And so it begins. The 2025-26 Patriots season is in the books, and it far outdistanced any hopes and dreams. Now? The coaching staff has to play catch-up. They are at least five weeks behind on free agency and the draft. Both will be here before we know it.
Over the last two seasons, I had time to present a roster review by position groups, followed by a separate free agency look-ahead. We ain’t got that time, people! You know how, when you go to lunch at a Chinese food restaurant, they have combinations? Well, this is the BSJ version of that. I’ve got to pack both the review and the preview into one. That starts today with a deeper look at edge rusher.
Under contract: Harold Landry, Anfernee Jennings, Elijah Ponder, Bradyn Swinson, Amari Gainer
Free agent: K’Lavon Chaisson
Let’s start with Chaisson. He has said he wants to return. That’s what you’re supposed to say, especially after a career year. But the 26-year-old has never had a big payday, and this may very well be the time to strike.
Chaisson had a career-high in sacks (8) and QB pressures (54, per PFF), and then was a beast in the postseason, at least until the Super Bowl (a theme across all positions on that last Sunday of the campaign). So now what?
PFF estimates a three-year deal worth $45 million, while Spotrac sets Chaisson’s value at $26.7 million over the same three-year period. The latter would be a no-brainer, in my opinion. However, I’d be surprised if his number is low.
Chaisson’s bookend, Landry, came out flying to begin his first season in New England, with 3.5 sacks combined in weeks 1 and 2. But the Mike Vrabelfave hurt his knee in week 6 - one that will require offseason surgery - and while he didn’t miss a game until the final two weekends of the regular season, Landry just didn’t have the same kind of burst and bendability at the top of his rush. That he still finished with 8.5 sacks (led the team) was a testament to his football smarts and to the scheme/guys around him. Landry, who turns 30 in June, carries the Pats’ 6th-highest cap hit heading into 2026 ($16.3 million, with $11 million guaranteed).
Jennings could have been a pain in the ass this season. He could have sulked and pouted (see Keion White). He wouldn’t be the first guy to do that, nor would he be the last. The coaching change and stylistic change defensively had him on the trade block pretty much the moment Vrabel and company showed up. But with no deal to be found, Jennings kept his head down and, as Landry’s limitations became more and more obvious, turned into a valuable piece late in the year and into the postseason. He’s never going to wow you with his pass-rushing ability, but he remains the team’s best edge setter. So does he have a future here? Jennings has no guaranteed money left on his deal, giving the Pats the option of just walking away this winter, keeping him on the roster for a $4.8 million cap hit, or potentially restructuring.
Perhaps Ponder will influence a decision on Jennings. The UDFA earned a spot on the 53 coming out of camp, got special teams reps, then, with Landry hurting, contributed more defensively. He beat Tristan Wirfs for his first career sack back in week 8, and added three more before the regular season concluded. Ponder then helped harass Jarrett Stidham in the AFC title game (4 pressures and that critical fumble recovery).
“He's got all the talent in the world,” Vrabel said in late December. “I think just understanding this league, understanding the urgency of it, how quickly things happen, special teams, transitioning to third down, helping us or being a role player on first and second down, and trying, for me, not to take those things for granted that a young player that played at a smaller school in California (Cal Poly) ... We’ve dropped him in some coverage sometimes. We've rushed them. He plays on special teams. So, there's a lot of things that he's done for us.”
Ponder is cheap, fast, and still developing. For all the talk about Efton Chism, this kid was by far the gem of the UDFA class and looks like a keeper.
As for Swinson, he was one of my favorite selections the Pats made in the 2025 draft (5th round). But he showed little in the spring and summer, got cut, and ended up on the practice squad. Swinson appeared in just three games and didn’t distinguish himself in those opportunities. For someone who was one of the better pass rushers in his draft class, it was a disappointing year.
Gainer, meanwhile, was signed to the practice squad in mid-December, and I couldn’t pick him out of a lineup if my life depended on it.
FREE AGENT CLASS
This is a pretty strong group, and includes several players the Pats were connected to at one point or another this past year. Meanwhile, Maxx Crosby looms over the entire proceedings, but that move would have to be made via trade. He won’t come cheap.
