New England Patriots
“I don’t allow 40 times and things like that to determine the kind of player I am.”
Khalil Jacobs has been a standout so far in training camp. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Khalil Jacobs had a productive season at the University of Missouri in 2025, recording 47 total tackles with three sacks and two pass breakups.
But the versatile linebacker didn’t hear his name called during the 2026 NFL Draft, a sobering end to weeks of anticipation — further dulled by the fact he only had one pre-draft meeting with an NFL club in the spring.
That one team? The Patriots.
And even though New England didn’t utilize any of its draft capital to select Jacobs, his meeting with Mike Vrabel still stood out to the Patriots head coach.
“He came here on a visit, and I was trying to just give him a hard time about his 40, and he was like, ‘Oh, that was the timing.” I’m like, “Thirty-two teams timed your 40 wrong.” Just giving him a hard time,” Vrabel said.
But something clearly stood out to Vrabel and his staff about Jacobs, given that they eventually signed him as an undrafted free agent in May.
And sure enough, Jacobs is validating his comments about playing beyond his previous testing measurables (4.77 40-yard dash).
“To his credit, he plays a lot faster than whatever his 40 was,” Vrabel said. I don’t even know what it was, but he has a play speed about him, and sometimes he knows where he’s going, and sometimes he doesn’t, but he still kind of goes pretty quick wherever he decides to go.”
Through the first two-plus weeks of training camp, Jacobs seems intent on joining the long line of undrafted free agents who have carved out regular roles in New England — including Efton Chism, Jakobi Meyers, David Andrews, Jonathan Jones, and others.
In an already thin Patriots linebacker corps, Jacobs is starting to emerge as a dynamic option on Zak Kuhr’s defense.
While New England’s linebackers are led by Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss, Jacobs and 2022 third-round pick Chad Muma are seemingly solidifying their spots as depth options ahead of free-agent pickups like K.J. Britt.
Even if Jacobs isn’t necessarily a burner, he’s continued to make plays so far in camp — be it dialing up pressure off a blitz or dropping back in coverage when called upon.
“We play football. We’re not track runners,” Jacobs said. “I have tremendous game speed, so I don’t allow 40 times and things like that to determine the kind of player I am.”
Jacobs was one of the standouts during Friday’s intra-squad scrimmage on the practice fields behind Gillette Stadium — forcing Drake Maye into an incompletion off a quick throwaway before batting down a pass from the Patriots’ starting QB near the end of practice.
Jacobs — who stressed that his mindset on the gridiron is “see ball, get ball” — still has a ways to go before officially shoring up a spot on New England’s roster.
But as the competitiveness in camp ramps up this week ahead of a joint practice with the Colts on Tuesday and a preseason bout on Thursday, Jacobs is making good on the opportunity that the Patriots presented him.
“This was the only team I visited,” Jacobs said. “It was kind of a blatant answer [about] who actually wanted me. I want whoever wants me. And these guys showed me love. And so I chose them and got love back.”
Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.
Get the latest Boston sports news
Receive updates on your favorite Boston teams, straight from our newsroom to your inbox.
