The Patriots must reload.
Fortunately for their fans, after a 4-13 finish last season and zero playoff wins in five years, the Pats are flush with salary cap space with NFL free agency beginning next week.
With over $100 million in room, the Patriots have the most cap room in the league and need to start spending cash to hit the league’s spending floor. The NFL’s open tampering period begins Monday at noon ET, when teams are permitted to contact and enter into contract negotiations with the certified agents of players who will become unrestricted free agents. The new league year officially begins Wednesday at 4 p.m. ET, when teams are able to execute a new contract with free agents.
After parting ways with Bill Belichick this offseason, they have new leadership in head coach Jerod Mayo and director of scouting — and de facto general manager — Eliot Wolf, who brought on an almost entirely new staff on offense and a supplemented defensive staff.
The team hit rock bottom in 2023 and now has needs across a mostly barren roster. To preview free agency, the Herald is publishing daily stories about free agents at key positions of need.
Most attention this offseason will be focused on improvements the Patriots must make on offense, but the defense — one of the NFL’s best in 2023 — could use a boost, as well in free agency.
The Patriots have a space to fill opposite 2023 first-round pick Christian Gonzalez at outside cornerback. And two edge defenders drafted in 2020, Josh Uche and Anfernee Jennings, are both free agents. Jennings typically plays on early downs as a run defender, while Uche is a situational pass rusher. The Patriots could bring on two players to fill those roles separately or find one three-down defender.
Overall, the Patriots needed more help rushing the passer last season, so they should be looking for players who can make an impact on third down.
This would require a trade, since he was given the franchise tag this offseason, but Sneed, 27, is one of the best free-agent defenders available. It would likely take just a second- or third-round pick to get a deal done for the Chiefs cornerback.
Sneed, who’s 6-foot-1, 192 pounds, would pair well with Gonzalez, allowing Jonathan Jones and Marcus Jones to play in the slot. He allowed 42 catches on 81 targets for 406 yards with no touchdowns, two interceptions, a career-high 10 pass breakups and a 55.9 passer rating in 2023.
Hunter is the type of every-down edge defender that could fill both Uche and Jennings’ roles on the defense.
He thrived in a similar unit run by Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, generating 80 pressures, 16.5 sacks and seven QB hits in 2023. Hunter, a captain in Minnesota, will be expensive, but he fills a major need to make the defense more dangerous in 2024.
Awuzie was a phenomenal signing for the Bengals in 2021, but he tore his ACL in 2022, and his play dropped off last season.
Still, the 6-foot, 202-pound cornerback would pair well on the outside with Gonzalez, and the Patriots wouldn’t have to give up a draft pick to acquire him. He allowed 38 catches on 56 targets for 488 yards with three touchdowns and three pass breakups in 2023.
Luvu has been one of the NFL’s most underrated defenders over the last three seasons in Carolina. Patriots executive Pat Stewart was with the Panthers when Luvu was brought over from the Cowboys.
Now Luvu is set to cash in again after generating 20 pressures and 5.5 sacks as one of the NFL’s top blitzing linebackers in 2023. Luvu primarily plays in the box but can also line up on the edge.
A reunion? New inside linebackers coach Dont’a Hightower is Van Noy’s former teammate, and outside linebackers coach Drew Wilkins coached him in Baltimore last season.
Van Noy will be 34 years old next season, but his play as a complete edge defender hasn’t dropped off. He’d bring an edge as a defensive leader with two Super Bowl rings.