One of the most exciting stories of the New England Patriots camp and preseason was the surprise emergence of Efton Chism. The receiver was an undrafted free agent signing out of Eastern Washington. The energy and underdog mentality that Chism brought to the roster understandably invited comparisons to Pats legend Julian Edelman. However, it seems that this is off to a bit of a rough start with Chism not being a part of the active roster for Sunday's 20-13 loss at the hands of Pete Carroll's Las Vegas Raiders.
It was a gut-check moment for Pats fans who believed that this year might finally be different. New England's defense played well early in the game and consistently bought time for Drake Maye's new-look offense to figure things out. There simply was never a point when it felt the Pats had control, with Las Vegas quarterback Geno Smith getting rolling early in the second half and grabbing the lead.
Patriots Camp and Preseason Star Efton Chism Listed Among New England's Week 1 Inactives
Mike Reiss reported the Patriots' inactive players, with Chism and corner Christian Gonzalez headlining the list. Gonzalez was expected to miss time, and perhaps this was the first sign that Week 1 wasn't going to go as planned for New England.
Still, it was frustrating to see the young star among players unable to participate in Sunday's opener. It is easy to imagine things playing out far differently for Geno Smith and the Raider offense if New England's best defender were on the field.
Regardless, the Patriots are 0-1 and now find themselves facing questions offensively after an underwhelming start. Something that fans will be quick to point out might be remedied by the addition of an overlooked receiver. Chism is a fun camp story, but it turns out that he is far from the proven options the Patriots have on the current roster.
Still, there is reason to wonder if the Pats would be wise to give the Eastern Washington product an early chance. There isn't a downside to switching out the final receiver spot for the undersized receiver and finding out if it was just a camp story or perhaps the start of something else. Chism showed off an ability in camp to find open space and make the difficult catch.
These are two skill sets that Maye could obviously use more of in the Patriots offense. Week 2 is a very winnable game against the Miami Dolphins, leaving room to wonder if it could be the perfect time to elevate Chism to make his debut. This doesn't mean starting off by putting the inexperienced receiver in for a heavy workload. Rather, give Chism a handful of snaps and see if anything comes from it.
Considering how rough the 2025 season has started out, fans could use the boost and distraction of the popular camp player making his debut. It is at least worth consideration when you look at the offense and attempt to find a spark after Sunday's underwhelming debut.