Andy Borregales will go into the New England Patriots' season opener against the Seattle Seahawks with a different look. The Patriots kicker changed his jersey number from No. 36 to No. 8 before the game at Lumen Field.
The number switch gives Borregales a small but meaningful personal reset after a first NFL season in which he wore No. 36 and finished with 134 points. It also connects him back to the first number he ever wore when he started playing football at five years old.
Why No. 8 mattered to Borregales
Borregales said No. 8 was the first number he wore as a child, and that history helped make the change an easy one. After middle school, he moved into numbers in the 30s, in part because of José Borregales. In his first NFL season, he kept No. 36 with the Patriots, but now he returns to the number that started it all.
The change also became possible after Stefon Diggs departed New England, leaving No. 8 available. For a player whose role is usually measured by consistency and routine, the jersey change is a reminder that even a kicker's identity can still carry personal meaning.
Patriots kicker enters 2026 with mixed recent form
There is a football angle to this, too. Borregales was selected by the Patriots in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft with the 182nd overall pick, and he turned in a strong rookie year. He also had an uneven first performance of the 2026 preseason, missing three kicks against the Indianapolis Colts.
Still, the Patriots saw enough over the final two preseason games that Borregales did not miss another kick. That is the backdrop as New England prepares for Seattle: a second-year kicker coming off a productive rookie season, a rough preseason opener, and now a return to the number he first wore as a five-year-old.
In Buffalo last season, Borregales showed why the Patriots trust him when he delivered a 52-yard field goal with 15 seconds remaining to beat New England 23-20. Moments like that are what make a kicker's season easy to remember, even if the jersey number changes along the way.
