And so it begins. The 2025-26 Patriots season is in the books, and it far outdistanced any hopes and dreams. Now? The coaching staff has to play catch-up. They are at least five weeks behind on free agency and the draft. Both will be here before we know it.
Over the last two seasons, I had time to present a roster review by position groups, followed by a separate free agency look-ahead. We ain’t got that time, people! You know how, when you go to lunch at a Chinese food restaurant, they have combinations? Well, this is the BSJ version of that. I’ve got to pack both the review and the preview into one. That starts today with a deeper look at edge rusher.
Under contract: Harold Landry, Anfernee Jennings, Elijah Ponder, Bradyn Swinson, Amari Gainer
Free agent: K’Lavon Chaisson
Let’s start with Chaisson. He has said he wants to return. That’s what you’re supposed to say, especially after a career year. But the 26-year-old has never had a big payday, and this may very well be the time to strike.
Chaisson had a career-high in sacks (8) and QB pressures (54, per PFF), and then was a beast in the postseason, at least until the Super Bowl (a theme across all positions on that last Sunday of the campaign). So now what?
PFF estimates a three-year deal worth $45 million, while Spotrac sets Chaisson’s value at $26.7 million over the same three-year period. The latter would be a no-brainer, in my opinion. However, I’d be surprised if his number is low.
Chaisson’s bookend, Landry, came out flying to begin his first season in New England, with 3.5 sacks combined in weeks 1 and 2. But the Mike Vrabel fave hurt his knee in week 6 – one that will require offseason surgery – and while he didn’t miss a game until the final two weekends of the regular season, Landry just didn’t have the same kind of burst and bendability at the top of his rush. That he still finished with 8.5 sacks (led the team) was a testament to his football smarts and to the scheme/guys around him. Landry, who turns 30 in June, carries the Pats’ 6th-highest cap hit heading into 2026 ($16.3 million, with $11 million guaranteed).
Jennings could have been a pain in the ass this season. He could have sulked and pouted (see Keion White). He wouldn’t be the first guy to do that, nor would he be the last. The coaching change and stylistic change defensively had him on the trade block pretty much the moment Vrabel and company showed up. But with no deal to be found, Jennings kept his head down and, as Landry’s limitations became more and more obvious, turned into a valuable piece late in the year and into the postseason. He’s never going to wow you with his pass-rushing ability, but he remains the team’s best edge setter. So does he have a future here? Jennings has no guaranteed money left on his deal, giving the Pats the option of just walking away this winter, keeping him on the roster for a $4.8 million cap hit, or potentially restructuring.
Perhaps Ponder will influence a decision on Jennings. The UDFA earned a spot on the 53 coming out of camp, got special teams reps, then, with Landry hurting, contributed more defensively. He beat Tristan Wirfs for his first career sack back in week 8, and added three more before the regular season concluded. Ponder then helped harass Jarrett Stidham in the AFC title game (4 pressures and that critical fumble recovery).
“He’s got all the talent in the world,” Vrabel said in late December. “I think just understanding this league, understanding the urgency of it, how quickly things happen, special teams, transitioning to third down, helping us or being a role player on first and second down, and trying, for me, not to take those things for granted that a young player that played at a smaller school in California (Cal Poly) … We’ve dropped him in some coverage sometimes. We’ve rushed them. He plays on special teams. So, there’s a lot of things that he’s done for us.”
Ponder is cheap, fast, and still developing. For all the talk about Efton Chism, this kid was by far the gem of the UDFA class and looks like a keeper.
As for Swinson, he was one of my favorite selections the Pats made in the 2025 draft (5th round). But he showed little in the spring and summer, got cut, and ended up on the practice squad. Swinson appeared in just three games and didn’t distinguish himself in those opportunities. For someone who was one of the better pass rushers in his draft class, it was a disappointing year.
Gainer, meanwhile, was signed to the practice squad in mid-December, and I couldn’t pick him out of a lineup if my life depended on it.
This is a pretty strong group, and includes several players the Pats were connected to at one point or another this past year. Meanwhile, Maxx Crosby looms over the entire proceedings, but that move would have to be made via trade. He won’t come cheap.
