Patriots Send Strong Message With Under-the-Radar Signing

The New England Patriots' pass rush was an absolute disaster last season, as they finished last in the NFL with just 28 sacks.

As expected, the Patriots went to work addressing the issue in free agency, agreeing to lucrative deals with edge rusher Harold Landry and defensive tackle Milton Williams. They selected Bradyn Swinson in the NFL Draft, too.

But New England also made a sneaky good move in free agency that is definitely flying under the radar: they signed K'Lavon Chaisson, and Brian Hines of Pats Pulpit made it very clear that the Patriots sent a pretty strong message with the decision to add the former first-round pick.

"While the soon-to-be 26-year-old did not live up to expectations in Jacksonville, Chaisson flashed his potential with Las Vegas last season tallying a career-high five sacks — four over the final six weeks of the season," Hines wrote. "The one-year, $3 million contract given to Chaisson this offseason is a strong bet by New England that the arrow will continue to point upwards."

Chaisson was highly touted coming out of LSU back in 2020, but he barely produced over four seasons with the Jaguars, amassing a grand total of five sacks. He then equaled that total with the Raiders in 2024, finally demonstrating the potential everyone knew he had.

Of course, whether or not the Houston native can continue that level of production with the Patriots this coming season remains to be seen, but landing Chaisson at $3 million is a bona fide steal.

There is definitely a chance that Chaisson completely breaks out in New England this year, especially with Landry playing alongside of him.

The Pats' rotation at edge rusher is suddenly rather interesting, and if Chaisson maintains his uptick, it could actually become decent. Clearly, the Patriots believe in him.