, “there’s more of an open, less hard-ass type vibe in the building that we can move forward with.”

The offense? Not dangerous enough.

“We need to weaponize the offense,” Wolf said.

The defense? Too slow.

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“We need to be faster and more explosive on defense,” he added.

Credit to him. The Patriots’ de facto GM is not running from the truth, nor the task at hand, nor the long, Bill Belichick-shaped shadow over his upcoming rebuild. That shadow, in the end, fostered an environment that accelerated the Patriots’ downfall after their competitive margins shrank to virtually nothing.

The coaching staff fractured, and the quarterback broke, while his own defense pointed fingers from across the locker room. Wolf saw it, and so did Mayo. That’s why they’re publicly shining a light on the darkness and looking ahead.

Patriots to meet with top three quarterback prospects at combine

Now before the Belichick defenders charge over the hill, swords out and shields ready to defend the greatest coach of all time, remember that Belichick earned the nickname “Doom” more than a decade before he took over in New England. Belichick’s greatness, his genius, was inseparable from the doom persona that birthed a hardline, thankless work environment in Foxboro. That environment worked because it was authentic to Belichick, and perpetuated by talented inferiors who believed in him, including the greatest quarterback to ever play.

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Then, the quarterback left, more talent followed him out the door, the beatings continued, morale didn’t improve, and Belichick was gone, too.

The Krafts clearly believe Belichick was at the heart of their problems, and viewed Wolf as part of the solution.

Wolf is an outsider the team adopted in 2020, a 20-year veteran of NFL front offices who understands their football operations intimately but has maintained a professional identity and belief system separate from The Patriot Way. Or, as director of player personnel Matt Groh once described Patriot lifers, he hasn’t been “institutionalized.”

Wolf began to free his colleagues in recent weeks, encouraging them to speak more openly in a recent series of meetings that introduced a new scouting system and grading scale that he’s implemented from Green Bay.

“I was actually really encouraged by everybody willing to just say their opinion, even if it was different from the previous person,” Wolf said. “Having those open, honest meetings and working together to determine the best outcome is definitely what’s important.”

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He later added: “This process is a lot more collaborative. We hear from the scouts more. We’re going to be able to determine together what’s the best thing for the team at the end of the day.”

Eliot Wolf: Patriots ‘definitely’ want to re-sign Kyle Dugger, Mike Onwenu

That last line should ring familiar. It was a Belichick go-to, the center square in his press conference bingo card. But as far as Belichick’s scouting processes? Those are getting ripped out by the roots.

More from Wolf: “The previous Patriots system was more, ‘This is what the role is,’ and this is more value-based. I think it makes it a lot easier for scouts to rate guys and put them in a stack of, ‘This guy’s the best, this guy’s the worst,’ and everything in between falls into place.

“Rather than more nuanced approaches. I just think it accounts for value better, and it also makes it easier for the scouts in the fall, as well as in the spring, where guys are going to be drafted.”

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Naturally, such sweeping change is being met with pockets of resistance. Wolf’s stated goal of returning the Patriots to “respectability” also irked some. But not those inside the building.

One Patriots personnel evaluator later admitted to the Herald that the front office feels a loss of respect across the league. Player agents have insisted privately the Patriots must pay top dollar to sign their clients this offseason, a tax for being a losing team in a small market. Wolf did not commit to a free-agent spending spree, but shared part of his pitch to those players.

“This is a new program,” he said. “We’re heading in the right direction. It’s a new era.”

A new era founded on old ideas from Green Bay, where Wolf contributed to a Super Bowl-winning team in 2010. During that time, Wolf learned what a championship team feels like, sounds like, plays like. Wolf described The Packer Way as a belief system rooted in drafting and development, honesty and respect.

It’s a slow build, with a long-term payoff. Though Wolf didn’t sidestep expectations for 2024. He met them head-on, like every other aspect of his job to date.

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What will a successful season look like for the Patriots?

