Jared Wilson’s switch back to center sets up a familiar Drake Maye connection

Jared Wilson, a Georgia product and 2025 guard, is set to move back to center for the 2026 Patriots season as Drake Maye’s snap partner.

FOXBOROUGH — Jared Wilson remembers the kind of talk that lingers for years: two prospects, one shared destination, and a plan built around a quarterback at the other end of the line.

Thursday, at New England’s new training facility next to Gillette Stadium, Wilson leaned back into that memory as he prepares to switch back to his natural position. For the 2026 season, the Patriots offensive lineman is expected to return to center — the spot where he’ll snap to Drake Maye.

“Oh, man, it’s cool. It’s a full circle moment,” Wilson said. “I remember us talking about it a couple weeks ago. It’s just like, ‘Dang, we committed North Carolina together, and were this close to getting there, and then [I] veered off to Georgia, and now we’re both here.’”

He smiled at how the pieces have converged. “I’m the center, and he’s the quarterback. It all worked out great.”

For Wilson, the connection to Maye runs deeper than the current depth chart.. Even though the 22-year-old primarily played left guard during his rookie season in New England. he was drafted out of the University of Georgia as a center.. Before Wilson committed elsewhere. both players were originally tied to the University of North Carolina in the recruiting cycle: Wilson was a top-ranked recruit alongside Maye. picturing a college career in which he would protect Maye from the middle.

That plan didn’t hold. Wilson decommitted from UNC and signed with Georgia in 2020.

Six years later, with Maye now in New England, Wilson’s career is bending back toward that same role.. The shift is also a practical one inside the Patriots’ rebuilding alignment up front.. Wilson’s move comes with a vacancy at center after New England made multiple changes to its offensive line this offseason.

The alterations followed what the Patriots described as a rough stretch for Maye in Super Bowl LX.. During the game against the Seahawks defense, Maye was under sustained pressure.. In response. New England traded veteran center Garrett Bradbury to the Chicago Bears and signed former first-round pick Alijah Vera-Tucker to play left guard.

Wilson has been quick to sound appreciative of the new room mate. “Alijah’s a great dude. Love him,” he said. “An athletic freak. Crazy smart, smart player. He’s going to be a great guy to have in the room.”

With Bradbury now gone and Vera-Tucker positioned at guard, Wilson is expected to take over the starting center spot.

“Very excited,” Wilson said when asked about moving back to center. “Very excited. I’ll keep it at that.”

His excitement is paired with a clear-eyed acknowledgment that the last season wasn’t spent in the role he grew into at Georgia.. Wilson started his career at Georgia as a backup lineman. then saw his stock rise after becoming the Bulldogs’ starting center during the 2024 season.. He started every game at center for Georgia that year, earning Second-Team All-SEC honors.

Then, in 2025 with Bradbury still on the roster, Wilson shifted to left guard as a rookie — a move that gave him a different kind of experience, even as New England’s season ended with an unexpected run to Super Bowl LX.

The adjustment for Wilson now is both physical and mental: returning to center means carrying the responsibilities of line calls and communication in a way that is different from playing guard.

He said that time at New England helped him get familiar with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels’ system. even if last year’s learning curve was steep.. “Having a year under my belt. that kind of helps him with the vocalization part of [moving to center]. ” Wilson said.. “Just knowing the guys in the room.. We’ve been together for a year. so it’s easier to kind of communicate with everybody in the room because you know everybody.. We’ve got some good guys, but everybody’s great when it comes to communicating.”

Wilson also described McDaniels’ playbook as difficult in his first season.. “Josh’s playbook … it was tough last year,” he said.. “It took me a whole year to figure out that playbook.. But just getting thrown into the fire Year One. and just having to just go and go and go. it definitely makes you grow.”

If Wilson’s switch to center is. on paper. a positional tweak. the way he talked about it Thursday suggested it is also a personal checkpoint — one that links his earliest recruiting dreams with his present job description.. In New England. it now comes down to one simple idea he repeated like a promise: him in the middle. Maye behind him. and everything that led there finally in sync.

New England Patriots Jared Wilson Drake Maye offensive line Super Bowl LX Josh McDaniels