The New England Patriots' season is, by some miracle, still ongoing. They'll face Seattle in their twelfth Super Bowl, looking to secure the organization's seventh title and first under Mike Vrabel. Despite their incredible success, the team will need to continue improving this offseason.
The Patriots were last in the league in defensive sacks and allowed the sixth-most in 2024. While Vrabel and Zak Kuhr have made additions and schematic changes to drastically improve those numbers, pressure on both offense and defense has remained a major issue throughout the playoffs.
Drake Maye has been sacked 5 times in the last three games, a total that occurred just three times in their 17 regular-season games. Defensively, they've struggled to generate pressure without resorting to heavy blitzes. Part of this is due to Harold Landry's injury, but improvements will still be necessary.
The Patriots should look elsewhere to improve the trenches
The offensive line and edge positions no doubt need improvement, and thankfully, several high-quality free agents will be available to improve both sides of the ball. Tyler Linderbaum and Joel Bitonio stick out as potential options on the offensive line, while Trey Hendrickson and Khalil Mack could be players that bolster the pass rush.
While still rostered, other players could soon become available this offseason, specifically those of the Green Bay Packers.
In a recent article, SB Nation'sJustin Mosqueda suggested that a pair of Pro Bowlers are likely on their way out of Wisconsin: "I think it's a done deal that center Elgton Jenkins and defensive end Rashan Gary are gone."
While releasing two of the team's top players and former draft picks may seem counterintuitive, they would save the Packers $31 million in cap space and the ownership nearly $40 million in cash. As it stands, Green Bay is $10.6 million over the cap and has one playoff win since 2020.
Add in the fact that guard Aaron Banks is already on the books for nearly $25 million and the team acquired Micah Parsons at the beginning of this season, and it makes little sense to keep the pair of ex-Pro Bowlers on the squad in 2026.
Elgton Jenkins and Rashan Gary would makes sense in New England
Conveniently for New England, both potential Packers cap casualties mentioned by Mosqueda would fill positions of need for New England. If they were to be released, they should be one of the first teams to pounce.
Starting with Jenkins, the former Mississippi State linemen has been one of the league's most versatile players since his rookie season in 2019. He's played at least 300 snaps at every position but right guard in his career thus far, making the move to be the starting center full-time this past season under Matt LaFleur.
Penalties have been Jenkins' kryptonite, with 40 during his seven regular seasons. His blocking, however, has generally been very good. His career 3.4% pressure rate is on par with the best guards in football, the position he played the majority of his career.
New England could release Garrett Bradbury and save nearly $5 million at the end of the season. Jared Wilson could slide from left guard to his more collegiate center position, while Jenkins could slide in to play left guard. He'd also provide insurance should Will Campbell sustain another injury at left tackle.
Gary would be another highly sought-after free agent. His size (around 280 lbs) gives him a legitimate edge setter, while he still racked up 7.5 sacks this season. K'Lavon Chaisson is an impending free agent, but Gary has a stronger history of success than the former LSU Tiger.
If they could find a way to bring Chiasson back while also signing Gary, New England's pass rush would see a major boost in production.
Jenkins would likely cost in the range of $12 million per season, while Gary could cost even more. Signing the latter to a three-year deal at that rate seems like the type of move that could push the offensive line to the next level of stability. Add in a long-term replacement to Morgan Moses, and Drake Maye would be protected for years to come.