1. Trey Hendrickson(Bengals/31 years old) - From a pure pass-rusher perspective, he’s the guy in this class. However, Hendrickson is coming off a season in which he played just 7 games and needed core muscle surgery. He still recorded 8 QB hits and four sacks in limited work, and if the medicals check out, he’ll get a good chunk of cash, at least for the upcoming season. PFF estimates a one-year deal for $21 million ($17 mil guaranteed). Good locker room fit. Intense. Nicknamed “Blackout” Trey because his on-field persona is a 180 from his off-field (i.e., he is an assassin on game day).
2. Odafe Oweh(LA Chargers/27 years old) - No one in this class is likely to command as much money as Oweh. PFF predicts 4 years for $77 million ($40 million guaranteed). If you go based on how he played for the Chargers after being acquired in a trade with the Ravens, you can convince yourself Oweh is just coming into his own. He was 11th in pass-rush win rate post-trade, and then ate up the Patriots in the Wild Card round (3 sacks, 2 FF). He’s tall (6’5”) and has those go-go gadget arms (34.5”) that you desire in edge defenders. As a run defender, Oweh is mid (as the kids would say).
3. Jaelen Phillips(Philadelphia, 26 years old) - After being traded to Philly at the deadline, Phillips had 44 QB pressures in 9 games, including the playoffs. Yes, he was consistently single-blocked because of who the Eagles had in that front 7, but it was the first time since his second year in the league (2022) that Phillips looked like an impact player. Here’s the big concern: Phillips' health history. He had lower leg injuries (ACL and Achilles) that cost him large parts of the 2023 and 2024 seasons, wrist surgery in 2018 (moped accident), and suffered a number of concussions collegiately. PFF projects a one-year contract for $15 million. My suspicion is that it will take more than one guaranteed year to land him.
4. Boye Mafe (Seattle, 27 years old) - I’m a fan. Let’s start there. The Pats are too. They spoke with the Seahawks at the deadline about Mafe, but Seattle wisely chose to keep him. I’d say that worked out nicely for them. The 6’3”, 261-pounder is an above-average run defender and has 91 QB pressures and 8 sacks over the last two seasons. I draw that line because he became more part of a rotation up front than the surefire starter he was in 2023 (pre-Mike Macdonald). That year, he had 58 pressures and 9 sacks. Bottom line? Mafe is an explosive player even at that size. PFF estimates a three-year contract for $49 million ($30 million guaranteed).
5. Dre’Mont Jones(Baltimore, 29 years old) - Another player the Patriots kicked the tires on around the trade deadline, much like Phillips and Mafe. He is, however, a different type of player. More of an interior pass rusher than those above at 6’3”, 281 pounds. I wondered about his fit during the season, and I still have questions. But Jones is an Ohio State product and has been a consistent performer since entering the league in 2019, recording 40 or more QB pressures in each of the last five seasons, including a career-high 51 this past year with Tennessee and Baltimore. PFF believes he’s in line for $20 million over two years ($13 million guaranteed).
6. Arnold Ebiketie (Atlanta, 27 years old) - The former 2nd round pick never quite developed into what was expected of him when the Falcons took him in round two of the 2022 draft, showing flashes of brilliance followed by bouts of inconsistency. But Ebiketie is a violent player, and there's a bit of untapped potential that began to emerge during his final season with Atlanta, when his role was reduced after a pair of first-round picks at the same positions (Jalon Walker and James Pearce) got playing time ahead of him. Ebiketie finished with a 16.8% pass rush win rate, the highest of his career. PFF projects a two-year deal for $16 million ($10.5 million guaranteed).
Others of note: Joey Bosa (Buffalo), Khalil Mack (LA Chargers), Kwity Paye (Indy), Malcolm Koonce (Vegas), Arden Key (Tenn/played for Vrabel), and Joseph Ossai (Cincy). **Also, after the publishing of this story, there's a report that says the Dolphins will release Bradley Chubb. Add him to the list.
