Patriots: 3 trades New England can make before deadline to further playoff push

2. Trade for Ryan Kerrigan

The Patriots’ pass rush has been the very definition of average this season.

Losing the likes of edge rushers Jamie Collins and Kyle Van Noy to free agency was always going to hurt the Patriots’ pass rush. However, the task to replace their production became all the more difficult after linebacker Dont’a Hightower opted out of the 2020 season.

The Patriots’ efficiency at rushing opposing quarterbacks has unsurprisingly suffered the consequences as they currently rank 25th in the NFL with just 1.5 sacks per game through the first month. For added context, Belichick’s group also ranks 15th in total QB hurries (58) and 16th in QB knockdown percentage (7.6%).

That’s precisely why trading for Ryan Kerrigan is a great idea. For starters, he’s currently in the final year of his contract, so Belichick can decide based on his play whether or not he wants to sign him to a short-term extension. The four-time Pro Bowler has become an afterthought on Washington’s stout defensive line, and you can bet that he’s clamoring for more playing time in a contract year.

Kerrigan is a consummate professional, so he might not push for a trade, but he should at least let his frustration known to head coach Ron Rivera and the front office. Injuries have been a concern for the 32-year-old vet of late, but he also went the first eight years of his career without missing a game while being remarkably productive.

Since his rookie year in 2011, Kerrigan has logged at least 8.5 sacks in every season except 2019, when he missed four games due to injury. To say that he would change the entire dynamic of the Patriots’ front seven would be an understatement and he could be theirs for nothing more than a late-round draft pick.