“Really just showing good progress and turning the culture around,” he said. “And competing for the playoffs is something we’re not going to shy away from.”



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Major carsharing service shutting Boston office and laying off dozens of staff

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Major carsharing service shutting Boston office and laying off dozens of staff


The car-sharing company Zipcar will close its Boston headquarters, ending local operations in the place where it was founded.

Its owner, the car rental company Avis Budget Group, said it is “consolidating Zipcar’s headquarters” into its global home base in Northern New Jersey “as part of a broader effort to enhance Zipcar’s long-term operational effectiveness.”

“As a result, Zipcar will no longer maintain a separate corporate office in Boston,” a spokesperson for Avis Budget Group said Monday.

The company plans to lay off 65 employees in Boston by April, according to a notice it filed with Massachusetts state officials last week.

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Zipcar was founded in Cambridge in 1999 and debuted there and in Boston the next year. The company expanded in the years that followed and by 2009 was the world’s largest car-sharing service, according to NBC News. Avis bought Zipcar in 2013.

“Zipcar was founded in Boston and the city has been an important part of its history since then,” the company spokesperson said. “This consolidation reinforces Zipcar’s foundation and positions the business to continue serving members reliably well into the future.”

The move will not affect service for Zipcar’s members, the spokesperson added.

In addition to the 65 Boston-based employees, the company will lay off approximately 61 remote workers elsewhere in the country, the Boston Business Journal reported.

Zipcar’s regional field and fleet operations teams will remain in Boston and other cities after the headquarters closes “to support members and day-to-day service without interruption,” the Avis spokesperson said.

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Brian Shortsleeve, a Republican candidate for governor, said Zipcar’s move was the result of Massachusetts’ taxes and regulations on business.

“Massachusetts is becoming a place where even homegrown success stories can’t afford to stay,” he wrote in a post on X.

The announcement came the same week that Panera Bread said it would lay off 92 employees at its bakery in Franklin and that life sciences company Thermo Fisher Scientific said it would lay off 103 employees and close a facility, also in Franklin.

The Campbell’s Company also said Thursday it would close the Hyannis manufacturing plant of the beloved Cape Cod potato chip brand. The company will lay off 49 people, it said.

“These are not isolated decisions. They are rational business responses to a state that has become increasingly expensive, unpredictable, and hostile to employers,” said Paul Diego Craney, executive director of the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, a conservative business organization. “High taxes, crushing energy costs, and rigid Net Zero climate mandates are making it harder every day for companies to justify staying in Massachusetts.”

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Celtics, Bucks celebrate history in inaugural NBA Pioneers Classic

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Celtics, Bucks celebrate history in inaugural NBA Pioneers Classic


The Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks honored the 75th anniversary of the breaking of the NBA’s color barrier Sunday by squaring off in the inaugural NBA Pioneers Classic.

The game spotlighted Basketball Hall of Famers Chuck Cooper, Nathaniel “Sweetwater” Clifton and Earl Lloyd, who were the first Black players to be drafted, sign an NBA contract and appear in an NBA game, respectively.

Players for both teams wore shooting shirts with Cooper, Clifton and Lloyd’s names emblazoned on the back. Each uniform featured a “Pioneers Classic” patch above the nameplate and a “1950” patch beneath the rear jersey number.

The three legends’ names and jersey numbers also appeared on the TD Garden court and on the stanchion beneath each basket. Relatives of Cooper, Clifton and Lloyd joined Jaylen Brown on the court for a pregame address.

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“Today is the NBA’s first Pioneer Classic, and it’s an honor to speak on the behalf of some of our legends — Nat Clifton, Earl Lloyd and (the) Boston Celtics’ Chuck Cooper,” Brown, who went on to tally 30 points and 13 rebounds in a 107-79 Celtics win, told the Garden crowd. “… A pioneer, by definition, if a leader, is an innovator and a forward thinker. Who will be the pioneers of this generation? On the behalf of the NBA, I want to say thank you — thank you, Boston. Let’s have a good game.”



