Patriots News: Kyle Dugger, Rob Gronkowski, Drake Maye and DeVante Parker

Get caught up with all the latest news surrounding the New England Patriots as they look at this year's rookie class at the NFL Combine this weekend.

Patriots have reportedly extended an offer to Kyle Dugger to remain with the team

Coming into the 2024 offseason, the Patriots were set to have a long list of players heading to free agency, many of whom have become prominent pieces of the team. Near the top of that list is Kyle Dugger, who is expected to test the free agent market for the first time in his career.

Because of his increased role on defense over the last four years, he was expected to be a prioritized re-signing for New England. But due to the expected high interest in him from teams around the league and the salary they would likely offer, there was a belief he may seek to sign elsewhere for next season.

Fortunately, a new report indicates that may not be the case, as Karen Guregian and Mark Daniels of MassLive revealed the Patriots have extended an offer to Dugger to remain with the team in an effort to re-sign him before free agency begins on March 13.

Both Jerod Mayo and Eliot Wolf have emphasized their desire to keep the safety this offseason, hence the early contract offer, and locking him down before he can speak to other teams is certainly a smart move.

It would be a great way to kick off the new era in Foxboro and hopefully also mean they'll try to do the same with some of the other integral pending free agents, like Mike Onwenu. But it looks like we will need to be more patient with that news.