The Patriots reached the mountaintop with a classic 28-24 Super Bowl victory one week ago, secured largely through the services of a sixth round pick (Tom Brady), a seventh round pick (Julian Edelman), and an undrafted free agent (Malcolm Butler). Long criticized for some of his team building decisions, such as the Logan Mankins trade, Bill Belichick showcased a deft touch in the 2014 season.

Of course, the Patriots’ Super Bowl win ironically puts them behind in the 2015 offseason, though clearly it’s a problem that every NFL team covets annually. Mere days removed from a victory parade through Boston, the Patriots are already busily building for next year. Here’s a list of New England’s free agents, as well as a look at some of their other priorities.

Revis

Without a doubt, the top priority for the Patriots is bringing star cornerback Darrelle Revis back on a new contract. While he’s technically not a free agent, the contract that Revis currently has is merely a “placeholder,” and must be redone to bring his total 2015 cap number down.

The added incentive to redo the deal is caused by the fact that if New England is unable to restructure, Revis could very well reunite with either his former team (the Jets) or his former coach (Rex Ryan with the Bills). Either scenario is an unenviable one for the Patriots.

Free agents

On top of a list of restricted free agents, the Patriots have these players to re-sign:

Stephen Gostkowski

Dan Connolly

Devin McCourty

Jonathan Casillas

Akeem Ayers

Shane Vereen

Alan Branch

Stevan Ridley

Danny Aiken

Chris White

Of this group, McCourty is probably the most valuable. Vereen’s instrumental role in the Super Bowl game plan (he led the team in receptions) could hurt the Patriots’ chances of brining him back. Ridley looks the most likely to not return, unless he comes back a on serious discount.

Draft priorities

With the NFL draft combine in less than two weeks, serious 2015 discussion is already underway. The Patriots will have a number of draft needs. As they’ve proven for 15 seasons now, Belichick is more than capable of finding a late-round gem. That said, a more underrated area of success has been (ironically) the first round, where virtually every Patriots first rounder of the Belichick era has been a success. The Hall of Fame coach doesn’t get enough credit for being so consistent in the most important round.

Early projections have the Patriots taking defensive tackle Carl Davis from Iowa, but expect that prediction to change roughly 3,000 times over the next two months.

Conclusion

Obviously, New England enters the offseason in a position of strength, even with the supposed “lost time” of winning the Super Bowl. They’re the class of their division, and have a standard assortment of draft picks for Belichick to work with.

The most telling statistic is one that seems contradictory: New England was the second youngest overall roster to ever win a Super Bowl, even with veteran Tom Brady at quarterback. The fact is that the Patriots are poised to challenge for additional Lombardi trophies for future seasons to come, but most fill in the roster by answering several major offseason questions.

Featured image via Ben Resnicow