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Syracuse lacrosse vs. Boston University: Live score, updates

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Syracuse lacrosse vs. Boston University: Live score, updates


Syracuse, N.Y. — The Syracuse lacrosse team takes on the Boston University Terriers at 1 p.m., Sunday in the JMA Wireless Dome.

The game will be available to stream on ACC Network Extra.

See in-game team and individual stats here.

Note: Refresh this page throughout Syracuse’s game vs. Boston University to see the latest updates

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First quarter

Syracuse 1, Boston University 1 – 6:23

BU goalie Connor Phillips appeared in just three games as a freshman in 2025. Now handling the starting gig, Phillips held strong against the Orange early, making three saves on four shots.

Through the first quarter, Spallina attempted anything to get going. He moved the ball three times with a behind the back pass, and shuffled a one-handed pass out of desperation once the shot clock fell under 10 seconds.

Syracuse 1, Boston University 1 – 9:35

The Orange struck iron on their first shot but retained possession on the groundball. After Finn Thomson missed a shot off a crafty pass from Spallina, SU scooped the ball up again. As the shot clock dwindled, Luke Rhoa worked downhill and beat Connor Phillips low to take a 1-0 lead 90 seconds in.

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Syracuse made a stop defensively after BU hit the post too, and the Orange missed the mark on their next shot as Thomson was called for falling into the crease.

Back on the other end, the Terriers tied it up as Ethan Hart found nylon.

Opening faceoff

Multiple offseason position battles were answered quickly. With Ryan out to start the season due to a foot injury, senior Jordan Beck slotted in alongside Dwan and Figueiras. Anderson began on the attack with Deere down and Tyler McCarthy worked into the midfield.

Syracuse secured the opening faceoff on a violation from the Terriers, taking first possession.

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Pregame

Syracuse’s 2025 season began with a pushover game against former goalie John Galloway and Jacksonville. The Orange led within two minutes of the opening faceoff and never looked back as a 10-0 run to start the contest ballooned into a 25-4 win. To kickstart 2026, SU faces a much tougher task.

Out of the Patriot League, the Terriers rank No. 17 per Inside Lacrosse to begin the season. Boston University lost its leading scorer, Jimmy O’Connell, to graduation, but returns three Preseason All-Patriot League players in Connor Kehm, Andrew Pape and Timothy Shannehan.

The two squads scrimmaged ahead of the 2025 season, where sophomore attack Payton Anderson remembers the Terriers matching SU’s physicality with a 10-man ride. Head coach Gary Gait emphasized BU’s 10-man ride as a top challenge the Orange will face in the season opener.

“That’s their bread and butter,” Gait said Friday. “Putting pressure on you to clear the ball and try and decrease your number of possessions.”

Syracuse returns a plethora of key contributors from its 2025 ACC Tournament title and Final Four run in senior captains Joey Spallina, Finn Thomson, Billy Dwan III and Riley Figueiras. Additionally, Michael Leo, Luke Rhoa and Jimmy McCool bring experience in high-pressure situations.

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Gait pointed to the Orange’s short-stick defensive midfield as the “biggest question mark” entering the season. SU lost Carter Rice to the Professional Lacrosse League and brought in Ohio State transfer Dante Bowen to likely fill the void.

Sophomore Cam Ryan was slated to fill the third defensive spot next to Dwan and Figueiras, but will begin the year on the shelf with a foot injury. The season-ending injury to Trey Deere from a car accident adds intrigue for Syracuse’s attack, opening with Owen Hiltz also moving on to the professional ranks.

Syracuse warmed up in Orange long-sleeve shirts with the slogan “Burn the Boats” on the back. Sporting the mantra against a school from Boston is quite ironic. Though it showcases SU’s “us against the world” mentality, entering a pivotal fifth season under Gait. Its quest toward its first national title since 2009 begins versus the Terriers.



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