New England Patriots
“Burst and elusiveness are on Howell’s rush menu and he pairs it with a refreshing inside spin counter.”
Howell recorded 11.5 sacks this past season with the Aggies. AP Photo/Gerald Herbert
Bolstering their pass rush stands as one of many offseason tasks for Eliot Wolf, Mike Vrabel, and the rest of the Patriots’ top brass.
Beyond the potential scenario of losing K’Lavon Chaisson (7.5 sacks) in free agency, New England’s current crop of edge rushers was already in need of a lift. Only six teams posted fewer sacks during the regular season than the Patriots (35.0).
As such, it should come as little surprise that a new 2026 NFL mock draft from ESPN’s Jordan Reid has New England taking a pass-rushing force with their first-round pick (No. 31 overall).
Reid has New England using their 31st overall pick on Texas A&M edge rusher Cashius Howell — a twitchy and explosive athlete who could develop into a heat-seeking missile on Vrabel’s defense.
“Howell is a pass-rushing menace who tends to be a disruptive presence,” Reid wrote. “He has an advanced repertoire of pass-rushing moves, and his 11.5 sacks last season ranked seventh among all FBS defensive linemen.”
Howell was a thorn in the side of opposing offenses in 2025, leading the SEC in total pressures with 41. If New England is looking for a pure blitzer who can sap momentum on critical drives, Howell could fit the bill.
The only knocks against Howell are his smaller frame and questions around whether or not he can hold up as a true three-down player on an NFL defense.
“Burst and elusiveness are on Howell’s rush menu and he pairs it with a refreshing inside spin counter,” NFL writer and draft expert Lance Zierlein wrote of Howell. “Though threatening, his rush could use more cohesive sequencing and better hand work to fully unlock its potential.
“As a run defender he’s frequently knocked around at the point and struggles to consistently execute tasks asked of an NFL edge-setter. Howell might not be a three-down player right away, but his ability to create pressure sets him up for a role as a designated rusher, at minimum.”
New England has several areas of the depth chart that it could address with its first-round pick, including the offensive line, safety, tight end, linebacker, and edge rushers.
Even if the Patriots are able to retain Chaisson and hand him a nice pay raise, New England could use another explosive presence in that segment of the roster, especially with veteran Harold Landry Jr.’s game slipping during the 2025 campaign due to a knee injury.
Speaking at the NFL Scouting Combine last week, Vrabel acknowledged that this upcoming draft class has no shortage of physical edge rushers who could be fits for New England’s defense.
“I think that there’s got to be a violence. There’s got to be an ability to move off the football and to create some sort of disruption,” Vrabel said of what he’s looking for in an edge rusher. “You have to be able to factor in on the quarterback. You have to be able to make plays on the football.”
Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.
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